Quinn Hughes

Quintin Jerome Hughes (born October 14, 1999) is an American professional ice hockey player who is a defenseman for the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). Hughes was drafted seventh overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2018 NHL entry draft and played his first seven seasons with the team, serving as captain from 2023 until his trade to the Wild in 2025. Before the draft, he was considered a top prospect. Showing impressive offensive prowess as a defenseman since the beginning of his time with the Canucks, he was nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's best rookie in 2020. He holds several Canucks and NHL records for defensemen, and won the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 2024 as the NHL's best defenseman.

Following success with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, Hughes joined the University of Michigan for the 2017–18 season. There he set a new record for most assists by a Michigan freshman defenseman and was named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team and the All-Big Ten Second Team.

Internationally, Hughes has represented the United States at the 2018 and 2019 World Junior Championships. He made his senior national team debut at the 2018 World Championship where he helped them win bronze, and played a pivotal role in the American victory at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Hughes is from a family of ice hockey players; his younger brother Jack was drafted first overall by the New Jersey Devils in the 2019 NHL entry draft, while his youngest brother Luke was drafted fourth overall in the 2021 NHL entry draft, also by the Devils. His mother Ellen Weinberg-Hughes played for the United States women's national ice hockey team and his father was the director of player development for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Early life

Hughes was born in Orlando, Florida where his father, Jim Hughes, was an assistant coach for the Orlando Solar Bears. His mother is Jewish and his father is Catholic. His grandfather, Marty, was a former Marine and battalion chief with the New York City Fire Department; he came out of retirement to assist firefighters in Queens during the September 11 attacks. Hughes comes from a hockey-playing family as his father, Jim Hughes, is a former hockey player, team captain for Providence College, assistant coach for the Boston Bruins, and Director of Player Development for the Toronto Maple Leafs. His mother, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes, played ice hockey, lacrosse, and soccer at the University of New Hampshire and in 2012, was inducted into the University of New Hampshire Athletics Hall of Fame.

The family moved to Toronto in 2006, after Hughes' father got a job as an assistant with the American Hockey League's Toronto Marlies, and the brothers practiced primarily at Toronto's Wedgewood Park outdoor rink. The family also billeted William Nylander after he was drafted in 2014.

Playing career

Early career

Hughes began playing hockey while his family was living in Boston due to his father's work. He began playing as a forward before transitioning to defense at the age of 13.

Hughes' family moved to Toronto in 2006, as his father found work with the Toronto Maple Leafs. As he had begun skating at a young age, while in elementary school he was given permission to skate during lunch period after he consistently became distracted during class watching his younger brother and father skate on a frozen baseball diamond. Hughes' ice hockey career began when he played Bantam AAA and Minor Midget AAA hockey for the Toronto Marlboros, before joining the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (USNTDP) in 2015. He also had the option of joining the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), as the Sarnia Sting drafted him in the third round of the 2015 OHL draft, but Hughes chose to continue developing in the United States. However, before joining the USNTDP, he made a verbal commitment in January 2015 to play college ice hockey at the University of Michigan for their 2017–18 season.

Hughes played in the USNTDP alongside fellow top prospect Brady Tkachuk, with whom he shared a room. In his first year with the USNTDP team, Hughes scored seven goals and recorded 17 assists in 57 games. During the 2016–17 season, he recorded four goals and 22 assists in 26 games, making him the first defenseman in United States Hockey League (USHL) history to post such high points-per-game ratio two seasons before his NHL draft eligibility. For his efforts, he was named to the All-USHL Second Team.

College

Hughes played for the Michigan Wolverines at the University of Michigan from 2017 to 2019. There, he enrolled in the School of Kinesiology and majored in Sport Management. During his rookie season, in which he was the youngest NCAA male ice hockey player, Hughes recorded five goals and 24 assists in 37 games. His 29 points ranked tied for 12th in the NCAA and third in the Big Ten among freshmen, while his 24 assists ranked third in the NCAA and first overall in the Big Ten among freshman. Hughes' 24 assists is the most in Michigan program history by a freshman defenseman. Following an outstanding freshman season, Hughes was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team, and the All-Big Ten Second Team. He was also selected as a finalist for Big Ten Freshman of the Year, with the award eventually going to Mitchell Lewandowski of Michigan State.

Leading up to the 2018 NHL entry draft, Hughes was considered a top prospect player due to his skating and puck-moving ability. The final ranking from the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in April placed Hughes in sixth place amongst North American skaters. He was eventually drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, seventh overall. He attended the Canucks development camp that summer but ultimately decided to return to Michigan for his sophomore year, citing a goal to win an NCAA championship and furthering his development as his reasons.

Despite speculation Hughes would leave Michigan early to join the Canucks, he finished the 2018–19 season with the Wolverines. During the 2019 Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, he suffered a foot injury in a 3–2 loss to the Minnesota Golden Gophers on March 8, 2019. After an x-ray showed limited damage to his foot, Hughes played the following night in a 4–1 loss to the Golden Gophers, which thus eliminated the Wolverines from the playoff series. During his sophomore season, Hughes recorded five goals and 28 assists in 32 games, ranking first on the Wolverines in scoring. Following an outstanding season, he was named to the All-Big Ten First Team and was nominated for the Hobey Baker Award. He was also named a finalist for Big Ten Player of the Year and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. On March 12, Hughes was named to the AHCA First-Team All-America, becoming the 95th All-American in Michigan's history.

Professional

On March 10, 2019, Hughes ended his collegiate career following his sophomore season, signing a three-year entry-level contract with the Canucks. After signing, Hughes underwent an MRI by the Canucks medical staff and was discouraged from skating for a week as a result of his foot injury sustained from the Big Ten playoffs. He eventually made his NHL debut on March 28, 2019, against the Los Angeles Kings where he played on a pairing with Luke Schenn. He recorded his first career NHL point, an assist on a Brock Boeser goal, in a 3–2 shootout win.