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The Vancouver Canucks are on a roll right now. Vancouver leads the Pacific Division by six points over the Vegas Golden Knights at the halfway point in the season. And they have won four games in a row. A major reason for their success is defenseman Quinn Hughes, who leads the team in assists and is third in points.
However, his season could have turned out vastly differently, according to former head coach Bruce Boudreau. Boudreau, now an analyst, dropped a bomb on NHL Network regarding the former top-10 pick.
“I'm not going to say who, but somebody in that Vancouver organization tried to make me make Quinn Hughes a center last year,” the former Canucks bench boss said Friday night. “I refused to do it. I said ‘I'm not making him a center, I'm not making him a center.'”
Bruce Boudreau reflects on refusing Canucks' Quinn Hughes directive
Hughes has long been thought of as one of the best up-and-coming defensemen in the NHL. This season, the 24-year-old is in the midst of a breakout campaign. He is on pace to smash his career-high points total from last season and is a legitimate contender for the Norris Trophy as the league's best blueliner.
This type of production justifies Boudreau's decision to refuse the directive from whoever it was in the Canucks organization. And it's a decision that the veteran bench boss stands behind to this day.
“I am so happy I didn't (makes Hughes a center). First of all, he'd probably have not taken it very well. And secondly, the year he's having, a Norris Trophy kind of year. It's quite a difference from him playing center on that team,” the former Canucks coach said on NHL Network on Friday night.
Quinn Hughes playing center is certainly a wild thought. And so far, Vancouver has to be thankful that the 24-year-old remains on the blueline. He is one of the best in the NHL at that position, and he could get even better over the next few years.
