The New Jersey Devils lost to the Minnesota Wild in the race for Quinn Hughes. They wanted to connect Jack, Luke, and Quinn Hughes in one home, but the Minnesota Wild sent an insane package to Vancouver, one they couldn’t refuse. The Devils couldn’t match that deal without adding Jesper Bratt or Nico Hischier, and that just puts them in as deep a hole as they are right now.
However, as bad as it feels right now, it’s not the end of the world. It might feel like the end of the season, but it’s really not. The Devils could do really well without Quinn Hughes if they could just get healthy. They could make a different move that helps them out. And honestly, this couldn’t have gone better for the Devils outside of them getting Hughes themselves.
Reason #1
They keep all of their assets
Even if the New Jersey Devils got Quinn Hughes, they still have massive holes at forward and possibly in net, as well. On top of that, they’d need to shed salary to make this work. So, let’s say the Devils lost Simon Nemec, Jesper Bratt, Seamus Casey, and a first-round pick to get Quinn Hughes. Then, they had to trade Dougie Hamilton to shed the salary necessary to make the deal work. The Devils are now adding the impact of Quinn Hughes, but they have one high-quality winger who is out indefinitely to deal with a personal matter.
The Devils would have then been desperate for a winger without the pieces or cap space to get one. They’d be better with Quinn Hughes, but not nearly better enough without Bratt and Nemec in the lineup.
There’s a non-zero chance that the Devils could get Quinn Hughes in 18 months. For free. Even if they gave the Wild something to get him signed for seven years, it won’t come close to what the Wild gave up to get him originally.
The Devils now have all these assets, a clear need, their current defense intact, and some players returning from injury. The Devils don’t get to push their chips on the table, but they also know that Quinn Hughes went to the one team that actually doesn’t hurt the Devils.
Reason #2
He went to the Minnesota Wild
The Devils were competing with the Wild, Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals, and Carolina Hurricanes for Hughes’s services. They were hoping to have the upper hand, but Minnesota came over the top with a huge offer.
And this is where it’s good news. Outside of the Wild, what do all those other teams have in common? They are in the Eastern Conference. A weak Eastern Conference. Getting Quinn Hughes makes any of those teams, including the Devils, one of the top contenders to win the conference. Going to Minnesota means the Wild are now the third-best team in their division.
After all this, Hughes might still not make it out of the first round. If he went to the East, it was almost a given he could make it to the conference finals. If Quinn Hughes goes to Minnesota and falls to the Dallas Stars, who still feel like a better team on paper, does he really re-sign for eight years?
On top of all that, the Devils don’t have to compete with Hughes, especially if he went to Carolina, Philadelphia, or Washington. He’s out of their division and out of their conference. They have two matchups with him per season until he becomes a free agent.
Reason #3
Does Jack Hughes ever want to go to Minnesota?
There is a lot Jack Hughes loves about his current living situation. He gets to enjoy all the amenities of New York City without playing in New York City. The media is less than half of what it would be if he played for the New York Rangers. The traffic is bad, but it’s not NYC bad. He can still date Tate McRae without dealing with nonsense questions from the New York Daily News.
Hughes is all over advertisements and gets the full backing of the Devils in everything he does. We’re not saying there’s no chance he leaves in five years when his current contract ends, but is he doing that to move to Minnesota? There haven’t been many players with top-selling jerseys in Minnesota.
The Devils have to look at the long game. This is good news because their best player now gets a chance to focus on New Jersey while his brother figures out the Twin Cities.
Bill Guerin did a win-now move, but it’s also putting all of his chips on the table. He sold on all of his wins, including his biggest win of Zeev Buium (who the Devils should have drafted in the first place).