York senior forward Noah Hughes is motivated by last season, on multiple fronts.

          The Dukes skated last season at the United Center, losing 2-0 to New Trier Green in the Illinois High School Hockey State Championship game. Hughes was just watching that game as his team a year ago – the York JV – was victorious less than a week earlier, beating West Glenbard 3-2 in the 16-team tournament to capture the Illinois JV State Championship, played at the Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville.

          “Getting cut from the varsity team last year motivates me every game. I (have a) chip on my shoulder,” said Hughes, 17, who lives in Elmhurst and played his youth hockey for the Blues and Chiefs. “Also, playing hockey with some of my best friends motivates me as well. I think that due to our close bond it makes us all want to play for each other.”

Hughes skates with linemates Caden Buenz, a junior, and sophomore Jack Paschen – and Hughes is an assistant captain alongside defensemen Frank Rosa and Drew Gami.

Hughes is skating his first varsity season after three years on the team’s JV.

“I had coaches (Matt) Boeing and (Nick) Albergo my freshman year which definitely made the transition to varsity this year a lot easier,” Hughes said. “Winning the state championship last year was a great experience. I thought it was cool playing (the championship game) at The Edge in front of a lot of fans because that was the rink that I grew up playing in, and to have the opportunity to play there for the state championship was very cool.”

Hughes scored the first goal in the JV State Championship last year which he said was “super cool.”

“Last season on JV I was able to score more goals and (was) able to dangle a lot. Coming up to varsity this year I really think I have improved on prioritizing the little things,” he said. “I have become a good defensive forward and have found myself being matched against some of the best lines in the league.

“Coming up from JV wasn’t that hard of an adjustment because my coaches made it clear the kind of player they wanted me to be. They don’t expect me to go coast to coast and score goals; they just expect me to fulfill my role of working hard and being a grinder. Last year I had a lot more pressure to score a lot of goals and really produce offense while this year most of my pressure is just being productive defensively as well as producing on the powerplay while I am screening the goalie.”

Hughes scored his first SHL goal this season in York’s 4-3 home shootout loss Dec. 11 against Lake Forest. He has 7 assists, including 2 in the annual O’Grady Thanksgiving Tournament, hosted by Loyola Academy.

York is 10-12 and its 24 points puts the team in a 6th place tie with Saint Ignatius. The Dukes wrap their 2023 schedule on Friday night, December 22 in Addison with a home game against Carmel Catholic.

“We want to be right back at the United Center and we know how much work those guys put in last season to get there. That gave the whole team motivation to outwork the competition,” said Hughes, who truly has had a roller-coaster ride during his four seasons wearing the Dukes uniform.

“My freshman year, I was probably the last person to make the cut. I didn’t see a lot of ice time that year. I believe that my three years on JV really transformed me into a different player. It’s really cool to see that now, seeing good ice time on varsity after seeing very little ice time at the JV level. It is a good feeling to see hard work paying off.”

York head coach Matt Boeing said Hughes’ leadership and guidance has been key – and the team looks to Hughes on and off the ice.

“He is taking bone-crushing cross checks in front of the net, sacrificing his body blocking whistling slap shots, and being first to the puck on the forecheck,” Boeing said. “On the bench, he is the first one to pick up a teammate, bring the positive energy on the bench and be the family (leader that) our team needs. He has high expectations for his teammates and does that by leading by example as he holds himself to an even higher standard.”

Hughes was on the same line last season with Buenz and in his first season skating with Paschen. Hughes is the forward who, well, doesn’t often land prominently on the scoresheet. He is, after all, the grinder, blocking shots, forechecking and backchecking, screening the goalie on the powerplay, as well as killing penalties. “I know I am not much of a goal-scorer but I know my role and I do what I can to help the team succeed,” he said.

Boeing sees Hughes’ success well beyond statistics, tagging Hughes as York’s Joe Pavelski for his strength on tip ins and rebounds. Plus, Hughes is able to take away the middle of the ice with his stick in passing lane, and “he has the ability to knock down cross-ice sauce passes,” Boeing said.

“Noah has been an incredible addition to our program and we (will) miss him next year.”

York has 6 games remaining in the regular season in January, including two against Loyola Gold. The Dukes defeated the Ramblers 6-4 on Dec. 16, and that win came 24 hours after York beat Glenbrook North 2-1 in Addison.

“We are a good team with a high ceiling. We have improved every practice and every game and that is showing with our recent victories over GBN and Loyola,” Hughes said. “We have a lot of young talent, with some skilled sophomores who bring a lot of offense. We also have one of the best defensemen in the state.

“Our goal is to just keep getting better in hopes that we can make it back to the United Center for the state championship.

“Personally, I would like to be more productive in scoring goals on the power play. My job is to screen the goalie and take away his eyes, but I would like to bury more rebounds and tip-ins on the power play.”

And as soon as the whistle blows on his York hockey career, Hughes simply moves to the York baseball field, where he is a starting pitcher – and last season also will motivate Hughes and his baseball teammates this upcoming March when the season kicks off.

York in 2023 finished fourth in the state in 4A after losing 7-3 to eventual state champion Edwardsville in the semifinals and then falling 9-4 to New Trier in the third-place game.

“Last baseball season was a super cool experience,” Hughes said. “I love playing for coach (Dave) Kalal, (River) Pitlock and (Bobby) Fisher. We had some good senior leadership which made it a great season and that leadership had a lot to do with our success. Also, playing alongside Ryan Sloan who is the 10th-ranked high school player in the country is an unreal experience.

“Making it to the final four after losing in the elite eight my sophomore year was a super cool experience. Also, it was cool to contribute to the amount of success York has had in the whole athletic department whether it be football, hockey, baseball, soccer, and cross country.”

Hughes was moved up to the York baseball varsity for the playoffs as a sophomore after pitching a few games for the varsity during the regular season. “Getting some varsity experience as a sophomore helped me succeed my junior year,” he said. “I pitched the final inning against St. Charles East in the playoffs. It was a game that we weren’t supposed win and I was able to secure the 2-0 victory.”

Hughes is undecided on his college plans for next fall, ideally a four-year school where he can play club hockey.

“I played house league hockey until eighth grade (as) up until then I prioritized football over hockey. I would skip hockey practices to go to football practices,” he said.

Not anymore. Now Hughes grabs some Chick-fil-A nuggets and is ready for a York hockey Friday night game in Addison.