Needs to work on improving his shot and defensive game.
His play without the puck in his own zone isn't bad but it isn't great either. People tend to overlook this side of his game because Hutton is so good in his own end at moving the puck, which is a great trait. I do think he will gradually improve on that side of his game as it was only his first year last year and he has good people to learn from. Having Gudbranson as a partner and Tanev as a teammate will definitely help.
His shot is better than most of our players, which is good for him but bad for the Canucks in general, and I just don't feel he utilizes it enough on top of the coaching staff not consistently putting him in positions to do so last season, which was understandable seeing as he was a rookie. That will change though with Hutton taking up a top 4 role. Despite those facts he should try to improve what he already has, if Hutton had the ability where he could consistently hit double digits in goals on top of his puck moving skills and offensive instincts then he would be a very dangerous and key player on a PP for many years.
He doesn't need to assert himself more physically, I don't feel that he need to as that is not the type of player he is. He will also be able to make more of an impact within his physical play when he gains more muscle and weight. If he were to assert himself as physical as he was last year, with improved strength with more weight, I would be content. He is already more assertive in that part of the game than Tanev is and Tanev is our best defenseman defensively and our most consistent.
Improving on those parts of his game seems doable over time. Hutton, to me, is capable of reaching his peak fairly soon in his career(I don't mean as soon as this season, I am being broad) because as a 2nd year player he has a great base to work with and there's not much holding him back from doing so. I feel like I don't even need to be as hopeful because I am pretty confident in Hutton's ability and capability in improving his game.
If there are hockey gods then they blessed us with Hutton after those years with an incompetent D-core. He was definitely a lucky find, thanks MG.