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Projected No. 1 NHL pick Jack Hughes sets U.S. U18 record at Worlds

By Connor Grott

April 25 (UPI) -- Jack Hughes, the consensus No. 1 prospect in the 2019 NHL Draft, had a record-setting performance at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

Hughes recorded three goals and an assist during the United States' 6-0 win over Finland on Thursday. He set the U.S. record for career points and tied the country's record for points in a single tournament.

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Hughes passed current Pittsburgh Penguins forward Phil Kessel with 28 points in 12 career games at the U18 Worlds. Kessel had 26 points in 14 games at the event in 2004 and 2005. The U.S. team reached to tourney's semifinal with the win over Finland.

The 17-year-old forward currently leads all players at the Worlds with 16 points in only five games. His 16 points is tied with Kessel's U.S. single-tournament mark from 2005, when he registered 16 points in six contests.

"For me, it was good to beat the Finns," Hughes told reporters. "It was really motivating when we got to play them and get a good game in the quarters."

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Hughes, a native of Orlando, Fla., trails Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin by three points for the career scoring record. Ovechkin had 31 points over 14 games in two tournaments in 2002 and 2003. Tampa Bay Lightning goal-scorer Nikita Kucherov holds the single-tournament points record with 21 in seven games in 2011.

Hughes previously set the U.S. National Team Development Program's career points record. His 224 points in two years at the NTDP broke Clayton Keller's record of 189.

The U.S. national team plays Russia in the semifinal Saturday.

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