Captain Quinn Hughes draws Sidney Crosby comparison from head coach Rick Tocchet

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Maverick Mitchell
October 23, 2024 (4:02 PM)

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After his Norris Award winning season in 20203-2024, Captain Quinn Hughes has been the Vancouver Canucks best player so far this year, and head coach Rick Tocchet has some high praise as he compares his mindset to Sidney Crosby's.

Although his point totals are not what they should be to be on pace as last season's, knowing how he plays and competes, he can take off at any moment. But what is interesting is his influence on the team when he is on the ice.

Found their game defensively in the 2nd, but the non-Hughes minutes remain a problem for this hockey club. With Hughes at 5-on-5 shots are 11-4 and VAN has outscored CHI 3-0. In all other minutes the shot count is 7-16 in Chicago's favour + CHI has outscored VAN 2-0.

Quinn Hughes is not the loudest or most demanding captain, he chooses to do his talking on the ice and lead by example. In the Amazon Prime Series FACEOFF: Inside the NHL, fans got too see an inside look behind the scenes of what makes Hughes so special as the leader of the Canucks. Rick Tocchet sees some similarities to another captain he once coached.

Head Coach Rick Tocchet Compares Quinn Hughes' mindset to Sidney Crosby

«I think Hughes is the type of kid who's chasing perfection,» Tocchet said following the Canucks' win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night. «I don't think he ever sits back. He's thinking like, �okay teams are going to game plan, so what do I do if they do this?' Like, that's how he thinks. We actually talk about that. If a team's going to be high on him, what's the next play? That's why he's chasing perfection, and he's always looking to get better.»

He continued his point by stating that no matter the awards, accolades or praise Quinn Hughes receives, he is still always trying to get better, weather that is on the ice or off.

«They're never satisfied,» Tocchet said when asked if Hughes reminds him of any of the great players he's played with or coached over his many years in the NHL. «The most recent guy is Sidney Crosby. He changes his workouts, changes his patterns, and changes his what he does at practice. He's just chasing perfection and Hughes is the same type of guy, they have that mindset.»