The Minnesota Wild made the move so many others were circling. They traded for Quinn Hughes. They sent the Vancouver Canucks a massive package, which included superstar defensive rookie Zeev Buium, young center Marco Rossi, 2022 first-round pick Liam Ohgren, and a 2026 first-round pick.
Wild GM Bill Guerin has never been afraid to put his chips on the table. This past offseason, he gave Kirill Kaprozov the biggest contract in NHL history in terms of average annual value. He also bought out the last four years of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter’s deals, giving his team ultimate flexibility now for the price of cost certainty back then.
Now, the Wild get the best defenseman on the market since Erik Karlsson, but likely, even longer than that. Quinn Hughes is a game changer and can turn a team on the cusp, which Minnesota is, into a Stanley Cup contender.
There are many losers here, but the biggest one is the New Jersey Devils. Obviously, Quinn Hughes is tied to the Devils because his brothers play there. Jack Hughes is currently hurt, and Luke Hughes has struggled this season, but they are there for at least the next five years.
Meanwhile, Quinn Hughes is signed for another season and a half. Many think the Devils could sign him in 2027, but that’s hardly a guarantee at this point.
Quinn Hughes was traded to an American city that’s much closer to his parents and the rest of his family. Honestly, this could mean bad news for the Devils’ ability to re-sign Jack Hughes in five years.
That’s down the line, of course, and we won’t know Quinn Hughes’s plans for his future until July 1st at the earliest.
However, it’s hard to believe that the Wild traded as much as they did, especially Buium, for a guy who is just going to leave in a year and a half.
This is especially frustrating knowing the Devils were in on talks for Quinn Hughes. They had a chance to connect the brothers, and they didn't get the right pieces in place. Whether it was Tom Fitzgerald saying no to the massive price thinking he could get him for free in a few years, or if it's the fact he couldn't shed the salaries of Dougie Hamilton or Ondrej Palat to make the contract fit, this loss is on him.
That doesn't mean it won't work out in the long run, but the one player who had the best chance to solve the Devils' issues this season is off the table. Quinn Hughes isn't saving the Devils in 2026. He's going to save the Wild, and that's a major loss in New Jersey.