Why is Jack Hughes on the third line?

Puckluck13

Registered User
Sep 28, 2019
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With the lack of talent on NJ, why is Hughes not playing top 6 minutes? In the games I've watched he looks good out there.

I could understand if he was on a good contending team but he's on New Jersey. If you're not going to play him on top pp and top 6 why not just send him down and let him continue to develop?
 
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spitsfan24

Registered User
Mar 18, 2017
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I mean they're sheltering his minutes for the most part. Hall, Hischier and Palmieri is their top line, and Coleman, Zajac and Simmonds is their shutdown line. Hughes for the most part has been playing with talented players though; Gusev and Bratt. I don't agree that there's a lack of talent on NJ, especially among the forwards.
 

Puckluck13

Registered User
Sep 28, 2019
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I mean they're sheltering his minutes for the most part. Hall, Hischier and Palmieri is their top line, and Coleman, Zajac and Simmonds is their shutdown line. Hughes for the most part has been playing with talented players though; Gusev and Bratt. I don't agree that there's a lack of talent on NJ, especially among the forwards.

I disagree. Coleman zajac and Simmonds would be a third or fourth line on a lot of teams.

I really like zajac but he isn't a top 6 player.
 

Oilers Propagandist

Relax junior, it’s just a post.
Aug 27, 2016
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I mean they're sheltering his minutes for the most part. Hall, Hischier and Palmieri is their top line, and Coleman, Zajac and Simmonds is their shutdown line. Hughes for the most part has been playing with talented players though; Gusev and Bratt. I don't agree that there's a lack of talent on NJ, especially among the forwards.
Extreme lack of talent on the Devils.
 

NJDevilsFan21

Trade Everyone!!
Nov 10, 2006
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Gusev-Hughes-Bratt has been a defensive disaster so far, and the Devils don't really have the blue line to compensate for it. Putting him on a line with some size and defensive capability is the right thing to do. Until then, he's got about 15 lbs he needs to put on.
 

spitsfan24

Registered User
Mar 18, 2017
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I disagree. Coleman zajac and Simmonds would be a third or fourth line on a lot of teams.

I really like zajac but he isn't a top 6 player.
I mean I don't want to sound rude or anything, but have you watched any Devils game? When Hughes is ready to play top 6 minutes and becomes a bit more responsible defensively, he'll be on the 2nd line, with Bratt and Gusev.

As for Zajac and Coleman, yes they are perfect 3rd liners, but they are fantastic defensively and can lock down most teams' 1st line. Just because they are playing 2nd line minutes doesn't automatically make the Devils a talentless team. Hall, Hischier, Palmieri, Gusev, Bratt, Hughes, Boqvist, and to a lesser extent, Zacha and Wood, all possess great skill. The coach just chooses to use Coleman and Zajac in that shutdown type role.
 

Trap Jesus

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Feb 13, 2012
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He'll be good eventually but he looks like absolute trash right now. He doesn't deserve it.
 
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Eisen

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Sep 30, 2009
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With the lack of talent on NJ, why is Hughes not playing top 6 minutes? In the games I've watched he looks good out there.

I could understand if he was on a good contending team but he's on New Jersey. If you're not going to play him on top pp and top 6 why not just send him down and let him continue to develop?
Give him time.
 

Fataldogg

Registered User
Mar 22, 2007
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The Devils are a deep line up to crack. It's the same reason Kakko isnt getting more time with the Rangers. These clubs are stacked!
 
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JT Kreider

FIRE GORDIE CLARK
Dec 24, 2010
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The Devils are a deep line up to crack. It's the same reason Kakko isnt getting more time with the Rangers. These clubs are stacked!

The Rangers are most definitely not stacked, we are extremely top heavy and unless Kakko plays with Zibber and Panarin I dont see him putting up huge offensive numbers as a rookie.

We really really really need Andersson to have a big breakout, he is off to a promising start but as of now our center situation is among the worst in the league.
 

93LEAFS

Registered User
Nov 7, 2009
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Toronto
As long as a young player is getting top 9 minutes and isn't overwhelmed (which may not be true of Hughes at the moment), then playing in the NHL is fine. It is just a disaster when they are rotating between the 4th and the press box.

If he's going to play in the top 6 right now, he should be on Zajac or Hischier's wing or be playing with a play driver like Hall, and a guy who can consistently win the puck down low. He's not ready to battle with guys like Scheifele, or Eichel down low and be expected to keep it 50/50, he will get slaughtered. It is why the Devils should probably consider the MacKinnon and Larkin approach to development and put him on the wing this season. If you are going to try to break him in at center without Hall on his wing, he should be getting sheltered 3rd line offensive role, while Zajac and Hischier do the heavy lifting. The belief of the 3rd line being a checking line is fairly outdated on most teams. For example, when the Leafs broke in Matthew, Marner and Nylander, it was very hard to distinguish which was the 1st line, despite Matthews obviously being the best center on the team. Kadri generally took on the heavy lifting, and Babs would try to rotate sheltering Matthews/Nylander or Marner-Bozak-JVR depending on how each line was performing, and other teams would generally target whichever hand was hot when they had last change.
 

TropicalFruitGirl2

A Peachy Hockey Gal!
Feb 23, 2013
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yea, I think too much might be being made of this by some people...the whole "2nd line, 3rd line, yadda, yadda"....especially only being two games in.
You can bet the lines you see in the first 9 or 10 games on most teams are not the ones who will be regulars throughout the season.

Coaches need time to see what works, what doesn't, and also to see (along with the players themselves), who works best with whom.
Draft status, how much a player makes, or the expectations of the media and fans shouldn't dictate where a given player plays or how much, but rather the coaches in conjunction with the players and their performance on the ice.

That all said, hey, if young Hughes is gonna get his feet wet in the deep end (the NHL), what better linemates to have than Coleman and Simmonds....not the speediest highest rated players on the team, but certainly, not very many will be trying to take liberties or try to test Hughes on anything other than his hockey skill with those two on either side of him.

The cream always rises to the top, and unless the NJ head coach is going to be completely stubborn about things, I am pretty sure that if Hughes shows what he can do on an ice sheet against fully established NHL men, he will be augmented with more suitable linemates and ice time.

In a perfect setting, yea, I'd like to see Hughes in a top six role (maybe swapping him and Zacha), but too soon to really worry about his playing time.
 

tapi

Registered User
Oct 25, 2009
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He has been very bad defensively and so far his offensive qualities do not offset the deficiencies in his overall game. Most likely he will adjust in some time, or in the worst case he will get a short AHL stint (max 20-30 games) to get him accustomed to playing against men. He should be fine though
 

Boom Boom Apathy

I am the Professor. Deal with it!
Sep 6, 2006
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When Aho, who dominated a men's league in Finland the prior season, came over to the NHL, the Canes started him on the 3rd line (although that didn't last too long). Last year, Brind'Amour kept Svechnikov on the 3rd line for almost the entire season because he wanted Svech to learn how to play the right way on both ends of the ice.

Best way to develop some players is to put him in a position to succeed, learn the game, and make mistakes without killing the team in a more sheltered role. Seems like that's what NJ is doing (taking this at face value as I haven't watched them). Worked great for Svechnikov and I think Hughes will be just fine.
 

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