The New Jersey Devils have announced that defenseman Luke Hughes will be shut down for the remainder of the season so he can undergo the process to begin his offseason rehabilitation early.
The 22-year-old blueliner has appeared in 68 games this season, recording six goals and 35 points.
Hughes suffered a shoulder injury on January 19 on the road against the Calgary Flames. In the second period, he tangled with Flames forward Justin Kirkland on the boards, dislocating his shoulder in the process. The injury took him out of the game shortly thereafter, placing him on long-term injured reserve.
A source confirmed that Hughes had surgery related to a shoulder injury.
At the time, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported that Hughes would not go under the knife to repair a shoulder injury.
“After consulting with doctors, Luke Hughes will not undergo surgery at this time and will instead rehabilitate his upper body injury.
“Devils placed Hughes on LTIR today; expected to sideline him during Olympic break [it’s to be determined]”
Hughes returned on February 28 against the St. Louis Blues – missing only 10 games with the Olympic break in between.
The Devils are officially out of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs on Tuesday after losing to the Philadelphia Flyers and the Ottawa Senators beat the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It makes perfect sense for Hughes to begin his rehab as soon as possible, with a source also confirming that Hughes is expected to be ready for training camp in September.
The Devils will face the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night, with Simon Nemec set to take over No. 1 power play duties.
Dennis Cholowski is stepping into Hughes’ shoes on the blueline. No other recalls are expected at this time.
The Devils have four games remaining on their schedule for the remainder of the 2025–26 season.
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