Meet Jack Hughes, the 16-year-old dazzling like a future (2019) No. 1 NHL draft pick

Kevin Allen | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Accountant takes break from day job to play goalie for Blackhawks It was a thrill of a lifetime for 36-year-old accountant Scott Foster when the Chicago Blackhawks called on him to play goalie.

Jack Hughes is a 16-year-old already with a history of 'wow'-quality offensive production that has him fast-tracking toward becoming the No. 1 pick in 2019.

Last season, the Florida-born center netted 58 goals and 159 points in 80 games playing for the Toronto Marlboros midget team.

This season, he has posted 53 points in 26 games for Team USA in the United States Hockey League. He’s sixth in the league scoring race.

The five players above him are 18-20 years old, and each of them has played at least 21 more games than him.

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“By next year, there is no telling where he could be,” said former Calgary Flames general manager Craig Button, now a draft expert for TSN-Canada. “I only know this – I can’t wait until he gets on the ice. I think he’s one of the most exciting players I’ve seen in a long time.”

The 2019 draft is 14 months away, and Hughes is the early favorite to go No. 1 overall.

“As it currently stands, he’s the best 2001 (birth year) player in the world,” said U.S. coach Seth Appert. “Now a lot could change before then, but he is a special player because he is a world-class skater. … He has great vision and playmaking ability, but I think the thing that separates him is that his inner drive and daily competitiveness is absolutely off the charts.”

There’s clearly an awe factor in watching Hughes play. He posted five goals and 15 points in six games for the USA at the under-17 world championships.

“The word I would use is that he is exhilarating to watch,” said Columbus assistant general manager Bill Zito. “He may not score, but he is going to make something happen every time he’s on the ice.”

Appert said Hughes’ speed advantage is multi-faceted.

“It’s not just north-south, but also east-west,” Appert said. “That is really unique. A lot of guys who can burn going north, aren’t as slippery and elusive on their lateral ability and cutbacks. He is equally dangerous in both of those situations.”

Jack Hughes (5-11, 180 pounds) is the son of Jim and Ellen Weinberg-Hughes. Jim was a former pro coach and director of player development for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Ellen was a Hall of Fame multi-sport athlete, including hockey, at the University of New Hampshire. Jack is also the younger brother of University of Michigan defenseman Quinn Hughes, who could go as early as fifth overall in the 2018 NHL draft.

“(Jack) doesn’t get enough credit for how competitive he is,” Appert said. “Every day he shows up and he’s relentless in his want to be a great hockey player.”

Hughes is smaller than the USA’s recent prize prospects Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel, but he has found a way to have a comparable impact at this age.

“He’s very brave,” said former NHL goalie John Vanbiesbrouck, now general manager of the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks. “For a young guy to be as brave as he is and to have the vision he has puts him an elite category.”

Vanbiesbrouck, also vice president of USA Hockey’s junior council, said if Hughes isn’t the top pick in 2019, “I would like to see the player who is.”

Added Vanbiesbrouck: “I do believe (Hughes) is in the category with Matthews and Eichel, and he might be able to set his own category.”