LAS VEGAS -- New Jersey Devils star center Jack Hughes exited his team's 2-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday night after a collision in the third period.
With his team trailing 2-0, Hughes and his brother, New Jersey defenseman Luke Hughes, entered the Vegas zone on a 2-on-1. As Jack Hughes neared the Golden Knights goal, his feet appeared to get tangled with Vegas forward Jack Eichel. He eventually tumbled to the ice and into the boards behind the net with 1:48 left in the game.
"Real hard to see him go down. There's no update," New Jersey coach Sheldon Keefe said. "He's going to have to be evaluated. Obviously, it didn't look good. We're going to have to take our time to know the full extent of it."
Keefe, arguing with the officials that the collision with Eichel could have been called a tripping minor, was given a game misconduct. The Devils fell to 2-2 on a five-game trip that concludes Tuesday against the Dallas Stars.
"It was a similar play that [Jack Hughes] got called on earlier in the period. Not only is he injured on the play, but there's no call," Keefe said, referring to a penalty that was called on Hughes before the injury. "I get kicked off the bench for telling the referee I felt it was 10 times worse than the one previously called on Jack."
Luke Hughes was emotional when he entered the locker room while the media waited to conduct a postgame interview. The media were escorted to the hallway to give him privacy.
Jack Hughes, 23, is a former No. 1 pick who leads the Devils in goals (27) and points (70) this season. New Jersey has struggled offensively since the beginning of January, and any absence from the team's best player might alter its plans heading into Friday's trade deadline.
Hughes sat out 20 games last season because of injury, and finished with 74 points as the Devils failed to qualify for the postseason. The season before, he played in 78 and posted a career-high 99 points as New Jersey took the No. 2 seed in the Metropolitan Division and advanced to the second round.
Incidentally, Eichel and Hughes were teammates last month, skating for the United States in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.