Completing the Hughes brothers gauntlet will come at a price for the New Jersey Devils. With Quinn Hughes’ name becoming the hottest topic in the NHL, the Vancouver Canucks are reportedly making sure they don’t come out empty-handed. It may be quite the opposite, in fact.
Ever since drafting Jack and Luke Hughes, the Devils have felt a need to go after Quinn and reunite the three siblings in New Jersey. For many NHL seasons, it felt more like a utopia than a real possibility. However, with the Canucks struggling dearly, the window to acquire Hughes may have opened. Still, Vancouver won’t make negotiations easy for New Jersey.
Just because the Devils have Jack and Luke pulling for Quinn behind the scenes doesn’t mean they have any sway in convincing the front office in Vancity. In fact, it might be the opposite. Knowing the Devils are one piece away from boasting the Hughes trio, the ’Nucks may be setting a higher price.
“You’re probably going to have to pay a premium if you’re the Devils. It’s called the ‘Hughes brother’ tax, because they already have two. That’s certainly something to keep in mind as well,” Frank Seravalli stated on Bleacher Report’s Insider Notebook.
Vancouver is not putting Hughes on sale
Vancouver may be giving Jersey a lesson in Economy 101: it all comes down to supply and demand. Unfortunately for New Jersey, there is only one Quinn Hughes in the NHL, and he’s under contract in Vancouver through the 2026-27 season. The more the Devils want something, the more the Canucks will ask in return.
As much as Hughes may despise playing for the Canucks — as the team languishes at the bottom of the standings, the first-year head coach in Adam Foote is not paying dividends, and the organization stares with the eyes of a lost wanderer at its compass — he is still signed for this season and the next.
Hughes can ask for a trade out, but the Canucks are in no obligation to comply. Thus, there are no reasons — other than some from an ethical or moral point of view — for them to essentially give up on Hughes if the return isn’t worth it.
Better now than never
While all the arguments stated before carry weight, there is another fact that can’t be overlooked. The Canucks are seemingly headed nowhere in the NHL. The core is too inconsistent to strike fear into the rest of the league, and this past offseason saw the team lose far more key pieces than it added.
Thus, keeping Hughes might be nice and all—it can lead to jersey sales and whatnot—but one elite blueliner can’t carry a team to a Stanley Cup. Let alone one defenseman who is playing with frustration. Under the current state of the franchise, Hughes can’t lead the Canucks to their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
Hughes is set to hit free agency in 2027
Hughes will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2027. It may seem like a long while from today, but it’s really not that much time—certainly not enough for Vancouver to magically find its identity and build a championship-caliber roster. If Hughes is still in town by then, he will most likely opt to test the market in July 2027, when he can decide where he’ll play for the first time in his career.
Thus, the Canucks may be better off shipping him out now while the market is high on Hughes. Vancouver can get a lot in return and truly put itself in a position to rebuild the squad and come back stronger. Obviously, it’s not an easy decision to make.
No going back after it’s done
These are the type of decisions that define executives’ careers. Once the trade goes through, it’s one president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford and general manager Patrik Allvin may never be able to live down.
However, trading Hughes away is a move that must be analyzed over the years to determine the winners and losers. A trade with New Jersey would mean Vancouver is placing its chips on the long-term future, while the Devils are going all in.
Regardless, no one can expect the fanbase to sit and wait idly if they see the Hughes trio playing for Stanley Cups one season after another. Vancouver is truly stuck between a rock and a hard place, but staying put will only assure a slow, torturous agony.
SURVEY Which scenario is most likely to play out?
Which scenario is most likely to play out?
already voted 3 fans