The Edmonton Oilers have officially signed Boston University forward and college free agent Quinn Hutson. The Oilers have now signed seven players in the past two weeks.
There is also speculation that the Oilers are going to burn off a year of Hutson’s two-year entry-level contract immediately, which was likely an incentive for him to sign with Edmonton. With all of that being said, what type of player is Quinn Hutson, and what could he add to the Oilers’ lineup next season?
Let’s take a look at some background on Hutson, and provide a clear player breakdown so that Oilers fans know what to expect out of the most recent signee.
Quinn Hutson’s hockey background
Hockey is in the blood of the Hutson family. Quinn is the eldest of four brothers, which feature the likes of Montreal Canadiens defender, Lane, Washington Capitals prospect, Cole, and USHL 16-year-old prospect, Lars. All three of the oldest brothers have at least one thing in common: going the NCAA route with Boston University.
Quinn specifically played three seasons with the Boston University Terriers. In those three seasons the Hutson appeared in 117 total games with them while also posting a total of 114 points, good for 0.97 ppg. He particularly had a strong 2024–25, where he led the entire team with 50 points in 38 games.
For reference, he finished ahead of 14 other NHL prospects on that Terrier team. So to say they have a bit of depth would be an understatement, which is also a testament to Hutson’s offensive upside as well.
Hutson is ineligible for NHL playoffs this year because, for a player to be eligible, the NHL club has to have his rights before the trade deadline. As a undrafted college free agent by the Oilers, this was not met.
Quinn Huston player profile
This past season, the Terriers forward appeared in 38 games, and across those games, he averaged 17:06 of TOI, with 3:13 of it being on the power play. He was given an abundance of opportunity and capitalized on it.
Quinn Hutson is an offensive-minded sniper with a particular aptitude in touch and go offence. This means that he rarely hangs onto the puck for long and keeps up quite well with the pace of play. His game is highlighted by offensive senses, passing skill, some shooting, and a hard-to-miss motor.
Strengths
Hutson’s offensive toolkit is the focal point of his game, which blends quite nicely with his motor.
This motor and offensive senses combo means that even in defensive transition, the eldest Hutson is hunting down turnovers. This hints at above-average situational awareness, showing the overall effectiveness of his relatively high-frequency scanning and quality play anticipation.
Offensive senses
Some of the most noticeable things about Hutson’s game are his offensive instincts and spatial awareness.
In offensive transition and zone play, he is consistently and constantly creating space, making himself an option, and moving non-stop with unique routes. This demonstrates quality positioning, lane creation/awareness and play reading. All of this combined to display off-puck rush instincts.
This positioning and play reading always makes him a threat when he’s on ice, as he is hard to defend when he’s always finding more efficient and effective spots as plays develop around him. This shows underlying space creation mechanics and offensive play processing strengths.
This non-stop positioning in zone once again articulates his play anticipation and being one or two steps ahead of his defenders, which displays some growing hockey IQ. He does all the little things right, like identifying when his teammates need support, cutting down escape routes for opponents, and causing chaos in their defensive coverage.
All of these factors go on to explain his 2.5 scoring chances per game with a 22% conversion rate and a 0.37 expected goals. In short, he knows how to get open and generate offensively.
Puck skills
Puck skills also blend seamlessly with this offensive mind, as in offensive transition, he shows higher end quicker option identification mixed with passing ability and quality puck placement. These puck skills were extra beneficial because the 2002-born forward plays such a heavy touch and go offensive game.
This touch-and-go game also displays some pass/offensive creativity, as Hutson is not scared of bank, bounce, or slip passes. This also makes him a decently effective play facilitator.
This passing skill, previously mentioned offensive instincts, and shooting is best exemplified by his role as power play quarterback for the Terriers, which contributes 3:13 of his TOI.
On average, Hutson made 17 passes per game with 86% accuracy.
All of these factors blended well with Hutson’s decent vision, which allowed for a seamless transition game for the Terriers that centred around quick ups and consistent offensive pressure. The eldest Hutson brother is a breakout asset.
Shooting
Hutson loves to shoot the puck. If his offensive positioning, intensity, and puck skills can’t tell you that, his six shots per game certainly do. He leans shooter in most instances, but does display enough offensive poise to make the best available play, hinting back at higher end offensive awareness.
Shooting wise he displays a quicker than average release point, some mechanically sound upper body leverage, and a complete weight transfer. The only drawback mechanically of his shot is its accuracy, which sits at 61%.
Part of this low accuracy is the fact that Hutson lacks some selective qualities, as he likes to take shots immediately after crossing the opponents blueline, or sharp angle shots which have no chance of going in. He also struggles to identify shot lanes, often leading to blocked shots or just lower quality ones.
This shot selection is something that will need to be worked on as at the AHL/NHL level he will not get six shot opportunities a game, but the mechanics of the shot itself remain an asset.
Weaknesses
The main elements that serve as barriers for Quinn at the next level include his defensive play, physicality, and puck protection/deception elements. He has average skating, which is partially hidden by his high-end motor but is also limited by its top speed.
Defensive play
Defensive play certainly is not Hutson’s strong suit, as exemplified by his defensive transition and zone play, which focuses on stick swings, very lateral angles of attack, and generally only minor defensive pressure, which can find success in the NCAA, but this is unlikely to be effective at the next level.
Some more deceptive angles of attack would likely prove beneficial for Hutson.
In defensive zone play, his game as a high zone-forward shows below-average defensive awareness and low rates of play engagement as a high forward. Particularly, his defensive play engagement rate contributes to minor concerns around his higher than normal 0.11 rate of errors leading to goals.
Avoidance and hesitation
Hutson tends to avoid the grittier areas of the ice in defensive play, which hints at physical and board play avoidance. This is also compounded by issues around hit absorption in both ends, as this absorption often kills all momentum.
This physical avoidance also is not without reason, as he struggles to find effective body leverage in his game, which contributes to Hutson winning only 46% of his puck battles. Additionally, he only dishes out 0.14 hits per game and receives 0.44 per game.
Puck protection
Other minor elements that serve as barriers include his puck protection, as he shows little growth in terms of puck protection mechanics, leading to issues in situations of extending handling. It is in situations where Hutson attempts to stick handle that leads to his five giveaways per game.
Skating
Skating looks around average for Hutson, as he keeps up with pace okay, has some decent posture, ankle flection, and extension. Minor issues around depth as he digs in a bit too deep, leading to a reduced acceleration rate, which harms his top speed. He has just okay agility and edge work and pivots, which furthers his route creation.
Skating won’t pose too much of a problem for Hutson, but it does have some shortcomings that can be worked on.
What signing Hutson means for the Oilers
NHL ETA: 1–2 Years
Projection: Bottom-six secondary scorer.
Hutson has a lot to like in his baseline offensive instincts, puck skills, and shooting mechanics but also some major drawbacks with his defensive play, physicality, and other intangibles.
The Oilers’ management has certainly acquired a player with some potential to be a quality depth piece for the organization in the immediate future.
Hutson is further along in his development timeline than some of the other NCAA free agents, and fans can likely expect to see him in the remaining regular-season games. He also poses an intriguing skill set that could line up nicely with one of the Oilers’ big two forwards next season.
Only time will tell.
What do you think about Quinn Hutson? Are there any other recent signees you’d like to see a deeper dive into? Let us know in the comments below.
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