New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes recorded his third career National Hockey League hat trick on Tuesday. He accomplished the feat in a 5-2 Devils win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario.
Inside look at the three goals
Hughes’s first goal tied the game at one at 1:27 of the second period. Jesper Bratt of Stockholm, Sweden and defenseman Brett Pesce of Tarrytown, New York had the assists. Hughes then put the Devils up 4-2 with three minutes and 43 seconds left in the second period from defenseman Simon Nemec of Liptiovsky Mikulas, Slovakia. Hughes’s hat trick closed the scoring from Bratt with 30 seconds left in the third period.
Hughes’s prior two hat tricks
The first NHL hat trick for Hughes came on November 26, 2022 in a 5-1 Devils win over the Washington Capitals. The second NHL hat trick for Hughes came on December 16, 2023 in a 6-3 Devils win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Hughes in 2025-26
In six games this season, Hughes has six goals and three assists for nine points. He is a +1 with three power-play points, one game-winning goal, 26 shots on goal, 16 faceoff wins, three blocked shots, one hit, seven takeaways, and 21 giveaways.
Hughes’s hit came in a 5-3 Devils win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 11. Hughes’s game-winning goal came on October 18 in a 5-3 Devils win over the Edmonton Oilers. Hughes scored from Bratt at 12:33 of the third period, which put the Devils up 4-1 at the time.
Spectacular start
Yesterday, James Boutros and I discussed the outstanding start for the Detroit Red Wings. So far to begin the season, the Red Wings are at five wins and one loss and lead he Atlantic Division with 10 points. The Devils and Carolina Hurricanes are two other teams in the East that have begun the season with a record of five wins and one loss.
Like Detroit, New Jersey actually lost their first game of the season as they were beaten by the Hurricanes 6-3 on October 9. In addition to their aforementioned wins over the Lightning, Oilers and Maple Leafs, the Devils have also beaten the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2 on October 13, and the Florida Panthers 3-1 on October 16.
Hughes and the Devils play their next three games at home. They host the Minnesota Wild in the second of back-to-back games on Wednesday, the San Jose Sharks on Friday and the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.
