The New Jersey Devils pulled off a 3-2 win via overtime against the Nashville Predators on Thursday night, but they also saw star forward Jack Hughes go down with a lower-body injury.
Following New Jersey's win at Prudential Center in Newark, Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe provided a positive update on Hughes, via team reporter Amanda Stein.
“Lower body injury for #NJDevils Jack Hughes, says Sheldon Keefe. Will need to be evaluated again tomorrow to determine his availability for the trip to Ottawa. Keefe says he doesn't believe it's a serious injury,” Stein wrote in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter.
That should give Devils fans a big relief, as the team surely needs Hughes healthy in the long run to keep up in the race to the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The 24-year-old Hughes left the Predators game in the first period, and after returning briefly, he spent the rest of the night off the ice.
While the exact nature of his injury has not been determined at the moment, it appears that it's not related to the finger issue that forced him to miss 18 games earlier in the 2025-26 NHL regular season.
The Devils overcame two one-goal deficits to beat Nashville, with Jasper Bratt scoring a goal in the third period to force overtime, where Nico Hischier lit the lamp for the game-winning goal for New Jersey.
Adding a layer to Hughes' injury situation is the looming start of the Milan Cortina Olympics. He is part of the the United States' squad that is about to play its first game in the event in two weeks.
