.Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporterSep 12, 2024, 02:13 PM ETCloseRyan S. Clark is actually an NHL media reporter for ESPN.New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes will certainly need between 6 to 8 full weeks to bounce back from a shoulder injury he suffered previously this month, the staff said Thursday.Hughes went through a remaining shoulder personal injury during offseason training. After being analyzed by the Devils' clinical team, it was identified he would certainly not require surgical operation and that it could take much more than six full weeks for him to recover.That timeline implies Hughes would certainly miss the Devils' 7 preseason video games and their season-opening activities on Oct. 4 and Oct. 5 versus the Buffalo Sabres in Prague, Czechia. The earliest he could come back would certainly be actually the full week of Oct. twenty, which implies the Devils would possess actually participated in eight regular-season games.Losing Hughes for also a brief period happens after he used his newbie initiative to improve why he is actually thought about one of the video game's brightest youthful stars. Hughes completed last period along with six targets as well as 47 aspects while additionally being one of 5 Adversaries to play in every 82 games.What Hughes performed as a novice caused him finishing 3rd in Calder Trophy ballot behind the resulting winner, Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard, as well as Minnesota Wild defenseman Brock Faber.Hughes and also Faber were the only newbie defensemen who participated in all 82 games final time. They were actually also matched for second one of rookies in factors along with Bedard leading the game's first-year gamers along with 61 points.Once Hughes is actually gotten rid of to come back, he is actually assumed to be a critical component of the Devils' plans to go back to the playoffs. Hughes, who was the 4th pick of the 2021 NHL Draft, spent 2 years establishing at the University of Michigan, which also generated his bro Quinn Hughes, the Vancouver Canucks captain who is actually also the reigning Norris Trophy winner for the NHL's finest defenseman.Hughes left behind Michigan after two periods and signed his entry-level agreement along with the Devils. It enabled him to join his sibling and also Devils alternative captain, Jack, for the crew's playoff run in the course of the 2023 Stanley Mug playoffs.The Devils gained 52 activities in the course of the 2022-23 time and progressed to the playoffs for the very first time in 4 seasons. They opened along with a first-round success over the rivalrous Nyc Rangers in seven video games before dropping in the 2nd round versus the Carolina Hurricanes.Last period saw the Devils problem to discover consistency as well as overlook the playoffs. It led to all of them parting techniques along with head coach Lindy Ruff as well as tapping the services of interim instructor Travis Veggie just before they then hired past Toronto Walnut Leafs trainer Sheldon Keefe in old Might.