![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tj-hughes-e1773888568565.jpg\")
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Montreal Canadiens could have a crucial edge to land one this year’s most sought-after NCAA free agents. <\/p>\n
The Montreal<\/a> Canadiens are among the teams believed to be in hot pursuit of one of this year\u2019s top NCAA free agents.<\/p>\n As more and more college teams see their seasons end, undrafted players ending their NCAA careers have an opportunity to sign NHL contracts.<\/p>\n One of those players is Michigan Wolverines star, TJ Hughes. At 24, Hughes is pretty much ready to hit the pro game. He\u2019s about as ready as he\u2019ll ever be and could be a major contributor to any team that signs him.<\/p>\n And yes, there are various teams kicking the tires on Hughes. But it\u2019s the Canadiens that have an edge. Hughes has a direct connection to the Habs.<\/p>\n Hughes confessed his admiration for the Canadiens to R.org\u2019s Marco D\u2019Amico. The Michigan star admitted that he grew up a Habs fan<\/a> despite living in Toronto Maple Leafs territory in Southern Ontario.<\/p>\n But Hughes\u2019 ties to the Habs go much deeper than that. The Wolverines\u2019 captain has made a close friendship with Canadiens\u2019 first-round pick Michael Hage<\/a>. The duo has lit up the NCAA to the point where Hughes is among the names in the Hobey Baker conversation this year.<\/p>\n Hughes\u2019 19 goals and 50 points in 36 games have put him on the radar. That\u2019s why teams are looking to bring him in asap.<\/p>\n But there\u2019s another natural connection to the Habs. Former Montreal captain Max Pacioretty joined Michigan\u2019s coaching staff this season. And it just so happens that Pacioretty was one of the players Hughes grew up watching.<\/p>\n That\u2019s a connection that other clubs can\u2019t ignore. It might just be the edge the Canadiens need to land one of this season\u2019s top NCAA free agents.<\/p>\n Canadiens\u2019 Pursuit of Hughes Similar to Vesey<\/p>\n Over a decade ago, there was another big-ticket NCAA free agent hitting the market. Jimmy Vesey won the 2016 Hobey Baker and became the target of several NHL clubs. While the Canadiens didn\u2019t land him, the buzz around Vesey was impressive.<\/p>\n In the end, Vesey signed with the New York Rangers<\/a>. He was coming off a 22-goal, 46-point season with Harvard. Unfortunately for Vesey, he couldn\u2019t translate his college success into NHL stardom.<\/p>\n If Hughes ends up coming away with this year\u2019s Hobey Baker, the pursuit of Hughes will only get tighter.<\/p>\n Get more Canadiens on Heavy:<\/p>\n Canadiens Had Blockbuster in Play with Leafs, Insider Claims<\/a><\/p>\n Montreal Canadiens Call-Up Could Signal Montembeault\u2019s Days Numbered<\/a><\/p>\n Canadiens Extension Caps Off Smartest Move this Season<\/a><\/p>\n How Hughes Fits into Habs\u2019 Lineup<\/p>\n The Habs would love to bring Hughes into their organization and hopefully team him up with Michael Hage. That combination could give the Habs another duo similar to the Cole Caufield-Nick Suzuki combo.<\/p>\n Hage, who was a common ask from opposing GMs at this year\u2019s NHL trade deadline, is firmly in the Canadiens\u2019 plans down the line. The Habs have made him off-limits since they feel he can become a highly valuable top-six center.<\/p>\n So, why not add another potential high-end forward in Hughes?<\/p>\n Adding Hughes could give the Canadiens the top-six forward they have been looking for. While he may not instantly become that coveted forward, there\u2019s no reason to believe he couldn\u2019t have a similar impact to the one Ivan Demidov had at the end of last season.<\/p>\n Perhaps Canadiens fans will see Hughes in the postseason much the same way they did with Demidov. That much remains unclear for now.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tNestor Quixtan<\/a> Seasoned NHL analyst and baseball writer focused on covering clubs across each league with news, analysis, and insights. Originally from Toronto, Canada, Nestor’s singular experiences and background have enabled him to bring a different take on the sports world as a whole. Nestor’s fondness for baseball and hockey set the tone for his love and passion for writing about sports. More about Nestor Quixtan<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Canadiens\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty The Montreal Canadiens could have a crucial edge to land one this year’s most sought-after NCAA free…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":546131,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194292],"tags":[49,48,2338],"class_list":["post-546130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-montreal","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-montreal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=546130"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546130\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/546131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=546130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=546130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=546130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}