The forward for Halifax of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is used to the routine at this point. He comes out of the dressing room, stands in front of the wall showing all of the Mooseheads' first-round draft picks, players like Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (No. 1, 2013) and Jonathan Drouin of the Tampa Bay Lightning (No. 3, 2013), and gets prepared to face another barrage of questions.
Hischier, a native of Naters, Switzerland, has answered these questions several times, in German and in English, everywhere he has played this season. The rookie has scored 86 points (38 goals, 48 assists) in 57 games in his first season in North America. He also led Halifax with seven points (three goals, four assists) in six playoff games. Hischier won Rookie of the Year and the Mike Bossy Trophy as the best professional prospect in the QMJHL.
However, personal statistics don't mean much to Hischier. He humbly answers questions about his success and gives credit to his team.
"My teammates help me a lot," he said when asked to evaluate his season. "I do everything for the team."
That last line can be taken two different ways, because Hischier has indeed done everything this season for the Mooseheads, the youngest team in the QMJHL. And unlike him, Hischier's teammates have no problem pointing that out.
"Nico is an incredible player," linemate Maxime Fortier said. "He does everything well. He is so strong offensively and defensively, with or without the puck. He's also very smart and you can see that on the ice."
That might be Hischier's greatest asset. He is a strong skater who plays on the power play and the penalty kill, and is just as likely to score a highlight reel goal as he is to steal the puck from an opponent.
"He plays a complete game, he's not one dimensional," Halifax general manager Cam Russell said. "He's got world-class skills, great hands, great vision, but he's also our best defensive player. When you have a player that is your most skilled and basically your best player on the team, and he's also your best defensive player, it provides great leadership for your younger players."