With the University of Michigan’s season in the Frozen Four coming to an end at the hands of the eventual NCAA champion DU Pioneers a couple of days ago, TJ Hughes signed a one-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche. The contract will begin in the 2026-2027 NHL season, with Hughes joining the Colorado Eagles on a PTO for the remainder of the 2025-2026 season.

Hughes has played for the University of Michigan since the 2022-2023 season and has been widely considered a top NCAA free-agent prospect as well. This past season with Michigan, Hughes was the captain of the team and logged a total of 57 points in 40 games played for the Wolverines.

We won’t see Hughes in action for the Avs this season, as he is joining the Eagles for the remainder of the season, of course. But it’ll be exciting to see him get in some AHL games and see how he fares in that system and environment after playing in the NCAA for four years.