Lane vs. Cole. For the first time in their NHL careers, the Hutson brothers faced each other. This is Lane’s third season, and he has quickly established himself as one of the best young defencemen. His brother Cole made a cameo appearance last season for the Washington Capitals after his season ended with Boston University. He played 14 games last season, but this is his first full season in the NHL. The brothers' paths did not cross last season, making Wednesday night's matchup between the Montreal Canadiens and Capitals a special moment for the Hutson family. While their games are slightly different, both share a unique ability to generate offence from the blueline, and that was on full display during Montreal’s 5-4 loss to Washington.
Hutson brothers wasted no time
The goals came early and often, and it started with a four-goal opening period. With the Capitals trailing thanks to a Josh Anderson opener, it was time for Cole to show he is not just Lane’s little brother. As a Washington power play was set to expire, Cole picked up a Canadiens dump-out and regrouped for one last rush. As he was cutting into the offensive zone, he slid a pass underneath Alex Newhook's stick, finding Jordan Kyrou, who skated to the middle of the ice and fired a shot past Jakub Dobes. If this was a battle for bragging rights, Cole was up early, but Lane was not going to let his little brother have all the fun.
Lane gave his brother a couple of minutes to take over the spotlight before it was his turn to perform some magic. With the game now tied at one, Lane received a neutral zone pass from Zachary Bolduc and noticed the Capitals making a line change. He darted into the offensive zone, made a hard cut towards the slot and fired a wrist shot past former Canadiens netminder Charlie Lindgren. The Hutson brothers became just the second pair of defenceman brothers to both record a point in their first NHL head-to-head matchup. Lane picked up an assist late as the Canadiens cut the Capitals' lead to one, but Cole would have the last laugh, leaving their first matchup with a win.
Something Lane and Cole will never forget
For the Canadiens and Capitals, it was their seventh game of the regular season, but for the Hutson brothers, it was the start of a friendly rivalry. While it must have been hard to fully enjoy the moment in a loss, Lane was still able to appreciate the special night for his family. “It would have been nice to win, but I'm proud of him for sure. He was great tonight. Fun to watch him. He's going to be good for a long time,” said Lane in the Canadiens post-game press conference.
Cole has yet to publicly share his thoughts on the matchup, but he made sure to tell his teammates how to best defend against Lane. Cole was mic’d up for the game and was caught telling one of his teammates, “Watch his chest. Don't even look at the puck when he has it.” If there is anyone who knows his brother best, it is Cole, but his advice was not good enough to stop Lane, as he finished the game with a goal and an assist in 24:14 of ice time.
This was only the beginning of the brothers’ NHL rivalry, with two more scheduled for the rest of the regular season. Both have the potential to be great players in the NHL for a very long time, and with both teams in the Eastern Conference, it is a matchup fans will get to enjoy often. Lane won the scoring battle, but Cole earned the bragging rights with a victory. Fortunately, we will not have to wait long for a rematch.
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