Why Quinn Hughes is in Minnesota, not New Jersey... and the league-wide trade aftermath

In his first game as the greatest player ever acquired by the Minnesota Wild, Quinn Hughes immediately started doing Quinn Hughes things for his new team.

It was a home game against the Boston Bruins on Sunday. The star defenseman looked up the ice and started sprinting. He saw four Bruins deep in their own zone, leaving plenty of room for Hughes to smoothly glide over the blue line and turn a Ryan Hartman pass into a goal, snapping the puck past goalie Jeremy Swayman.

The fans roared. The Wild's social media team declared "WELCOME TO QUINNESOTA" when posting the highlight.

Welcome, indeed.

"It felt like we had a little more swagger out there today," goalie Filip Gustavsson said.

Ecstatic that their team landed the coveted defenseman in a trade last Friday, Wild fans gave Hughes an ovation as he left the ice in warmups, then another during starting lineups. They cheered every time he touched the puck.

"That was pretty special, honestly," Hughes said after Minnesota's 6-2 win. "I know it's a hockey market, but that was exciting."

Also exciting: When one of the NHL's superstar players is traded in-season to a surprise destination.

Hughes, 26, played for the Vancouver Canucks for eight seasons, establishing himself as a franchise player and one of the world's premier defensemen. He's been a finalist for the Norris Trophy in two straight seasons, winning the award in 2024. Since 2022, he's second only to Colorado Avalanche star Cale Makar (372 points) in points by a defenseman, with 336.

The Canucks were going nowhere except into a rebuild. Hughes was going to walk away as a free agent in the summer of 2027. So the decision was made by Vancouver president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford and the Hughes camp to seek a trade.

"It was a tough situation," Hughes said. "But I felt like it was time. And I think Jim did, too."

Hughes didn't end up in New Jersey, where his brothers Jack and Luke play. He didn't end up in Detroit, in the state the Hughes family calls home. He didn't end up on any of the teams heavily rumored to be discussing a trade for him.

Quinn Hughes ended up in Minnesota, to the shock of the NHL. That's because the Wild were never mentioned as a destination, and because of what the team traded to acquire him. The Wild gave up three former first-round selections -- center Marco Rossi, forward Liam Ohgren and defenseman Zeev Buium -- and a 2026 first-round pick to acquire Hughes, with no guarantee that he'll sign an extension in Minnesota.

How did this trade happen? What does it mean for the teams involved and the teams that didn't -- or couldn't -- make this trade?

After conversations with around a dozen NHL executives, agents and players from around the league, here's the behind-the-scenes story on one of the most significant trades in recent hockey history -- and the aftershocks.

Why Quinn Hughes is no longer in Vancouver

To understand why Hughes is no longer with the Canucks, it's important to understand how things got so bleak as to have him want to leave now.

In May 2020, former Vancouver GM Jim Benning announced that amateur scouting director Judd Brackett could not reach a new contract agreement and would part ways with the team.

Brackett and highly respected scout Dan Palango left Vancouver and joined the Wild under GM Bill Guerin. In a short time, Brackett terraformed the Wild's prospect field. He had a hand in drafting every player the Wild just traded to Vancouver for Hughes -- who, it should be said, Vancouver selected at seventh overall in 2018 on Brackett's advice.

The next five Canucks drafts after Brackett left produced just one selection who played more than 50 NHL games: defenseman Elias N. Pettersson, taken 80th overall in 2022.

As the Canucks' prospect pool was drying up, there was trouble among the veterans.

In September 2022, Vancouver signed J.T. Miller to a seven-year, $56 million contract, which started a domino effect. The Canucks essentially chose Miller over pending free agent center Bo Horvat, who was traded the following January to the New York Islanders. In doing so, the Canucks overlooked the personal issues between Miller and star center Elias Pettersson that had been growing since the regime that preceded Rutherford and his general manager, Patrick Allvin.

In January 2025, the internal drama had intensified to the point where Miller was traded to the New York Rangers.

So began Vancouver's need to bolster the center position, which was among the team's strongest prior to Horvat's trade. Many in the league still wonder how the Canucks' fortunes would be different if Horvat had been extended in the summer of 2022.

Vancouver finished with a .549 points percentage last season, missing the playoffs. Coach Rick Tocchet decided to leave the Canucks for the Philadelphia Flyers. Tocchet and Hughes were close, but the coach's exit was a symptom of larger issues.

Addressing reporters after the trade, Rutherford said his team started to believe Hughes wasn't going to sign an extension over a year and a half ago. Allvin said the team thought "about a year ago" that this "might be the path that Quinn wants to go." But both Vancouver ownership and management refused to accept that fate.

"We were trying to do everything to convince him to stay," Allvin said.

Case in point: the Miller trade and its aftermath. The Canucks acquired the oft-injured 26-year-old center Filip Chytil from the Rangers along with a lottery-protected 2025 first-round pick. Rather than use that pick, Vancouver moved it to the Pittsburgh Penguins for more immediate help: Defenseman Marcus Pettersson, 29, who signed a six-year, $33 million contract extension after the trade. Pittsburgh then turned that Rangers pick into a pair of low first-rounders in a trade with Philadelphia.

Vancouver continued to make counterintuitive decisions for a team on the road to a potential post-Hughes rebuild. The Canucks extended 30-year-old goalie Thatcher Demko (three years, $25.5 million) and 29-year-old winger Conor Garland (six years, $36 million), who both would have been unrestricted free agents next summer. They brought back unrestricted free agent winger Brock Boeser, 28, on a seven-year, $50.75 million deal that carries a full no-movement clause until 2029.

Trying to convince Hughes to stay extended to off-ice moves. When Tocchet left for the Flyers, the Canucks elevated assistant coach Adam Foote -- who had one year of previous head coaching experience, with the Western Hockey League's Kelowna Rockets in 2019-20 -- to the big job. Foote was responsible for coaching the Canucks' defensemen, and the hire was immediately labeled as a way to curry favor with Hughes.

Following the trade, Rutherford said there was nothing "concrete" about Hughes' future until last offseason, when his agent Pat Brisson had informed the Canucks that "it was highly unlikely that [Hughes] was going to sign an extension" in Vancouver.

"He wanted to be closer to his family, closer to his brothers, wanted to play with his brothers at some point," Rutherford said. "It doesn't mean it has to be in the next couple of years. He could do it in his 30s, I suppose. So that was really around the time that I was pretty much 100% sure that there wasn't going to be any convincing him to change his mind."

NHL sources indicated that the machinery on this trade didn't start turning until around U.S. Thanksgiving, when Brisson and Hughes had discussions with Canucks management and ownership about potential landing spots.

The Canucks were 9-12-2 and hovering near the Western Conference basement heading into Thanksgiving. Because of that mediocre start, Rutherford and Allvin informed the rest of the NHL that they were looking to make trades. While their motivation was moving pending unrestricted free agents such as forwards Evander Kane and Kiefer Sherwood, the memo kicked up interest in whether Hughes was available, too.

Suddenly, the captain was answering questions about his future after practices and games. He was asked about it during a charity event at a local food bank.

"He was a true pro," Rutherford said, "but it was clear that it was getting harder for him."

On Dec. 6, Sportsnet reported that the Canucks and Devils had "a conversation" about Hughes. Suddenly, the simmering speculation about Hughes turned to a boil. The trade rumors started to impact Hughes' Canucks teammates, according to Foote.

"It's there. These guys are human," the coach said. "They can feel it. It can affect a locker room."

It was clear the Canucks could not wait any longer to trade Hughes. Through his decades as an NHL general manager -- winning Stanley Cups with Carolina and Pittsburgh -- Rutherford had become known for making deals well ahead of the NHL trade deadline to create his own market. This was no different.

"In order to not get painted into the corner with one team, we felt that trying to do a deal in December or the first half of January would give us the most leverage," Rutherford said after the trade.

With that, the trade process for Hughes began in earnest.

Which teams made offers?

Rutherford said Allvin asked him to take the lead on fielding trade offers, as the general manager "had a lot on his plate."

The Canucks knew they couldn't whiff on a Hughes trade. The consensus from sources around the NHL was that the Canucks were seeking a young center with NHL experience that could play in their top six, and a young defenseman, preferably left-handed. Teams knew a first-round pick would have to be part of any package as well.

The initial focus for Vancouver was trading Hughes to a team in the Eastern Conference "to get him closer to his brothers and family," according to Rutherford. So talks began with the team in closest proximity to Jack and Luke -- the one on which they play.

"The process probably started a couple of weeks ago with the understanding that New Jersey was the potential team," Rutherford said.

The Devils were thought to be an inevitability in the Hughes derby. All three brothers stated that they wanted to play together in the NHL. Rutherford reiterated that was Quinn's goal during news conference last season that also helped spark months of trade speculation surrounding his captain.

"Honestly, I was a little surprised that [Rutherford] would be so forthcoming with that," Jack Hughes told ESPN in September.

According to an NHL source, there were discussions between the teams about Devils center Nico Hischier, their 26-year-old captain, even though he could also become an unrestricted free agent in 2027. New Jersey didn't have interest in that swap. But the Devils did have a lot of what the Canucks were looking for in a trade.

The belief is that Vancouver would have wanted a package of 21-year-old defenseman Simon Nemec, drafted second overall in 2022; 24-year-old center Dawson Mercer; KHL defenseman Anton Silayev, drafted 10th overall in 2024; and a first-round pick. That package was crafted with the understanding that Hughes was likely to sign an extension with the Devils.

The problem with the Devils' trade bid wasn't necessarily the bid itself -- although, ultimately, Minnesota's offer was better -- but in their inability to clear the necessary salary cap space to take on Hughes' $7.85 million AAV.

The Devils have 14 players with some level of trade protection on their current contracts. That includes veteran forward Ondrej Palat and defenseman Dougie Hamilton, two players they could have shipped out to facilitate the trade.

"They handed out some regrettable trade protection in the past and it handcuffed them," one NHL executive said.

The Canucks heard from plenty of NHL teams. Some dropped out quickly when the asking price came into focus.

"We were not even close," one NHL general manager who was in on the trade talks said.

Others saw their interest in a Hughes trade inflated by media speculation. One of those teams was the Washington Capitals, who were portrayed as a serious suitor. Sources told ESPN that was overstated, especially when it was made clear that the Capitals didn't want to move young forwards Ryan Leonard, Aliaksei Protas and Ilya Protas. That meant a Hughes bid could be built around center Connor McMichael and defensive prospect Cole Hutson of Boston University, but that wasn't going to beat other offers.

The Carolina Hurricanes, as they have with every big-name player available over the past few years, made their pitch. But their trade package wasn't in the ballpark of Minnesota's, according to an NHL source.

The Rangers inquired, given their proximity to Hughes' brothers' team. Winger Alexis Lafreniere has been a target for the Canucks for some time -- unsurprising, given his former agent, milie Castonguay, is their assistant general manager. But he wasn't the only player Vancouver coveted: The Canucks also were interested in forwards Gabe Perreault, Will Cuylle and Noah Laba, as well as defenseman Braden Schneider. Ultimately, the Rangers did not want to part with the requisite players to acquire Hughes.

The Detroit Red Wings made a pitch for Hughes, whose family relocated to Michigan around eight years ago. He also played for the University of Michigan and the U.S. National Development Team, which is headquartered in the state. Detroit captain Dylan Larkin is a friend. There was a thought that Detroit could acquire Hughes, extend him and then lure Jack there as a free agent in 2030. But for Detroit to match Minnesota's offer, it likely would have taken defenseman Simon Edvinsson, the sixth overall pick in 2021; winger Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, selected 15th overall in 2024; either Marco Kasper or Nate Danielson, two young centers with a taste of NHL experience; and a first-round pick. The Red Wings reportedly balked at a portion of that package.

The Buffalo Sabres reportedly made their pitch, desperately seeking a path back to the playoffs for the first time since 2011. Forward Zach Benson is a player the Canucks have coveted since they passed on him in favor of defenseman Tom Willander in the 2023 draft. Benson and defenseman Bowen Byram would have been the primary pieces in any deal that saw Hughes end up in Buffalo.

There was some reading between the lines when Hughes spoke after his debut with the Wild on Sunday, and praised the all-in aspect of Guerin's offer.

"There are other teams that probably could have thrown in certain packages like that too, but at the end of the day, they didn't want to do that. They didn't want to trade two or three assets from their team like Billy did," Hughes said. "I'll remember that. That means a lot to me, that Billy did that."

Into the Wild

Both Guerin and Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald have history with Rutherford. Fitzgerald was hired by the Penguins' front office in 2007 to work under Ray Shero, their general manager.

Shero then hired Guerin in 2011 as a Penguins developmental coach. When Rutherford replaced Shero in 2014, both Guerin and Fitzgerald were named his assistant general managers. Reports at the time noted that Guerin appeared to move ahead of Fitzgerald in the front office pecking order. Fitzgerald left the organization in 2015 in a lateral move, becoming Shero's assistant GM in New Jersey before replacing him in 2020.

Guerin took over the Wild in 2019 and brought Shero on in an advisory capacity. The bold trade for Hughes is exactly the type of move that the late Shero would have made. The infamous "one-for-one" Taylor Hall-for-Adam Larsson trade was a bold stroke from Shero.

The Wild have yet to play for the Stanley Cup since entering the NHL in 2000. The team hasn't won a playoff series since 2015. But if there was a time to get aggressive as a contender, it is now, and Guerin hopes his boldness leads to playoff success.

The cap penalties from Guerin's buyouts of forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter have finally eased: The Wild had $14.7 million in dead cap space last season, but from 2026 to '29, the annual cap penalty is just $1,666,666. Minnesota signed superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov to an NHL record contract through the 2033-34 season. Guerin's team had amassed a collection of young talent that could bolster his roster -- either through their play or as a trade asset.

This is why he called Rutherford.

"He told me what they wanted to try and accomplish with the move," Guerin said. "I felt we could satisfy their needs."

The Wild made the offer, and didn't have to make another. "We came out of the gates with that," Guerin said. "They wanted to check certain boxes, and we had to check them for them. We're not going to sneak one past them. They're smart."

Buium has potential to be a top-pairing defender and power-play quarterback. His defending has a long way to go, but he's an elite skater and the toolkit is there to blossom into a solid defender.

Guerin had been trying to move Rossi for a long time. The Wild gave him just a three-year deal when they re-signed the restricted free agent in August. Vancouver had tried to trade for him previously, and he finally gives them a young center who can provide offense.

Ohgren hasn't put things together yet in the NHL over three seasons. He has previous chemistry with Canucks forward Jonathan Lekkerimaki from their time in Sweden.

"I don't think there's a team that could offer something similar to this right now," one NHL executive said. "Not many teams can give up their 2C and a 20-year-old, top-four defenseman and still feel like they're going to contend this year -- while also having a reasonable shot of extending Quinn Hughes."

Rutherford liked the return but wanted to make sure that Hughes saw Minnesota was a suitable landing spot.

"It was clearly the best offer. And so then there was a process of letting the other teams have another chance and seeing if Quinn had interest in going to Minnesota," Rutherford said after the trade. "He thought, at this time, Minnesota would be a good fit for this year. Where it goes from there, that's up to everybody else."

Minnesota was well positioned to make the deal because not only had the team drafted the players included in the deal, but it has players who can replace those players: Riley Heidt, Hunter Haight, Ryder Ritchie and Charlie Stramel up front, along with Carson Lambos and David Jiricek on the back end -- reinforcements there are a less pressing need given the acquisition of Hughes.

When Guerin initially reached out, Rutherford was blunt: Yes, the Wild could jump into the Hughes derby. "But the odds are against you, based on Quinn's criteria."

Yet the Wild had plenty that Hughes appreciated, from its proximity to home to defense partners like Brock Faber. But a primary catalyst for his decision was, in fact, Guerin. The two got to know each other through USA Hockey, as Guerin was the general manager for the 4 Nations Face-Off roster and the 2026 Winter Olympic team. (Hughes was one of the first six players named to the Olympic squad back in June.)

Where Hughes really gained respect for Guerin was during 4 Nations, which he missed because of an oblique injury sustained with the Canucks.

"How he handled me with the 4 Nations really gave me a glimpse of what a good person he is. Honestly, he was a big reason why I wanted to come here," Hughes said of Guerin.

Hughes felt that last Thursday's game against Buffalo would be his final game in Vancouver. He traveled with the team to New York, where he had dinner with some soon-to-be-former teammates and spent time with Jack and Luke. On Friday morning, he knew a trade was imminent.

Guerin said he was in the middle of making meatballs for his family's Christmas Eve dinner when Rutherford called to say the Canucks had accepted the Wild's trade offer.

"I had to take my latex gloves off. He told me we had a deal. There was a fist pump involved," Guerin said. "They're really good meatballs. It's my wife's recipe. I'm just doing the grunt work."

Guerin and assistant GM Chris Kelleher flew to New Jersey to collect Hughes so he could make his debut Sunday against Boston. Rossi, Buium and Ohgren all played their first games for the Canucks in their win against New Jersey on Sunday, while still processing their whirlwind 48 hours.

In the case of Buium, who had a goal and an assist in his Canucks debut, it meant going from a foundational piece of the Wild's future to the fulcrum of a blockbuster trade to Vancouver.

"I don't think anything they told me was a lie. I really don't," Buium told ESPN on Sunday. "Bill Guerin is an unbelievable person. He's such a smart guy. He wants to try and win now, and that's a move he thought was best for the team. At the end of the day, you have to do what's best for the team."

The Canucks rebuild ... sort of

Many around the NHL feel that the Canucks got a decent return under the circumstances. "They did as well as they could, but it's risky," one NHL executive said. "Ohgren seems like a bust, Rossi's been shopped, Buium is so young."

Of course, none of those players is Quinn Hughes. And without their star defenseman, it's time for the Canucks to pivot to the next phase.

Like many team executives, Rutherford has been hesitant to use the term "rebuild" to describe that phase. As late as a month ago, he told Sportsnet that "a rebuild is not something that we're going to look at doing" but rather that the team was "in transition."

That changed last Friday. In the official statement announcing the return on the Hughes trade, Rutherford said, "They will be a key part of the rebuild that we are currently in, giving us a bright future moving forward."

While the rest of the league took notice of that verbiage, Rutherford once again wanted to draw the distinction between a "rebuild" and a "full-blown" rebuild.

"People throw around different words. I believe that we've been in a rebuild here for a little bit, and we've been able to acquire some good young players. But this move gives us some really good young players," he told reporters Friday. "It may not change our team in the next few months or even this season, but this doesn't have to be a full-blown rebuild where it's going to take five or seven years."

Rutherford also defended keeping the Canucks' other veterans on the roster.

"We've added some veteran players, but the veteran players have a purpose. They're mentors for these guys. If you just go with all young players, it can get too frustrating. But we will stick with that plan, and the majority of people that we add going forward will be younger," he said on Friday.

Rutherford, 76, called players like Boeser, Garland and Filip Hronek "relatively young guys" who could combine with the next wave to create something successful.

"I don't believe we have to go to a full-blown rebuild where we just trade all the players we have," he said. "Sure, we're going to trade some players away. We're going to get more draft capital."

Rutherford also confirmed that the first-round pick acquired from Minnesota might be in play in a subsequent trade if the return were to be a young player, because it would expedite the rebuild.

Beyond the specific trade and what it means for a rebuild, Allvin was asked whether the Canucks have a culture problem that needs to be fixed, in light of the Miller-Pettersson situation last season as well.

"A culture problem? On our team? I don't believe so," he said. "I don't think that's the reason Quinn Hughes was traded."

Quinn's path to playing with his brothers -- in New Jersey or otherwise

One current NHL player wondered whether Hughes actually made sense for the Devils, considering they just gave Luke Hughes a contract extension with a $9 million annual cap hit.

"Wouldn't he take his brother's ice time and his power-play time?" they asked.

But another player believes the Devils should go after Hughes, despite that lineup redundancy. That player is Luke Hughes.

"I would have loved to have him here. Obviously Jack would [too]. Not just because he's our brother, but because he's a top-two D in the league," the Devils' 22-year-old defenseman said. "But at the same time, it's sports."

Sources we spoke with believe Quinn could join his brothers in New Jersey, with Jack signed through 2029-30 and Luke signed through 2031-32. Cap flexibility won't be an issue should they sign Quinn in summer 2027, as the Devils have only 11 players under contract for the 2027-28 season. One of those players, Dougie Hamilton, will be entering the last year of a contract that carries a $9 million cap hit. One of the free agents at that time is Hischier, a player they'll have to bring back at a significant raise over his $7.25 million AAV.

Of course, having Quinn Hughes sooner than later might have helped turn around their spiraling season.

The Devils are 6-10-0 since Jack injured his hand in a freak accident at a team dinner on Nov. 13. That .375 points percentage ranks them 30th in the NHL over that span, ahead of only Winnipeg (.367), who lost starting goalie Connor Hellebuyck to injury; and Vancouver (.357), who just traded their star defenseman because of that futility. New Jersey went from being a top-10 offensive team (3.35 goals per game) to the fourth-worst offense (2.38 goals per game) with their star center out.

Obviously, the Devils hung onto their assets that could have gone to Vancouver, some of whom could be repurposed in a trade for other more pressing needs. New Jersey has been linked to Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly, for example. But it could also mean that Mercer and Nemec would be around if Quinn Hughes arrives in 2027.

"The fact is that they didn't have the chips needed to win Quinn Hughes," one NHL executive said.

Combine that with cap inflexibility from those no-movement clauses, and Fitzgerald could only watch as Hughes was traded to Minnesota, which now has what amounts to an exclusive negotiating window with him.

If the trio doesn't land together in New Jersey, Detroit seems like a reasonable guess, given the Hughes family lives in Michigan. But if Quinn is feeling Minnesota, could Jack be the next to go Wild in 2030, followed eventually by Luke?

Another theory that's floated around the NHL during the Hughes derby: What if he signs an extension in Minnesota or elsewhere through 2029-30, so both Jack and Quinn hit free agency in the same summer?

"We've always wanted to play together," Luke Hughes said. "You never know what can happen. We've got a lot of years left in our careers."

The Wild's swing and a pitch

Of the Wild's eight postseason series defeats since 2015, five of them have come at the hands of Central Division opponents. They are in the NHL's proverbial group of death, where all a second- or third-place finish delivers is a first-round series against one of the best teams in the NHL.

The Avalanche, the NHL's top team, lead the Central. They have a franchise defenseman in Cale Makar. The Dallas Stars have kept pace with them in second place. They have a franchise defenseman in Miro Heiskanen.

Now, the Wild can boast their own elite blueliner in Hughes.

"I believe in our players. I believe in what we're doing here. We have an extremely competitive division. You're going through the meat grinder here," Guerin said. "We respect our opponents, but we want to compete for the Stanley Cup."

Hughes helps greatly to that end. On top of being a Norris Trophy-winning defenseman and offensive point producer, he's a panacea for several underlying issues for the Wild, from their poor zone entries to failing to generate chances on the rush to turnovers.

"Hughes is a one-man breakout. He cuts through the neutral zone as well as any defenseman in the NHL," said Mike Kelly, an analyst for NHL Network. "Hughes also leads the league in stretch pass completions. The Wild attempt more stretch passes than any team but connect at a below-average rate. For as much as Hughes had the puck on his stick in Vancouver, maybe too much at times, he also rarely turned it over."

Hughes gives the Wild a better chance to get through the Central and play for a championship, but he's not a cure-all. The Wild remain a team whose depth at center pales in comparison to other Western Conference powers, including Vegas and Edmonton, winner of the West for two straight seasons.

But Minnesota has cap flexibility and additional assets it can use to address that weakness before the NHL trade deadline in March. It will have even more flexibility in the offseason, with the salary cap rising again and players such as Mats Zuccarello and Vladimir Tarasenko becoming unrestricted free agents. It has two shots to build the right roster for a playoff run with Hughes. Unless, of course, he's in Minnesota for more than two seasons.

The biggest chatter of the past few days is how open Hughes was to remain in Minnesota on a contract extension.

"I mean, extremely open-minded. They've got an amazing core. Minnesota being so close to Michigan, [being] the 'State of Hockey' and just the passion here," he said. "And I've got a lot of time for Billy, for 'sacking up' and making the deal like he did. How he valued me."

Guerin said he wasn't given any assurances that Hughes would be interested in an extension with the Wild, which the defenseman can't sign until July 1. A source close to Hughes said his focus isn't on his future but on "having a really great hockey experience" in Minnesota in the short term.

The Wild do have something to offer Hughes that no one else can at the moment: an eight-year, front-loaded contract.