In what was likely the most difficult trade in the last several decades for the Vancouver Canucks, they dealt team captain and former Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild in the middle of December.
In return, the Canucks received forwards Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren, defencemen Zeev Buium, and Minnesota’s 2026 first-round pick.
At the time, it was just the latest domino to have fallen for the Canucks, who had been the best team in the Pacific Division just two seasons prior.
Since then, the club has made massive additional changes, including the trades of Tyler Myers, Conor Garland, and Kiefer Sherwood, as well as the removal of general manager Patrik Allvin.
But now, President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford is revealing a major tidbit about the infamous Hughes trade.
Vancouver Canucks President Of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford Reveals The Truth About The Quinn Hughes Trade
According to Rutherford, he knew that Hughes would not re-sign with the Canucks when his contract expired in the 2027 offseason, and pointed to another major trade involving a U.S.-born player that was dealt from a Canadian market in 2022.
“I’m gonna answer it in a different way than you expect. Some people think Quinn left here because the team wasn’t any good. He was leaving anyways, okay?” Rutherford explained. “The best example I can give you is Matthew Tkachuk. He was in Calgary. They had a good team. He wanted to go back to the US, and he went. This is not gonna be the last guy in Quinn Hughes that decides he’s gonna leave.”
“I’ve known for some time that Quinn was not staying in Vancouver, and I’ve known before this season started, for that matter.”
In the 2022 offseason, the Flames stunned the hockey world by trading Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar; since then, Tkachuk won back to back Stanley Cup titles in Florida, while the Flames have yet to return to the playoffs.
“I’m close to him. I really like him,” Rutherford said of Hughes. “I respect what he did in Vancouver. He put on a good show for a lot of years, but guys work towards free agency, and we should respect the fact that he had that option, and he was gonna exercise the option to go back to the United States.”
Quinn Hughes Was Glad To Land With The Wild
Upon his arrival in Minnesota, Hughes explained that he was happy to land with the Wild.
However, there’s still the matter of him being eligible for unrestricted free agency when the calendar flips to July this summer. Hughes can sign an extension with the Wild if he chooses, but he could also play out next season and test the waters, trying to land the biggest contract that he can.
Of course, there’s also the possibility of him still seeking the chance to play with his brothers, Jack and Luke Hughes, who are currently with the New Jersey Devils.
Where Hughes plays beyond 2027 is going to be a hotly-debated topic if he doesn’t sign an extension with the Wild this coming summer.
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