What is keeping Quinn Hughes from not extending with the Minnesota Wild?
NHL Network: Will the Minnesota Wild be able to sign defenseman Quinn Hughes to a contract extension? What is the holdup? If he doesn’t sign an extension between now and the trade deadline, could they consider trading him?
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Tony Luftman: “Will Quinn Hughes agree to an extension in Minnesota? We touched on Cale Makar and him setting the market for D-men. This Quinn Hughes guy is awfully valuable too, Johnny.”
Mike Johnson: “What would he be waiting for? Like, if the answer is yes, what’s he waiting for? Yeah, the money’s going to be there.”
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Luftman: “The state of hockey just grown.”
Johnson: “The contracts have already grown. You’re seeing these guys, Bedard get 15 and Carlson get 18. Like you’re gonna get 17, 18 million dollars. Like that’s already been established. You can say you’re better than Kaprizov because you are. He makes 17. You can like the money’s gonna be there. So, what’s the holdup?
The holdup is him figuring out if he wants to. Understandable, but Rupper, I don’t see that changing until he gets into this season. Whatever he knows about Minnesota up to this point is not changing until they start playing again. So if it’s not done now, I just, I’m not sure what changes that gets it done until they get further into the season. Maybe it goes great, and then he decides to.”
Mike Rupp: “I just can’t imagine, I just don’t think that if this season starts and there’s no contract done, I don’t think there’s a contract coming. I don’t think he will sign there. So maybe it is to get into the season. Maybe it’s to see where that team is at. Are they ready employeed to maybe take another step?
But also, maybe it’s just looking at, I mean, these guys have waited their whole lives and probably dreamt about playing on the driveway and playing together in national hockey.”
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Johnson: “The brothers.”
Rupp: “The brothers. Sorry, the, the Hughes brothers. You’re months, not, not a year.”
Johnson: “It’s right there now.”
Rupp: “You’re months away.”
Johnson: “Yeah.”
Rupp: “From making that a possibility.”
Johnson: “And people will, people in Minnesota or wherever might not like that. But just put yourself into a family shoe.”
Rupp: “I get it.”
Johnson: “Or skates. Like if you were my brother, I would want to play with you. I might like where I’m at, but I’m like, I like you more.”
Rupp: “In every, in every other scenario for that trifecta to happen is much more difficult than waiting nine months.”
Johnson: “Right.”
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Rupp: “And so you can say what you want to say, and I’m not predicting that’s going to happen. All I’m saying is, once the season starts, he’s got that built in, ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’ Where I have a mission to come here and be the best defenseman I can be for the Minnesota Wild.
And then I think it goes to the Minnesota Wild. Do we go on a run with him or trade him at the deadline as a rental to another contending team and try to retain some sort, or replenish some sort of assets?”
Johnson: “If he doesn’t sign by the deadline, they’d have to trade him.”
Rupp: “They would have to.”
Johnson: “Even if they’re good.”
Rupp: “Would you, do you see, do you think this, if this season starts, that he will sign an extension in Minnesota?”
Johnson: “If things go brilliantly, perhaps. If they don’t, less likely. And you’re right. The closer you get to that decision line, easier it is to kick the can to the decision, which is next summer.”
Rupp: “But that’s the whole point in all this too, that you could sit there and I know that Minnesota probably won’t do that. They haven’t signed up for that. They probably don’t want to sign up for that. But he has all the options in the world. He can go to July 1st and sign in Minnesota. I think that’s insane. I don’t think that’s what he would do because if that’s what he wanted, he would do it now. But the point is, he doesn’t have to do anything.”
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Johnson: “Especially with guys willing to take 3, 4, 5 years, because chasing max’s term is not something star players do anymore. So that lure of signing early and get the eighth thing.”
Rupp: “Keep hitting the market.”
Johnson: “If he wants three years and go all. So it’s yeah, it’s a, it’s a tough situation for Minnesota to be in right now. Quinn Hughes has all the cards.”
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