“Then I Saw Him Play”: Dan Hinote on LA Kings’ Jack Hughes

He felt bad for the LA Kings prospect sharing a name with a future superstar. But then, as Dan Hinote then saw Jack Hughes play.

When his name was called by the LA Kings in Montreal last month, there came an understandable sense of confusion. Jack Hughes, after all, was the consensus – and eventual – No. 1 pick in the 2019 Draft – leading some to urge that the silver-and-black #LoseForHughes.

Well, the LA Kings now have Jack Hughes, albeit a different person altogether – literally.

The latter version of Jack Hughes was taken in the second round (51st overall) by the LA Kings at the 2022 Draft. But after a season at Northeastern University under his belt, the native of Westwood, Mass., went through an important juncture with the USNTDP in 2019-20.

There, he was coached by, along with former Ontario Reign head coach, John Wroblewski, former NHLer Dan Hinote.

I recently spoke to Hinote, who reflected on Hughes’ progression, beginning with how he actually, but briefly, felt bad for the youngster.

“Well, you know, it’s funny. Obviously with coaching the [players born in 2001], Jack Hughes was the talk of the nation. Then, this poor guy comes in as an ’03 with the same exact name on the same exact team. You’re just like, ‘Oh, man. This poor kid. He’s gonna have to try and live up to that name even though he has no relation.’” an amused Hinote explained. “So, originally, I felt kind of bad for him. Then, I saw him play and I no longer felt bad for him. His toolkit is so good that it was going to speak for itself.”

That toolkit involves a plethora of solid assets, including one-touch passes, using the middle lane, a penchant for deking on the backhand, and instilling pressure to force errors from the opposition. These are just a few reasons for the LA Kings and their fans to be excited for the future.

“Never mind the Jack Hughes that came about through the ’01s; this Jack Hughes had just as good of a skill set,” Hinote beamed. “I think he sees the ice fantastically. His game-management skills are also really good. Obviously, no one has [the ’01] Jack Hughes’ edge — you can’t replicate what he can do on his skates. But as far as seeing the game and seeing the ice sheet, making plays, and the high level of skill, this Jack Hughes — the ’03 Jack Hughes — was just as good, in my opinion. So, very quickly, I stopped feeling sorry for his predicament. I got really excited because people are going to pay attention based on his name. But they’re going to be pleasantly surprised with how good he is.”

As for reacting under pressure, Hinote was impressed with what he saw from Hughes.

“All of a sudden, being in those shoes kind of became an added advantage for him, in my opinion, because he was going to attract attention,” stressed the former right-winger. “So, he’s the kind of guy where, if you pay attention, he’s a lot better than you think. But if you’re not paying attention, he could just get into the game and have three points and you wouldn’t know it. But if you’re paying attention, then you see what he sees, then you’re like, ‘Okay, this kid is special.'”

At last month’s draft, Hughes took the stage at Montreal’s Bell Centre – home to the Canadiens. The club’s GM, after all, happens to be the youngster’s father, Jeff. But beyond his current duties for the Habs, Hinote glowed about Jeff – and Jack’s mother – as parents. This was evident by how the younger Hughes carried himself.

“He was raised properly, as I like to say,” Hinote reflected. “His parents did a great job long before he joined us. Sometimes with the program, a big concern of ours is that these kids are going to be coming in with entitlement, their parents can sometimes come from money. Obviously in his case, with [Jack’s] father being in hockey, you never know what you’re going to get from a kid standpoint.

“We had a bunch of ex-hockey players’ sons on our team, and then obviously his dad was in the sport. But there were a ton of hockey families on that ’03 team and they were all raised properly. And so, when you get the son of an ex-player or a son of somebody that’s in the game, they kind of know what to expect from a hardship standpoint. So, we were able to be harder on these kids right off the hop because we knew their parents were already hard on them, and that makes our job really easy. [Jack] was very respectful, very quiet originally — and most of those kids are.”

Hinote went on to admit that his coaching staff also helped instill a great sense of confidence in the team. The coaches also made a point of emphasizing the value of hard work but to have fun, as well.

“You’re getting them at 16 and Wrobo is a larger-than-life kind of guy,” added Hinote. “You know, I’ve got lots of energy, [assistant coach Mike Leone] has got lots of energy, so it’s an easy environment to just kind of keep your head down and work hard and you’ll get better. And those kids did that. And with their teammates, the thing about the program is that they are together 24/7, and they loved each other.

“They were a really tight group and they loved to compete with each other, and these guys were animals against each other. That is one thing I always tell people about the program. You’re not developing them in the games. The games are kind of the fun part. But really, the development comes in the practice. You’re playing against the best of their age group every single day in practice, and they know it. So, they don’t take it easy on each other. They go after each other. That ’03 group, they were animals. Like, they were going to beat each other up in a good way.”

After the 2019-20 season, Dan Hinote returned to the NHL, joining the Nashville Predators as an assistant coach. Still, while he is enjoying his current role, Hinote will never forget his time with the USNTDP. This is especially due to the impact he had on a new generation of players.

But for Hinote, his impact on Jack Hughes didn’t stop there. The 45-year-old, after all, had a wealth of experience from winning a Stanley Cup in 2001. Hinote also had another advantage: being the lone Army grad to play in the NHL.

Stay tuned for more.