There have been many brother combinations over the years who have competed in the National Hockey League, including six Sutter brothers (and three of their offspring to boot). Add to that list the Hughes brothers, and their significant impact on the modern-day game.
The oldest brother, Quinn, was the seventh overall pick by Vancouver in 2018. During the 2022-23 season, he garnered 76 points (7 goals, 69 assists) in 78 games. The left-shot defenseman represents the league’s thirst for blueliners who are the driving force of their respective team’s offense. In furtherance of this point, Akito Hirose signed with Vancouver as a free agent left shot defenseman after a stellar career at Minnesota State University. Like the eldest Hughes brother, Hirose has put up impressive offensive numbers due to an elite-level hockey IQ enabling him to generate quality scoring chances for himself and his teammates. Also, and despite somewhat lacking in size, highly-touted Swedish defenseman Axel Sandin Pellikka is expected to be a top 15 pick in the 2023 draft due to his exceptional offensive skill. According to The Atlantic, he may be a piece to Vancouver addressing its need to bolster the right side of its blueline. https://theathletic.com/4500204/2023/05/08/nhl-mock-draft-2023-connor-bedard-blackhawks/
The youngest NHL-rostered Hughes brother, Luke, possesses many of the traits embodied by Quinn. Luke also played 2 years at The University of Michigan. This past season at U of M, Luke totaled 48 points (10 goals, 38 assists) in 39 games. He then joined his brother Jack and the New Jersey Devils at the end of this season, where he garnered 2 pts. (1 goal, 1 assist) in 2 regular season games, and another 2 points (2 assists) in 3 playoff games. As the Devils’ #4 overall pick in 2021, it is anticipated he will patrol New Jersey’s blueline for years to come. Luke is a larger-sized version of Quinn, an offensively gifted defender with exceptional skating skill and an extremely high hockey IQ.
That brings us to the middle Hughes brother, Jack. One cannot think of the current New Jersey Devils without being reminded of their top center, who was the #1 overall pick in 2019. This followed a season where he scored 112 points (34 goals, 78 assists) in 50 games with the USNTDP, and had an additional 20 points at the U18 world juniors (a record tied this year by projected top 5 pick Will Smith of the US), 4 assists at the U20 world juniors, and 3 assists at the world championship. Although somewhat small in stature by NHL standards (5’11”), this has done nothing to impair his ability to be a tremendous offensive producer at the pro level. In just his fourth NHL season in 2022-23, the 22-year-old amassed 99 points (43 goals, 56 assists) in 78 games.
As an aside, there may be another Jack Hughes in the NHL soon, so stay tuned! Unrelated to the three Hughes brothers discussed above, there are nonetheless quite a few similarities here. This Jack Hughes also played for the USNTDP, and hails from a hockey-playing family himself (his father, Kent, played at Middlebury College, and his brother, Riley, was drafted in the 7th round by the New York Rangers in 2018). Jack plays for Northeastern University, and was drafted in the second round, 51st overall, by the Los Angeles Kings in 2022. Also, he was named to Hockey East’s All-Rookie Team for the 2021-22 season.