Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin called signing superstar Quinn Hughes to an extension the team’s “No. 1 priority” this offseason.
Hughes was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks in December for a package of draft picks and prospects. The 26-year-old American, whom Guerin knows well from his work with the Team USA hockey team, was a phenomenal addition to the Wild. In 48 games after coming over in the trade, Hughes scored 53 points, while also adding 15 points in 11 postseason games.
The Wild ultimately came up short during the playoffs, as they were bounced in the second round by the Stanley Cup-favorite Colorado Avalanche. But overall, they still had a fantastic season, and there is every reason to think that Minnesota can take an even bigger step forward next year with Hughes leading their defense.
Bill Guerin Wants to Re-sign Quinn Hughes
When the Wild acquired Hughes, they knew that he only had one more year remaining on his contract past this season. Next year, Hughes will make $7.85 million on the last year of the seven-year, $47.1 million contract he originally signed with Vancouver. Although the Wild paid a high price to acquire Hughes in a trade, the team is hoping it can sign him to a contract extension.
Speaking to the media on Monday at the Wild’s year-end press conference alongside head coach John Hynes, Guerin made it clear that inking Hughes to an extension is his top priority this offseason.
“We loved having Quinn. He’s so impactful. He’s extremely dialed in. He liked it here. I love having him here. The impact he had on our team was incredible. Yeah, priority one,” Guerin said, while adding that he doesn’t expect an extension to be signed immediately. “These are things that take time. Everybody needs a little bit of time right now to decompress. But that’s priority one.”
Quinn Hughes Could Land Monster Contract
If the Wild want to re-sign Hughes, they are going to have to cough up the money to get it done. Last year, the Wild re-signed their star winger Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year, $136 million deal, with a $17 million AAV that makes him the highest-paid NHL player on a per-year basis. Hughes will likely command something similar in terms of average annual salary, so if the Wild do sign him, they could be committing north of $34 million of their cap to just two players. As good as both Kaprizov and Hughes are, that’s a big commitment to only two players when you need at least 20 to ice a team.
That being said, the Wild looked like a far superior team after they picked up Hughes in a trade. He was an incredible fit for the team and played amazingly for Minnesota during the regular season, before upping his game in the playoffs. The Wild are going to do everything they can to bring him back, even if it ends up hurting their cap. They just simply can’t afford to let him leave, so they are going to have to break the bank to sign him to an extension and then live with the consequences as far as how affecting the rest of the team’s depth goes.
Bill Guerin Calls Signing Quinn Hughes ‘Priority No. 1’ for Wild