Wild Rumors

As the dust begins to settle from Friday’s Quinn Hughes trade, an era-defining transaction for two NHL franchises, more and more information is being reported regarding the circumstances that led up to the deal.

Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin addressed the media yesterday regarding the trade, and revealed a few things about how it all came together. He said that he took a direct, aggressive approach in negotiations with the Canucks, stating “we had to go to them with something real, right away, to tell them that we’re serious,” and adding that the eventual package the Wild sent to the Canucks was the first offer Guerin made.

That bit of information sheds some light on the Wild’s overall strategy regarding their path to contention. Guerin’s willingness to part with key future pieces such as Zeev Buium to acquire Hughes, who has less than two years of team control remaining, indicates that the club sees itself as a legitimate Stanley Cup contender within that period.

Of course, the simple fact that they acquired Hughes sends that signal as well, but it’s also notable that the Wild did not hesitate to include players such as Buium in their initial trade offer to the Canucks.

From the Canucks’ perspective, it’s easy to see why the Wild were able to push through the other bidders for Hughes’ services and get a deal done.

It’s been reported (by The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun) that other clubs, such as the Philadelphia Flyers, didn’t feel willing to surrender the caliber of assets the Wild were willing to part with, like a high-upside young player who is either NHL-ready or nearly NHL ready. The Wild were in a unique position where they were able to offer key players who brought a rare combination of youth, upside, NHL-readiness, and positional value.

Buium is a supremely intelligent defenseman who could very well quarterback the Canucks’ top power play unit in short order. Marco Rossi is a center who has a 60-point season on his record and hasn’t turned 25 yet. In a trade market where it’s extremely difficult to acquire centers, let alone young, productive ones, that’s a major piece. And then the willingness to add a player like Liam Ohgren into the deal, someone who has preexisting chemistry with key Canucks youngster Jonathan Lekkerimaki, is something that likely pushed the Wild even further in the Canucks’ eyes.

It’s extraordinarily difficult to “win” a trade where your franchise is parting with a player of Hughes’ caliber. The Wild’s initial offer was strong enough that it, at the very least, gave the Canucks a fighting chance given the key factor of Hughes’ limited team control.

LeBrun also revealed a few other teams that were involved in the race to acquire Hughes. He reported that the New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings, and New York Rangers “made legitimate offers” for Hughes, while the Buffalo Sabres and Carolina Hurricanes “showed interest.”

LeBrun also added that “despite rumors to the contrary,” the Washington Capitals “were never real players” to acquire Hughes and cited the organization’s unwillingness to part with a player such as Cole Hutson as a key reason for their reluctance. Hutson is the younger brother of 2024-25 Calder Trophy winner Lane Hutson and has 20 points in 17 games this season at Boston University.

Looking at the deal from a different angle, Canucks head coach Adam Foote also spoke to the media yesterday and addressed an aspect of Hughes’ departure that could be key to the Canucks’ off-ice player dynamics. Per The Athletic’s Thomas Drance, Foote said that he hasn’t had an opportunity to speak with the club’s senior hockey operations leaders about naming a new captain, but added that defenseman Filip Hronek will be an alternate captain in the meantime.

The Canucks’ current alternate captains, besides Hronek, are Brock Boeser, Elias Pettersson, and Tyler Myers. The fact that Myers is now 35 and has just one year remaining beyond this one on his contract lowers the odds that he’d be a long-term solution as a captain, but both Boeser and Pettersson are in their late-twenties and under contract through 2031-32, making them more logical candidates for such a role, though it is also possible that the next Canucks captain is not currently on their roster.

Photos courtesy of Nick Wosika-Imagn Images