FEATURE: Hughes at Home

Jack Hughes takes a bite of his blueberry bagel, smiles, and says he's ready to start.

He sits back in his chair outdoors, the blue Michigan skies behind him, he flips his hair out of his face and smiles.

Jack looks refreshed.

It has been an intense year for the 19-year-old, just one year removed from the 2019 draft. It's been a year of highs, lows, new experiences both on and off the ice.

It's good to be home for Jack - if just for a short while.

The Devils rookie has spent the last 15 weeks living at home with his parents Ellen and Jim, and his brothers Quinn and Luke. The house is full, with the three boys under the same roof for an extended period of time, for the first time in years. Quinn is 20, Jack is 19 and Luke is 16.

"It's unreal," Jack said, "I mean, I come home and me and Quinn are getting breakfast made for us and getting dinners made for us. We're like, 'God, it's nice at home'. Pretty, pretty thankful. I think my mom and dad are pretty happy to have all three of us back in same home."

Suddenly the Hughes household looks like all other households, parents cooped up with their kids, maybe lasting a little too long.

"It's a really rare time for all three of us to be in the same house this long," Jack said.

Tweet from @NJDevils: "It was mind-blowing how fast it was going, picks were coming out every 30 seconds and you just lose track of what teams are still in the mix." - @JackHughes43Listen to Hughes and Hischier on the latest episode of the #SpeakOfTheDevils Podcast. https://t.co/1Z2dshD9zW pic.twitter.com/Ia9aYRjE8u

While mom makes breakfast, what do the Hughes brothers do?

"We bring the entertainment in the house," he joked.

Jack wouldn't divulge exactly what that meant, though one can surmise it's a lot of 'boys being boys' behavior. Now all three brothers are helping out more around the house, when mom and dad do come calling. Their excuse of being home for the first time in a while all together no longer holds weight, there are things to do around the home. He's helped build deck chairs, to go along with their new pool, landscaping around the house, and filling up the yard with mulch.

As for what "the entertainment" consists of?

"I mean, some of it is behind closed doors, you could say," he said with a smirk on his face.

Behind closed doors must feel nice. For most of the last year, Jack has spent his life in the spotlight. A spotlight that comes with being the first overall pick in the NHL Draft and as a player whose name has circulated for the better part of two years.

"Yeah, it's definitely been a wild year say the least," he said, "I mean, living at home and a year later living alone in an apartment, right? Right outside New York City, so it's obviously a lot different than living at home in Michigan. But it's awesome. And I'm really, really thankful to be in New Jersey now."

That's not to say that the year hasn't been without its challenges. With a spotlight in his face, following his every stride on the ice, Jack has faced more in his first 61 NHL games than most. All before turning 19 in mid-May, he's experienced a GM change, a coaching change and, of course, a season-ending because of a worldwide pandemic.

="I'm obviously more grown-up," Hughes said, "I almost know what it's like in the real world now, in terms of no longer a high school student. I'm actually paying the rent, car bills, stuff like that. And then trying to find dinner throughout the year. So, it's obviously a lot different, but that's what happens. Right?"

For now, Jack is enjoying family time. Mom's cooking and just being home with his brothers. A year of new experiences has only helped Jack mature, ready for another year in the National Hockey League. When he's called upon, he'll head back to New Jersey to his apartment, he'll shut the door behind him and there will be an odd absence of noise.

Silence.

Just Jack, no one else. Sound familiar?

"It's different than living on your own apartment. I mean, it's always loud here. Someone's always talking. So, I guess it's pretty similar to when I was living at the Schneider's, you could say."