From 19th best defenseman last year in the NHL Network Top 20 Defensemen Right Now last season, Montreal Canadiens' Lane Hutson has jumped all the way to sixth best this season, and here's why.
Last season, after a tremendous rookie season which saw him put up 66 points, Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson landed in 19th place on the NHL Network Top 20 Defensemen Right Now Rankings. After having an even better sophomore season, the Habs blueliner jumped 13 spots to land in sixth place on the same ranking this season. That was the biggest jump on the rankings for players who were included last season, which is hardly surprising. After his first season, many wondered if Hutson could keep it up or if the league was going to adapt with video scouting and solve him, so to speak. He’s now shown that he wasn’t a flash in the pan with a 78-point sophomore season and co-leading the Canadiens in the playoffs with 16 points in 19 games.
The NHL Network ranking also acknowledges that Hutson is more than just a one-way player, since he posted a plus-36 rating in 23:46 of average ice time, led the Habs in takeaways with 43, and was fourth in blocked shots with 137. While many naysayers believed he could never be efficient defensively in the NHL because of his size, Hutson has made it clear that he cares about playing on the other side of the puck. Nobody in the NHL backchecks with as much energy, and he never gives up on getting the puck back.
Another aspect of his game that progressed last season was his shot; he scored 12 goals in his second season after scoring just six in his first year. That’s no surprise given how much he has worked on that before and after practice, often being set up by his partner in crime Ivan Demidov for one-timers and getting plenty of advice from Adam Nicholas. With his work ethic, you can expect that shot to get even better, and that should have a big impact on the Canadiens’ power play. Once he becomes a more respected shooter, opposing sides will have to respect his shot, and they won’t be able to play him like he’ll pass every time, as is the case now.
Interestingly, New York Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer makes his first appearance in the rankings at number seven, taking the rankings by storm. As mentioned earlier, Hutson only started in 19th place after his rookie season. The top of the rankings hasn’t changed in a year; Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, and Zach Werenski still rule the roost. You can see the complete rankings here.
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