Jack Hughes shook hands with Kaapo Kakko for the first time Thursday.
If the expected script plays out at the NHL draft, the two potential future stars know their stories will be intertwined for years to come.
NHL Draft 2019:
Hughes and Kaapo are on course to be selected No. 1 and No. 2 at Rogers Arena on Friday, with the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers owning the first two selections.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 right here,B次元官网网址� Hughes said during a noon-hour media availability with fellow prospects on the top deck of a yacht in VancouverB次元官网网址檚 Coal Harbour neighbourhood. B次元官网网址漌hen you close your eyes thatB次元官网网址檚 what youB次元官网网址檙e thinking about.
B次元官网网址淣ow that itB次元官网网址檚 finally here, IB次元官网网址檓 going to enjoy it.B次元官网网址�
But although Hughes and Kakko will be forever linked, the pair are a lesson in contrasts.
The former is a five-foot-10, 170-pound American-born centre with slick hands, while the latter is a powerful Finnish winger that already looks like a man at six foot two and 194 pounds.
B次元官网网址淭his is a new thing,B次元官网网址� said Kakko, who is working to improve his English. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 coming, great day for me.B次元官网网址�
The 18-year-old Hughes put up a record 154 assists and 228 points over the last two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program. Kakko, also 18, scored 22 goals B次元官网网址� a record for a draft-eligible prospect B次元官网网址� and added 16 assists in his countryB次元官网网址檚 top professional division in 2018-19.
Hughes said having their career paths compared and dissected should be interesting.
B次元官网网址淵ou saw (Alex) Ovechkin and (Sidney) Crosby do it,B次元官网网址� Hughes said. B次元官网网址滻B次元官网网址檓 not saying weB次元官网网址檙e going to be Ovechkin and Crosby, but IB次元官网网址檓 saying itB次元官网网址檚 going to be pretty cool to be linked like that.B次元官网网址�
Hughes was born in Orlando, Fla., but spent his formative years in the Toronto area when his father worked for the Maple Leafs.
The younger Hughes, who registered 112 points in 50 games with the USNTDP in 2018-19 and is the brother of Vancouver Canucks defenceman Quinn Hughes (seventh overall in 2018), is looking to become the eighth American-born player to go No. 1 and the first since Toronto took Auston Matthews in 2016.
B次元官网网址淗eB次元官网网址檚 a really nice kid,B次元官网网址� Matthews said of Jack Hughes earlier this week. B次元官网网址滶verybody has seen tape and goals that heB次元官网网址檚 scored, just plays that he can make, he looks to be like a really special player.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 awesome, another American projected to be first overall. ItB次元官网网址檚 amazing, I think heB次元官网网址檚 going to be great for the game. Whether itB次元官网网址檚 New Jersey, New York, wherever heB次元官网网址檚 going to go, I think heB次元官网网址檚 going to do great there.B次元官网网址�
Kakko, meanwhile, has already won three gold medals internationally, including scoring the winning goal for his country at the 2019 world junior hockey championship in Vancouver before helping the Finns capture the recent menB次元官网网址檚 worlds in Slovakia.
B次元官网网址淕ood memories here,B次元官网网址� the Turku product said of Vancouver. B次元官网网址漀ice city.B次元官网网址�
Dan Marr, the NHLB次元官网网址檚 director of Central Scouting, said the choice between the two stud forwards could come down to personal preference.
B次元官网网址�(KakkoB次元官网网址檚) a little more physically developed,B次元官网网址� Marr said. B次元官网网址漈hat dictates the type of game heB次元官网网址檚 capable of playing, the situations he can be used in, the results that he gets. Skill levels, smarts, skating, you go down the whole list of boxes to check off, and he has those.
B次元官网网址淛ack comes across more as that skilled elite forward, where you play the game with speed, quickness B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 going to be hard to say down the road whoB次元官网网址檚 going to be better than who because theyB次元官网网址檙e both going to bring different things to the table.B次元官网网址�
Vancouver Giants defenceman Bowen Byram could be the first Canadian to come off the draft board at No. 3 to the Chicago Blackhawks.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 trying not to worry about things,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址滻 did all I could do.
B次元官网网址淣ow I just kind of get to sit back and relax and whatever happens, happens.B次元官网网址�
Lethbridge Hurricanes centre Dylan Cozens, meanwhile, is primed to become the first player ever from Yukon to be drafted in the first round.
Edmonton own the highest pick among Canadian NHL teams at No. 8, followed by Vancouver (10th), Montreal (15th), Ottawa (19th), Winnipeg (20th) and Calgary (26th). Toronto isnB次元官网网址檛 slated to step to the microphone until SaturdayB次元官网网址檚 second round at No. 53.
All the highly-touted prospects will be long gone by then, with the USNTDP looking primed for a banner night during FridayB次元官网网址檚 first round.
Apart from Hughes, centres Alex Turcotte and Trevor Zegras, as well as wingers Cole Caulfield and Matthew Boldy, all figure to potentially go in the top-10. Ten members of the program are slotted in among NHL Central ScoutingB次元官网网址檚 top-50 players in North America, not including Spencer Knight, the continentB次元官网网址檚 top-ranked goalie.
Heading into Rogers Arena, the USNTDP has never had more than three players selected in the opening round immediately following their two-year terms in Plymouth, Mich.
But Friday will be remembered for Hughes and Kakko.
And both know no matter which playerB次元官网网址檚 name is called first, this is just the beginning of their journey.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檒l be linked together for a long time B次元官网网址� Devils, Rangers,B次元官网网址� Hughes said. B次元官网网址滻t should be pretty cool. It should be a lot of fun.B次元官网网址�
Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
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