If the New Jersey Devils want a great mentor for Luke Hughes, John Carlson is someone to consider.
New Jersey native John Carlson has been one of the best defensemen in the NHL over the past two decades. Throughout his entire hockey career, winning has followed Carlson around.
As a junior player, he scored the Golden Goal for Team USA in 2010. This came after he was the 27th overall pick by the Washington Capitals in the 2008 NHL Draft.
As a member of the Hershey Bears, Carlson won the Calder Cup twice, which occurred in 2009 and 2010. From there, he never looked back after making his NHL debut in 2010-11.
Eventually, Carlson took over as the team’s number one defenseman, and he shone with stars like Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and Evgeny Kuznetsov, among many others. Eventually, after a few years of frustration due to early exits, the Capitals won the Stanley Cup in 2018, and it was one of the most memorable moments in NHL history.
In 2026, the Capitals shocked the world by trading Carlson to the Anaheim Ducks ahead of their playoff run. Even at 36 years old, he is still an incredibly impactful player at a premier position.
On July 1st, Carlson will become an unrestricted free agent. He has made it pretty clear that he’s going to sign with an East Coast team. The New Jersey Devils fit the mold of the team he is looking to join. If everything works out the right way, they should be a very good team, and he would have a large role as an offensive defenseman.
Carlson would also be an incredible mentor for Luke Hughes. The youngest Hughes brother has had some ups and downs in terms of his game on the ice, and Carlson would be a great player to have as a guide.
Luke has all of the talent in the world; he’s just working on putting it together to become a high-end player. He is still just 22 years old with a lot of time to grow. It usually takes longer for defensemen to develop.
The 128 points that Luke Hughes has in 223 games played don’t grow on trees, regardless of position. Some guidance on helping him avoid some of his defensive mistakes along the way and improving his overall decision-making is where a guy like Carlson would be helpful.
The experience of playing with elite forwards in his career would also be a key talking point for Carlson to Hughes. With his brother Jack, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt, along with some other talented players in front of him, Luke could learn some valuable lessons about being a puck mover at this level.
It isn't like Luke Hughes is the only player who would benefit from adding a veteran like John Carlson, either. Every young player on the team could take in some valuable lessons from a champion with that level of experience.
This Devils team is also deeper than they showed during the 2025-26 season, which gives them a reason not to overreact and continue building on what they have.
Carlson is still a defenseman who produces offense at a high-level (14-46--60 in 2025-26), so his addition would add a scoresheet threat just as much as a leader on the team.
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