This morning, colleague Charles-Alexis Brisebois discussed Lane Hutson’s case, stating that the young player’s offensive production allows us to overlook his differential.
This is a somewhat synthesized summary of his argument, but nonetheless, he made a good point.
For every game like the one on Saturday night, Hutson almost single-handedly helps the Canadiens win 3-4 games. His vision and passing skills are already elite caliber.
Today, Grant McCagg also talked about the defender, noting that he is currently on track to collect 63 assists this season. This would be a record in NHL history for a rookie defenseman.
He then continued a bit…until he opened the door to a world in which Hutson could eventually get 100 assists in a season.
It should be noted that McCagg spoke of 100 assists and not 100 points. 100 points for a defenseman has been seen several times in league history (Erik Karlsson did it in his last year in San Jose)… but 100 assists is a different story.
In fact, in league history, it has been done… once. Bobby Orr collected 102 in 1970-71, but otherwise, no defenseman in league history has amassed more than 90 assists in a season.
Obviously, this is not the standard that should be expected from the defender. No matter how good he is, those are unrealistic expectations… but if he is on track to gather 63 assists as a rookie, seeing him step up to another level and reach higher numbers (70-80, for example) doesn’t seem completely unrealistic either.
And maybe if the stars align for a season (and he develops incredible chemistry with Ivan Demidov on the power play), there is a world in which McCagg may end up being right. But clearly, it shows that the young man’s potential is very, very high.
In Brief
– He’s managing it better this year, too.
– An interesting exercise.
– Phew.
– Attention to those interested.
