Winning the Hobey Baker Award was very special. I have to thank my teammates, the people around me. It wouldn't have been possible without them. Those guys are unreal. Being at the rink and wanting to be at the rink all the time helped us be consistent as a group and being consistent as a group helped me with individual success. The way our team was so tight knit, everybody always wanted to be at the rink getting better, so I think that helped me, personally.
I was able to watch a little bit of my teammate, defenseman Luke Hughes, in his NHL debut with the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. I watched his rookie lap, too. I think when he becomes comfortable with where he's at and the style of play, he's going to be something special to watch. Obviously, stepping into the NHL, in your first game, there's going to be nerves and you don't want to make that mistake but once he starts playing with that confidence that I know he has, he's going to be a special player to watch.
This week, my Michigan teammate (21-year-old forward T.J. Hughes) asked if I would join him in a class he takes called "History of Michigan Athletics" and speak to everyone in a question-and-answer session. T.J. was going to get extra credit if I went in, so I absolutely was going to do it!
We talked a little bit about the World Junior Championship and that experience and about the former Michigan players who also won the Hobey Baker Award, like forward Kevin Porter (2008) and forward Brendan Morrison (1997) and how I'm following in their footsteps.
