But wanted GM Bill Guerin stepped up to the plate because he knew he would regret missing a player like this, as Minnesota is in a position to win right now.
“Because it’s Quinn Hughes,” Guerin told the media in Minnesota. “And I don’t know what the right time is, but if you wait for it, you’ll miss it. …If it’s a player of this caliber, the right time is always now.”
Guerin learned from his experience as an assistant GM with the Pittsburgh Penguins, under current Canucks President of Hockey Operations and former Penguins GM, Jim Rutherford. He saw that Rutherford was always aggressive, trying to make his team better and going all in to win in Pittsburgh.
NHL Rumors: Some fallout following Quinn Hughes trade to the Wild
As Guerin noted several times during his press conference on Saturday, Rutherford and Canucks GM Patrik Allvin like to get straight to the point; that’s why he came out swinging with his first offer. And as Guerin reiteratedas so many good general managers around have done, the first-round pick or any draft pick won’t help the Wild now. If they ever come, they’ll come in five years.
So Guerin learned a lot from working with Rutherford, which is why he wasn’t concerned when he called a week before the trade fell through. Although he was behind the eight ball while other teams had made their best offers, his initial offer had to be the best as there was no room to negotiate.
As Elliotte Friedman wrote in his 32 Thoughts blog and on the podcast, former general manager Brian Burke said in 2005, after not realizing Joe Thornton’s availability until it was too late: if you snooze, you lose. And when Burke called about Thornton, the Bruins told him it was too late. Guerin almost made the same mistake if he wasn’t encouraged to do so by the assistant GM.
NHL Rumors: Around Thanksgiving in the US, Quinn Hughes told the Canucks he would not renew
As previously mentioned, when will a player of Quinn Hughes’ ilk become available? It almost never happens. The Minnesota Wild are in win-now mode as they are out of contention Ryan Suter And Zach Paris buyouts, so they went big game hunting.
“Bill Guerin has made it very clear, and it couldn’t be clearer, that he is going big game hunting this season and he wants to do it quickly, and this was the only piece of big game currently on the market,” Michael Russo said on the Sekeres and Price Podcast.
Over the past few years, the Wilds have remained under the actual salary cap, $14 million in the hole, as a result of these buyouts. But when he first came to Minnesota, Guerin knew it was a necessary step for the team to be successful down the road. A few years of pain would follow the initial relief from the cap, but Guerin bided his time to make things happen.
By acquiring the necessary exchange capital he was able to take this step. This in turn showed Kirill Kaprizovwho just signed an eight-year contract for $17 million per season, that he made the right choice to commit to the Wild long-term. But there is a nice young core with Joel Eriksson-Ek, Matt Boldy, Brock FaberKaprizov, Jesper WallstedtAnd Philip Gustavsson.
The Minnesota Wild are in a tough Central Division, while the Colorado Avalanche are running away with things. Still, with the addition of Quinn Hughes, they add the second-best defenseman in the NHL. It gives them a chance to make a deep playoff run. The Wild haven’t been to the Conference Finals since 2003. They haven’t won a play-off round since 2015, when they reached the second round.
NHL News: The Minnesota Wild extended Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year deal in a record-breaking deal
Regardless of whether they can extend Quinn Hughes or not, the Wild have shown him that they are willing to do whatever it takes to win. While there is some suspicion that this could happen, there are no guarantees at this time.
“The one thing I was certain of is that under no circumstances can we guarantee a contract extension with anyone,” said Pat Brisson, Quinn Hughes’ agent. told the media on Friday after the transaction.
Quinn Hughes is eligible for an extension on July 1, 2026. His next contract could be just as groundbreaking as Kirill Kaprizov’s. Again, the new CBA rules take effect on September 16, so the Wild are in the driver’s seat as the only team that can sign him to an eight-year contract with heavy bonuses, upfront payments, etc.
Again, nothing is guaranteed for the Wild and Hughes, meaning another trade could happen next year if there are no indications he will stay. However, with Hughes and his agent being open-minded and everything being on the table, the Wild have a good chance to prove that this is the destination for him, especially given how aggressive Bill Guerin is in making moves.
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