Oh brother: Hughes siblings finally together with USA
KAMLOOPS — The Hughes brothers used to play mini-stick hockey in their basement, pretending they were on the same NHL team.
Now that dream is edging closer to reality, with two of the brothers among hockey’s fastest rising stars.
Eighteen-year-old Quinn was taken seventh overall by the Vancouver Canucks at this year’s draft and 17-year-old Jack is an early favourite to be next year’s top pick.
Their younger brother, 14-year-old Luke, played bantam triple-A in Detroit last year.
Whether the Hughes siblings will ever get to play on the same NHL team remains to be seen, but the day when Quinn and Jack play in the same league appears to be just around the corner.
“[Playing together] is something all brothers dream of and that’d be pretty fun,” said Quinn.
This week, Quinn and Jack are on the ice together in Kamloops where they’re playing for the U.S. in the world junior showcase.
“Any time you get to be on the ice with a kid like Quinn, whether he’s my brother or not, you’d be excited to play with him because he’s so good,” Jack said.
It’s the first time they’ve really had an opportunity to play organized hockey together.
Jack fed a pass to Quinn for the winner with 2:25 left as a U.S. splitsquad team beat a Canada splitsquad team 7-5 on Tuesday night.
“It’s definitely a cool experience,” Quinn said.
On the ice, the young men have obvious chemistry, talent and passion for the game, said Mike Hastings, head coach of the U.S. junior team.
“They don’t have a lot of fear in their game. They don’t mind giving it up and getting it back,” he said. “They’re good hockey players.”
The fact that they excel at the game isn’t a huge surprise, considering their family’s hockey roots.
Their mom, Ellen WeinbergHughes, played hockey, soccer and lacrosse at the University of New Hampshire, and suited up for the U.S. women’s hockey team.
Their dad, Jim Hughes, played for Providence College, then worked in coaching and player development with the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs.
All three of the boys grew up in hockey rinks, Jim added.
“They took a liking to it from an early age. It just happened naturally, organically,” he said. “And I suppose somewhere along the way, they fell in love with the sport.”
Ellen and Jim tried hard to expose their boys to other sports, too, and let them pick what they loved, making sure that they were always having fun, and being good people and teammates.
“The things we stressed were find something you’re passionate about and whatever you’re going to do, be the best that you can be,” Ellen said.
It just happened that what they loved was hockey, she added.
Jack said his parents are “tremendous athletes and tremendous hockey minds.”
Quinn remembers his mom driving him to games and giving him tips on getting better.
“A lot of times, she would be the one telling me, ‘Maybe on this play, do that.’ So obviously I respect her opinion. She knows the game,” he said. “It’s always nice to have two parents who know what they’re talking about.”
Growing up in a hockey family with a talented player as an older brother has been great, Jack said.
“I love watching [Quinn] play and he’s been a really good influence on me growing up,” he said.
Jack showed off that hockey mind in his first game at the showcase in Kamloops this week, saucering the puck to himself amid a cluster of Finnish players.
It was a gutsy move for the five-foot-10, 166-pound centre, but Jack said that’s just the way he plays.
“I’m a confident player. I trust myself, I think. I mean, highskilled plays, I’ve been doing it since I was six or seven,” he said.
Quinn, too, is looking at improving his game.
The five-foot-10, 174-pound defenceman went to the Canucks’ development camp in July, but recently decided to return to the University of Michigan this fall. It was a tough call, he said. “Do I think I could have played this year? Absolutely,” Quinn said. “But I want to step in when I can really make a difference and help the Canucks win hockey games.”