Trophy Tracker: Quinn Hughes unanimous leader for Norris as top defenseman

To mark the halfway point of the 2023-24 regular season, NHL.com is running its second installment of the Trophy Tracker series. Today, we look at the race for the Norris Trophy, awarded annually to the top defenseman in the NHL as selected in a vote by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

Quinn Hughes is having a season to remember, and it could get even more memorable for the Vancouver Canucks defenseman.

Hughes already has set his NHL career high in goals (11) and is on pace to shatter the 76 points he had last season. With 52 in 44 games, he is first among defensemen in points and ranks in the top 15 in the entire League, and could crack 100 points. Last season, defenseman Erik Karlsson, then with the San Jose Sharks, had 101 points to become the sixth defenseman with at least 100 in a season, and Hughes may join that elite class.

"Quinn's obviously the leader and the engine of our team," Vancouver forward Conor Garland said. "He's someone that kind of wows the crowd each and every shift but also us on the bench. He kind of surprises you with his ability and his [footwork] and his creativity. Obviously a fun player to watch."

Hughes, who was named to the 2024 Honda (U.S.)/ Rogers (Canada) NHL All-Star Game, is tied for the League lead with a plus-33 rating (with his defense partner Filip Hronek), and tops Vancouver in average ice time per game (24:24). He's helped the Canucks rank first in the NHL in goals per game (3.82) and third in goals-against per game (2.53); last season, they were 13th in goals per game (3.29) and 25th in goals against per game (3.61).

For those reasons and more, Hughes was unanimously selected by a panel of 15 NHL.com writers as the favorite to win the Norris Trophy voted as best defenseman in the NHL. He received 75 points, including all 15 first-place votes. Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche was second with 58 points. Noah Dobson of the New York Islanders was third (40 points).

"Obviously he's had a great year, logs a lot of minutes," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said after Hughes was named to the All-Star Game. "He's got a lot of poise with the puck. He's just a guy that wants to win so bad. So I'm happy for him."

Hughes has helped Vancouver become one of the surprise teams this season. Named captain prior to the season, he's led the Canucks to a 29-11-4 record, first place in the Pacific Division and the top record in the NHL. Vancouver missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs each of the past three seasons.

"I knew if I could stay healthy, I was in a spot where I could have a year like this. But obviously you never know," Hughes said earlier this season. "The team success was my main goal coming in and I wasn't sure how that was going to go."

In his four previous full NHL seasons, Hughes never finished higher than ninth in Norris Trophy voting. This season, his two-way play has improved greatly, as Vancouver general manager Patrik Allvin recently noted.

"Quinn has matured in the first 40 games," Alvin told the Canucks website last week. "His 200-foot game has really been impressive. And we saw it last year. … The consistency in his game and the way he leads by example has really impressed me up to this point."

Hughes has 12 multipoint games this season, including seven with at least three points. He also has had a negative plus/minus rating in 10 of his 44 games.

"I think we saw last year when Rick and [assistant] Adam [Foote] and [defensive development coach] Sergei [Gonchar] came into here, how they were able to help Quinn to take his game to the next level," Allvin said. "And I still think that has another way to get to too. The preparation and his details has been really impressive and I think that's paying off, but I've been amazed with how he's played up to this point. But I'm sure he can get to another level too."

Voting totals (points awarded on a 5-4-3-2-1-basis): Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks, 75 points (15 first-place votes); Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche, 58; Noah Dobson, New York Islanders, 40; Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers, 14; Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning, 14; Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg Jets, 10; Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings, 6; Vince Dunn, Seattle Kraken, 4; Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars, 2; Filip Hronek, Vancouver Canucks, 1; Adam Fox, New York Rangers, 1