Courtesy of @EASportsNHL/Instagram
For any sports fan, the idea of playing a video game that allows you to step into the shoes of your favorite players and feel like you are playing the sport yourself is a very enticing idea. Football fans have Madden or EA Sports College Football, baseball fans have The Show. But for hockey fans, this game is EA Sports NHL.
EA Sports releases a new version of this game every year, and the name changes depending on the upcoming year the game is released before. This year, NHL 25 is set to release on October 24th.
One of the biggest traditions with the release of the game every year is the featuring of a major NHL star on the cover. NHL24 featured the Colorado Avalanche’s star defenseman, Cale Makar, while NHL23 featured Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras and PWHL star Sarah Nurse.
This year, EA Sports announced that the NHL25 cover would feature brothers Quinn, Jack, and Luke Hughes. These three brothers have become quite the stars in the league over the past few seasons and have been one of the most talked about brother groups in the history of the NHL.
Being on the cover of NHL25 is no light feat, and the brothers have made it quite clear how honored they are to have been chosen. In several interviews with NHL.com and ESPN, they all made their own remarks about not only how amazing it is to have been chosen to be featured, but how cool it is to be featured with each other.
The Hughes brothers are the first brothers to be featured together in the US version of NHL25, and they certainly aren’t taking this lightly. Although they are competitors on the ice, they grew up playing with each other and are extremely supportive of one another.
They grew up playing this game together and putting together teams to compete against each other. Not only is this a really amazing opportunity for them to share the spotlight together, but it really does mean a lot to them as a family because of their history with the game. It really does show just how far their family has come in their time in professional hockey.
One of the main reasons that they were chosen to be shown on this particular cover of NHL25 is because of their collective hockey IQ and their skating abilities. These brothers are known for being exceptional skaters, and this is a huge testament to the training that their parents Ellen and Jim Hughes provided them with. Not only are they able to skate their way into scoring opportunities, but the way they see the game is unlike any other players in the league. They are able to see plays before they happen, and this is a huge reason why they are so successful on the scoring and playmaking front.
NHL25 includes more features involving hockey IQ and skating abilities, so it was a no-brainer for EA Sports to select the Hughes brothers for the cover of their game this year.
Let’s take a look at what makes these brothers so talented individually, what they bring to their team, and what the expectations for them should be going into the 2024-25 season.
Courtesy of Kevin Woodley/NHL.com
Quinn
Quinn Hughes was the recipient of the Norris Trophy at the end of the 2023-24 season. The Norris trophy is awarded to the best defenseman in the league. Hughes put up an astounding 92 points during his season with the Vancouver Canucks, including 17 goals (which is a lot for a defenseman). Quinn also played in all 82 regular season games, which is a huge feat in this league, as it is very hard to stay healthy for every game.
In his inaugural season as captain, Quinn was a great leader for his team during both positive and negative moments. He is very reliable on the ice and provides a really grounding presence for the team when things might be getting out of hand. This season, it will be important that Quinn continues to be a strong leader both on and off the ice for his team in hopes of proving that their success last season wasn’t just a fluke and show that the team can actually compete for a playoff spot.
Luke
Luke Hughes had a phenomenal rookie season with the New Jersey Devils. He was named a finalist for the Calder Trophy for best rookie in the league. He was also named to the NHL’s all rookie team. Like his brother, Luke played in all 82 NHL games, which is exceptionally rare for rookies. In fact, Luke was one of only four rookies to play in all 82 of their respective club’s games.
Luke is also a defenseman and finished the season with 47 total points, nine of which were goals. For a rookie defenseman, these are really great stats, as a lot of rookies have trouble scoring during their first season in the league.
This season, Luke will be trying to ramp up his point production and try to become a more well-rounded player overall. Although he was relatively reliable, there were several times during the 2023-24 season where Luke made a defensive error that cost his team a goal. But with lots of practice and more NHL experience, Luke should become a very solid and dangerous defenseman in the league.
Jack
If Jack Hughes were to draw up an ideal season for him, it would look nothing like what his 2023-24 season looked like. Jack battled several injuries throughout this season which kept him from performing at his best. He played 62 of the 82 regular season games, but was playing while injured through several of the games he was actually playing in.
He still managed to put up 74 points in his 62 game season, 27 of which were goals. The Devils missed the playoffs this season, and this was definitely partly due to Jack’s absence. He is such a strong scorer and is one of the best players on the Devils. His ability to come out and make plays when the team needs it is extraordinary, and his absence was definitely felt.
This season, Jack will need to try his best to stay healthy so that he can help his team get to where they’re expected to be. Missing the playoffs last season was devastating for the Devils because of how high the expectations were for them. If Jack can stay healthy and produce at the level that we know he can produce at, the Devils should be in a great place going into the 2024-25 season.
Edited by Rachel Bowlin
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