NHL Trade Ideas for Quinn Hughes to Teams That Aren't the Devils

The 2026-27 NHL regular season is here, and the Minnesota Wild still have not signed superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes to a long-term contract extension beyond this season.

That creates a pretty significant issue for the Wild.

They know he is an unrestricted free agent after this season, and if he were going to be signed to a new deal to keep him in Minnesota you would have thought that it might have happened at some point over the summer.

The speculation around Hughes has been loud for more than a year now, and it always revolves around him trying to play alongside his brothers, Jack Hughes and Luke Hughes, with the New Jersey Devils.

If that speculation proves to be true, the Wild would have just one make-or-break season to try and win with him before losing him for nothing. Are the Wild good enough to take that sort of chance? Or would it be in their best interests to move him, get some value back, and try to move forward with the return they get for him?

There's a good argument to be made for both.

The most likely option here, and the one I would choose if I were placing a bet on what the team does, is that Minnesota goes with the former and tries to win it all, risking whatever comes after that in free agency.

There just doesn't seem to be much urgency, at this point, to explore anything else. There might even still be some hint of optimism that they can get him to re-sign (which might be the least likely option of the three possibilities).

Maybe that changes as the trade deadline approaches.

Or if Minnesota's season goes in a direction nobody is anticipating and it fails to meet expectations.

Crazier things have happened.

So, for now, let's just play the "what if" game and explore the latter option, and wonder what it might look like if Minnesota did explore the trade option.

And let's do something a little different and look at teams that are NOT the Devils, just because the assumption has always been the Devils. If the Wild did decide to move him at some point, Hughes has no trade protections in his deal and could theoretically be moved anywhere.

Why would (or should) the Wild do this, and what's the value?

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Teams that are hoping to be a contender do not typically trade players like Hughes, no matter the contract situation, because players like Hughes are typically a key reason they ARE a contending team.

When the Wild acquired Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks mid-way through the 2025-26 season, they were doing so with the mindset that they would have at least two playoff runs with him, and perhaps be able to entice him to re-sign.

He has not re-signed. While every player has a price, there may not be a price within reason that will convince Hughes to bypass unrestricted free agency and the ability to choose his next destination.

As recently as two years ago former Vancouver Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford was publicly speaking about Hughes' desire to play alongside his brothers. If Rutherford is saying something, you should listen, because he's one of the few people in a position of power in the NHL that has no filter between his brain and mouth and will always give you honest thoughts.

All of this puts the Wild in a tough spot for this season. Go all-in on this season and see what happens with Hughes? Or move him?

The pro to going all in is that Hughes is one of the best players in hockey, and they have a better chance with him, than without him, even if they were to move him for a return.

The con is there is a good chance he leaves for nothing, while the Wild don't actually win it all. If Rossi or Buium (or both) become impact players in Vancouver, and Hughes leaves as a UFA and the Wild never get close to a championship, the whole thing could end up looking incredibly messy and ugly for the Wild.

As good as the Wild team is with Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Hughes, Brock Faber and the goalies, it's still a team that is lacking the type of big-time center depth (and even secondary winger depth) that championship teams require. It's probably on the second-tier of Stanley Cup contenders. That's a good team. A very good team. But it might not be a Stanley Cup team. And they have to be realistic about that when it comes to handling the Hughes situation.

There is some precedent for a move like this.

Two years ago the Colorado Avalanche traded superstar forward Mikko Rantanen, as a pending UFA, to the Carolina Hurricanes for Martin Necas, Jack Drury and some draft picks. When Carolina realized it could not re-sign Rantanen, either, it moved him to Dallas for Logan Stankoven and two first-round picks.

We also have some sense for what Hughes' trade value is given that he was dealt less than a year ago, bringing back Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, Liam Ohgren and a first-round pick.

His value would probably be less than than this season, and likely become less the closer it gets to the trade deadline, due to the lack of term remaining on his deal.

So let's take a look at some teams that might have some interest in this.

Or should have some interest in this.

Carolina Hurricanes

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Carolina has been burned by pending UFA's in the past, losing Jake Guentzel after acquiring him from the Pittsburgh Penguins, and then trading Rantanen before he even played 20 games in Raleigh. So there might be some hesitancy here to go all in on another one when everybody knows he's probably not staying.

That's the logical side of this.

It's also the likely side of this.

But let's be illogical for a minute. Carolina is the defending Stanley Cup champions, and has a very real chance of doing something special and going back-to-back. The team is that good. It has that good of a system. The coaching is that good. It is also a team that still has roughly $10 million in salary cap space and a cupboard full of draft pick capital, while also having some intriguing young talent that could be flipped.

Banners fly forever, and this is a contending team that might be able to afford taking an all-or-nothing, one-year risk to get a superstar on the back-end of its defense.

Washington Capitals

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The Capitals may have missed the playoffs in 2025-26, but everything about this team on paper looks like a serious Stanley Cup contender. Especially after a big offseason that saw them make some bold moves to acquire Jordan Kyrou, Alex Tuch and Boone Jenner.

They are one of the biggest teams in the league, improved their transition offense, have an elite goalie, and are as deep as any team in the league. They can win, and they can win right now.

There is also probably some added urgency on the part of the front office and ownership given that Alex Ovechkin's playing future beyond this season remains in doubt. It seems likely that he retires after this season, but nobody knows that for sure. It also seemed likely he was going to retire after the 2025-26 season. But here we are.

The Capitals reportedly had some interest in Hughes a year ago, but backed off when the asking price was too rich for their liking.

Would they revisit it this season if the opportunity presented itself? Not only because the price might be a little lower, but also because this team is better, with a much better chance at winning?

Even though Washington has significantly improved its roster, and even though it has an outstanding player in Jakob Chychrun at the top of its defense, it could probably use another top-four (or in this case, top-pairing) defenseman to really bring everything together.

Montreal Canadiens

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If the Wild did move Hughes before the deadline you have to imagine they would try to focus on the Eastern Conference, just to avoid the risk of potentially seeing him in the playoffs. Which is why I'm going with Eastern Conference teams in this exercise.

Carolina and Washington make sense as they should be Stanley Cup contenders, and absolutely have "win-now" vibes around them.

Montreal's a little different in the sense that it should be a playoff team, and will likely be a playoff team, but its Stanley Cup window for contention is only just starting to open.

The Canadiens could absolutely win this season, but they are a team that is more set up for sustained, long-term success beyond this season. Especially as their core group is all locked in to team-friendly contracts that should prove to be bargains against the ever-increasing salary cap in the coming seasons. They have the foundation to be a force.

But it is also a team that was in the Eastern Conference Final just this past season, and might see itself as having a chance to do something special right now.

If that opportunity is there, why wait?

A defense with Hughes, Lane Hutson and Noah Dobson would be as good of a top-three as there is in the Eastern Conference, or the entire NHL, and potentially help put them closer to the top.

If nothing else, it is a fun idea to think about.