Hughes was the fifth NTDP player selected No. 1 (Matthews; Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks, 2007; Erik Johnson, St. Louis Blues, 2006; Rick DiPietro, New York Islanders, 2000). Dennehy, who met Hughes on Tuesday, came away impressed.
"More often than not, the people who ask the most questions are usually the smartest," Dennehy said. "The guys who are fearful of asking questions are sort of unsure of themselves, so just the fact [Jack] was asking, 'All right, what do you want from this?' means he's got an understanding of it. You can tell he thinks the game at a high level."