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“The worst thing I’ve seen happen to players is that you make a mistake and you fall apart — which is just unacceptable. I don’t make a lot of mistakes as is, but if I do, that’s my mentality. And with the way the game is going and being played, everybody needs one or two guys who can do what I can do.

“I can really help a team. I feel very confident in my abilities and I’ve taken the size question out of the mix.”

The question now is where will Hughes be selected Friday in Dallas? He has created the most pre-draft buzz — outside of consensus top pick Rasmus Dahlin — and could go in the top four. He was interviewed by 18 teams at the recent NHL Scouting Combine and had a followup visit with the Ottawa Senators, who select fourth overall.

With 29 points (5-24) in 39 games last season at the University of Michigan, Hughes was named to the Big Ten all-rookie team. He then made a seamless transition in 10 games at the world championship with the U.S. as the tournament’s youngest player.

“He does things that are so special it’s so hard to compare him to other players,” said former Vancouver Canucks winger Jeff Tambellini, who served as a Michigan assistant last season before becoming general manager and coach of the BCHL Trail Smoke Eaters. “I’ve never seen a kid who can transport the puck and hold on to it for so long and make plays through people.

“When you’re picking in the top three, five or seven, you’re looking for guys with special characteristics and a real dynamic. He manipulates the other team and sets them up for where he wants to go and even when he’s making his move, he’s thinking two plays ahead.