Washington Capitals select Cole Hutson 43rd overall in 2024 NHL Draft after acquiring pick from Buffalo Sabres – NoVa Caps

Photo: New York Times

The Washington Capitals selected defenseman Cole Hutson with the 43rd overall pick in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft on Saturday morning at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Hutson is 5’9″ tall and is from North Barrington, Illinois. He recorded 36 assists and 51 points in 51 games with the U.S. under-18 national team. He also led all tournament defenders with nine assists and 13 points in seven games for the U.S. Under-18 team at the 2024 World Junior Championships. Hutson set the U.S. NTDP record for most career points by a defenseman (119).

During the 2022–23 season, Hutson set the USA Hockey single-season NTDP record for points by a defenseman after recording 68 points (10 goals) in 61 games.

The 18-year-old was ranked 26th overall by TSN’s Craig Button and 47th by Bob McKenzie before the draft.

Quick take: “Cole Hutson masters the 1v1 game perfectly at the point. A lateral slide, a hesitant movement and he passes the first defensive layer. He steps down into the faceoff circle, fakes a shot, and sends the perfect cross-field pass to the talented shooter sitting in space on the other flank. » (Elite Prospects)

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“Hutson is a rather small defenseman who has fantastic vision with the puck on his stick. He’s a power play quarterback who can be difficult to escape pressure in all three zones. Despite his stature, he is very involved defensively, never backs down and defends with determination. Hutson will head to Boston University in the fall, the same university where his brother Lane (Montreal Canadiens ’62) played.^sd globally in 2022) is currently being read.

Dober

This site describes Hutson as a facilitator and creator and projects his scoring potential at around 20 goals and 55 points per season. Their conservative points per season projection was 10 goals and 30 points. They expect Hutson to be NHL ready in 4-5 seasons.

“David Saad – Cole Hutson gave both the critic and the fan everything they expected from him this season. To the critic, it was a lot of recycled material from his brother. Lack of size, spin defense, lack of physicality. He relied on his number to call his number and force one-on-ones. Naturally, this led to a lot of turnovers the other way and without the high-end motor or vision to anticipate pressure, odd-mans often gave way. He doesn’t have the “wow” factor that Lane did and, as a result, was simply easier to suppress. Things started to change around the new year. After returning from a nagging injury in February, Cole quickly began stringing together solid performances. The anticipation that had previously been lacking was showing up frequently. He began to develop much better straight-line speed as well as lateral mobility. But more importantly, he was getting much better at assessing risks. When Hutson attacked the zone, it almost always came with a premeditated plan in mind and he has the puck handling and playmaking to execute them. It all culminated in a big way in the U18s where he showed his flag as the tournament’s top offensive defenceman.

Which version of Cole Hutson are we most likely to see in the future? He’s unlikely to ever show the flashes and peaks like his brother, but Cole is also far less likely to show you the valleys. Maintaining his current trajectory will be key. In heading to Boston University, Cole is heading to a program he’s already familiar with, as well as a development staff that already has a deep understanding of the areas he needs to develop in his game to take him to the next level in terms of impact, consistency, and dynamism.

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RANKINGS

Ranked #39 by CONSOLIDATED RANKING
Ranked #47 by ELITEPROSPECTS.COM
Ranked #47 by TSN/BOB McKENZIE
Ranked #26 by TSN/CRAIG BUTTON
Ranked n°45 by THN/FERRARI
Ranked #71 by THN/KENNEDY
Ranked #36 by MCKEEN’S HOCKEY
Ranked #35 by FLOHOCKEY/CHRIS PETERS
Ranked #41 by FCHOCKEY
Ranked #37 by DAILY FACEOFF
Ranked #55 by NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING (NA Skaters)
Ranked #57 by HPR/MALLOY
Ranked #28 by DRAFT PROSPECTS HOCKEY
Ranked n°26 by SPORTSNET/BUKALA
Ranked #55 by RECRUTE SCOUTING
Ranked #40 by DOBBERPROSPECTS
Ranked #40 by SMAHT SCOUTING

By Harrison Brown