Quinn Hughes has made Vancouver Canucks history.
He is the first Canucks player ever to win the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenceman.
The captain was named the recipient of the trophy today at the NHL Awards show in Las Vegas. He beat out other finalists and former winners Roman Josi and Cale Makar for the honour.
Quinn Hughes is the 2024 James Norris Memorial Trophy winner! 🐳 #NHLAwards
After a 92-point campaign, the @Canucks‘ blueliner has been crowned this season’s top defenseman. pic.twitter.com/CLyafmw0pt
— NHL (@NHL) June 27, 2024
“First off I’d like to thank my teammates, it’s a great group of guys. The reality of winning an award like this is you can’t do it alone and you need really good players around you and I certainly have that,” said Hughes during his acceptance speech.
He went on to thank members of the coaching staff, management group, and ownership as well as his agents, family, and others.
Hughes enjoyed a fantastic season. He led all defencemen in points with 92 in just 82 games. He more than doubled his previous career-high in goals, going from eight to 17, and improved his career-best point total by 16.
The Canucks star got 172 of a possible 194 first-place votes. The second place Josi had just 12 first-place votes.
Quinn Hughes got 172 of 194 first-place votes. #Canucks defenceman was the runaway winner of the Norris Trophy. pic.twitter.com/CvIKlaidPx
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) June 27, 2024
The Canucks outscored opponents 92-55 at five-on-five with Hughes on the ice as he tilted the game massively in their favour.
In his first season as captain the American helped lead a massive turnaround for the Canucks. They went from a lottery team to a premier contender. The Canucks finished with their third-best regular season ever and pushed the Edmonton Oilers to seven games in the second round.
“Being a first-time captain in a Canadian market is not an easy thing to do, but Quinn handled it all with poise and grace,” said Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin in a press release. “He is a deserving winner of this prestigious award, and we know there are bigger and better things to come for him. Quinn leads by example and has that special skillset to make players better as well.”
Hughes is not only the first Canucks player ever to win the award, he’s also the first to be named a finalist. The West Coast franchise does not have a long list of notable defencemen who have sported the jersey.
“This is a really special day for our organization to have Quinn become the first defenceman in franchise history to win the Norris,” said Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford. “He had an incredible season on the ice and showed a lot of maturity and growth as a leader on our hockey team. We couldn’t be happier for him and his family.”
The American-born blueliner found a lot of chemistry playing with Filip Hronek this season, as the two players complemented each other well. The Canucks signed Hronek to a massive eight-year extension, ensuring that they can deploy the duo together again next year if they wish.
The Canucks still have Hughes under contract for another three seasons. If he can maintain the level of play he managed last season, the team will be set with a true number one defenceman.
This is the first piece of major NHL hardware for the star, as Hughes just missed out on winning the Calder Trophy in his rookie season.
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