Devils 3, Wild 2: Luke Hughes steals the show

The Wild give up a lot to opposing defensemen and Luke Hughes took full advantage, producing multiple points while piling up the shots.

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The New Jersey Devils picked up a home-and-home sweep over the Minnesota Wild in dramatic fashion, edging by in the shootout.

Here are a few notes on the win:

Hughes drove the bus 🚌

Luke Hughes was an absolute force against the Wild. He was in his bag from the word go and, in my opinion, was the most impactful weapon on the ice.

Hughes certainly didn’t look like someone who was nursing an injury. He was flying with the puck and making Wild defenders look silly in space.

Whether he blew right past opponents with his long strides and ridiculous acceleration or used cuts to earn extra space to work, his skating allowed him to do whatever he wanted.

He was cutting through the Wild defense like a hot knife through butter and doing whatever he wanted all game long.

Hughes led the Devils in shot attempts, shots, scoring chances, and was the only player in the game to record multiple points.

While his offense is what was most noticeable, Hughes also made some terrific defensive plays – like hunting Matt Boldy down from behind on a net drive and ensuring a dangerous-looking opportunity amounted to nothing.

Sometimes it’s hard to believe this is just a 21-year-old kid who has played 150 NHL games. He is far from a finished product yet, when on, can dominate a game like only a few at his position can.

Markstrom’s heating up 🔥