Luke, Jack and Quinn Hughes Make the Scoresheet in Rollercoaster Affair Between Devils and Canucks

On Tuesday night in Vancouver, two Hughes brothers were better than one.

Jack finished with a goal and two assists and was named the game's first star as his New Jersey Devils escaped Rogers Arena with two points in a see-saw 6-5 victory.

Jack's second assist was a power-play set-up for his younger brother Luke, what looked like a dagger that put the Devils up 5-2 with 34 seconds remaining in the second period.

"That's happened a couple of times in New Jersey – I don't know if you guys see in Van," smiled Jack after the game. "But it's pretty good. Pretty fun when Luke scores coming from a pass of mine."

It also meant that Luke scored in his first-ever NHL game against oldest brother Quinn — just as Jack did at the Prudential Center in his eighth-career NHL game on Oct. 19, 2019.

Through 40 minutes on Tuesday, Quinn was held off the scoresheet. But after Brock Boeser got Vancouver to 5-3 with his league-leading 18th of the year at 7:02 of the third period, Quinn picked up a pair of assists as the Canucks came all the way back to tie with 3:26 remaining in regulation. 

Speaking on NHL Network on Monday, the Hughes brothers' mother, Ellen, said she was hoping for a tie. Her boys came this close to pushing the game into overtime before Jesper Bratt fired a rebound off a Nico Hischier shot past Thatcher Demko to give the visitors the win with just 34 seconds left in regulation.

On Tuesday, the Hughes brothers became just the ninth set of three or more brothers in NHL history to suit up for the same game. And even though Luke is just 20, Jack is 22 and Quinn is 24, the moment carried some extra heft because, in many ways, the trio symbolizes the direction of the new NHL — built first and foremost off of skating, then mixed with dazzling displays of skill and hockey sense.

This season, Quinn has dominated the discourse as the first-year captain for the surprising Canucks and for his own impressive stats. He's leading all defensemen and sits tied for fourth in league scoring with 36 points in 26 games, and his plus-18 rating ties him with Cale Makar for tops in the league. 

Jack was also putting up personal-best numbers before he suffered a shoulder injury in early November, which kept him out for five games. Three of his last four games have been three-point nights, putting him at 33 points in 18 games. That's good for ninth place overall and a production rate of 1.83 points per game, which is the best in the league.

And then there's Luke. He hasn't looked out of place since joining the Devils last April, following his sophomore season at the University of Michigan. 

Neither of his brothers won the Calder Trophy in their shared 2019-20 rookie season. Drafted one year apart, Quinn spent an additional season in college, while Jack jumped straight into the NHL as an 18-year-old. When the 2020 NHL Awards were announced that September, following the pandemic pause, Quinn finished as the Calder runner-up, behind Cale Makar. Jack didn't garner a single vote after putting up 21 points in 61 games.

This year, Luke has a formidable obstacle named Connor Bedard in his Calder path, but he could put up a meaningful challenge for rookie of the year. He's currently tied for second in rookie scoring with 15 points in 23 games, he's logging a solid 19:44 per night and he has now been elevated to the Devils' No. 1 power-play unit following Dougie Hamilton's pectoral injury. There could be lots more ice time and lots more points ahead.

Tuesday night, fans on both sides were able to enjoy the high-scoring excitement. The Canucks' comeback was impressive, even if it fell a little short, and the Devils' fast-paced four-goal first period was the kind of start the team needed for this Western road trip as it tries to pick up some points and climb back into the playoff mix. 

But if that's the template for Hughes brothers hockey, it's going to leave coaches frustrated.

"The first period, it was four goals that shouldn't go," said a frustrated Tocchet after seeing his team log just its third regulation loss at home this season — and the first in the popular black skate jerseys. "They're system plays. Just a little disappointed. Guys are supposed to be in spots they weren't, and now you're chasing the game."

Lindy Ruff was on the same wavelength.

"I'm pretty sure that both coaches aren't really excited about giving up leads or even fighting back," said New Jersey's bench boss. "But the two points is big for us."

Because the three brothers all play a similar, offense-oriented style, neither coach was looking to match the Hughes boys up against each other in any meaningful way. 

Jack and Luke aren't on the ice together much for the Devils, except on the power play. And while Quinn is averaging just over a minute per game on the penalty kill this season, he didn't log one second of Vancouver's 2:11 of shorthanded ice time on Tuesday.

So the three didn't cross paths much during the game itself. But they did snag a special photo op at the end of warmup.

"Warm-ups was pretty cool," said Jack. "We got to take that picture, so that was that was a pretty cool moment. And the rest, when the game happened, was just the game."

And it was a familiar outcome. The Devils improved to 6-1 against the Canucks since Quinn and Jack entered the NHL, and Jack has 13 points in those seven games. 

For Luke, it was his first time back in Vancouver since he was a 15-year-old watching Jack get drafted first overall on June 21, 2019. This time around, it was a chance to reconnect with Quinn after a couple of months apart and to see where he's living these days.

"Our whole family has been here for two days, going to dinner and hanging out," Luke said. "It's been great for our family, and it's nice that we got the win too."

The brothers will reconvene again in one month's time when the Canucks visit New Jersey on Jan. 6.

Now two points out of a wild-card spot, the Devils will face the Kraken in Seattle on Thursday before a pair of weekend games against the Flames and Oilers in Alberta.

The Canucks have now slipped to third in the Pacific Division but maintain a healthy 10-point cushion above fourth-place Calgary. They'll continue their homestand against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday and the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday.