T.J. Hughes spent the summer making Colorado’s decision for them.
The Avalanche are keeping the rookie forward on the Opening Night roster, and head coach Jared Bednar said Hughes will also begin the season on the top power-play unit. After an impressive run through camp and exhibition play, Hughes has turned a strong preseason into a spot with the Avs to start the year.
“He’s starting with us. It's been a pleasure to work with him through training camp, through exhibition," Bednar had said on Hughes.
That opportunity has been earned the hard way. Hughes went undrafted out of NCAA play with the University of Michigan Wolverines, but he’s now set to begin the season with Colorado on a one-year, entry-level contract for the 2026-27 season. On Sept. 27, he skated on PP1 with Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Martin Necas, and Cale Makar, and he’s expected to work netfront on the top unit in the Sept. 30 season opener.
Hughes made the most of his preseason reps. He dressed in three games and posted a hat trick and an assist in his second outing, earning first-star honors and helping Colorado beat the Winnipeg Jets, 5-2. His first preseason appearance also produced an assist, and he finished among the NHL preseason scoring leaders with five goals.
Landeskog was quick to point out how Hughes has handled the moment.
"It's awesome," Landeskog previously said to NHL.com on Hughes' hat trick. "It's well deserved.
Obviously, it's a guy that's come in [and] understood what an opportunity is ahead of him, and he's made the most of it. He's had a great [training] camp, and he had a great game tonight ...
He's looked great. [He's a] smart player, skilled player and he's got a lot of good parts of his game."
The path to this point has been a long one. A native of Hamilton, Ontario, Hughes had never played above the Alberta Junior Hockey League in juniors, where he piled up 194 points and helped his team to the Inter Pipeline Cup in 2022. Colorado signed him as a free agent on April 11, 2026 after he put together a 2025-26 NCAA season of 57 points, with 22 goals and 35 assists.
His final year at Michigan brought plenty of recognition. Hughes was a team captain, a Hobey Baker Hat Trick finalist, a First-Team All-American and the Big Ten Player of the Year. He led the Wolverines in points, ranked second nationally with 57 points and was third in assists with 57.
Colorado also got a look at him with the AHL Colorado Eagles, where he had one goal and one assist in two games for the rest of the 2025-26 regular season.
Versatility has helped his case too. Hughes has played both center and wing, though he’s been more effective on the wing. And Colorado’s confidence in him has only grown through the offseason, matching the quick impression he made as an Honorable Mention all-B1G Ten during his freshman year at Michigan.
The Avalanche open against the Los Angeles Kings on Sept. 30, and Hughes will be right there when the season starts.
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Now the Blue Jackets are reportedly folding Woods deal into trade talks involving Kirill Marchenko, looking for a team willing to absorb the contract. For Avalanche fans, it is a reminder of how quickly a familiar name can shift from crowd favorite to salary-cap wrinkle, with the next step depending less on his play than on whether another club is willing to take on the financial baggage. [Read more 🡒]