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“I was aware of him — really good player,” said the 19-year-old Rathbone. “I’m happy we got him and we actually roomed together at Whistler (development camp) before he got sick with the flu. He’s just a great kid.”

Hughes has a superlative skating stride and effortless edge work that allows him to spend little time in the defensive zone and cause forecheckers fits. That resonates with Rathbone.

“I love it,” he said. “My game is all transition. In terms of the way the game is going with the defence being the fourth forward, that really suits my game. I’m pretty confident and I’m really focused on making an impact as a (Harvard) freshman.”

Rathbone had 30 points (11-19) in 17 games last season with Dexter Academy. He also played midget until his senior high school season started in November and squeezed in four games with the Youngstown (Ohio) Phantoms in the United States Hockey League in 2016-17.

“My offensive abilities have taken me to where I am now, but to make an impact at Harvard, my 200-foot game needs to be rounded out,” admitted Rathbone, who likens his game to diminutive Boston Bruins defenceman Torey Krug. “I need to be heavier on pucks and between my man and the net.”

That’s what Ryan Johnson, the Canucks’ director of player development, wants to hear. In Rathbone, he sees obvious talent, but the structure he’ll get from Harvard coach Ted Donato — a former NHL winger and longtime friend of the Rathbone family — will be vital.