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David Levine -> RE: Wild 2025-26 Season (2/3/2026 11:26:37 AM)
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Quinn Hughes Is Gonna Shatter the Market, Isn't He?
Hughes has played like an MVP. His 29 points in 24 games represents higher production than anyone on the Wild... including Kaprizov. Bill Guerin realized what other GMs didn't: you get the talent first, then worry about the rest later.
Hughes has been shown to be worth almost any price a team could pay. Entering Sunday, Hughes sits third in the NHL with 5.9 Standings Points Above Replacement, per Evolving-Hockey. That's behind only McDavid (6.5 SPAR) and Macklin Celebrini (6.0 SPAR), two legitimate MVP candidates.
Hughes' 24 games with the Wild have, by themselves, been worth a whopping 4.6 points in the standings. Just counting his time in Minnesota, Hughes is a top-10 defenseman and top-20 player this season. Heck, it exceeds the 4.0 SPAR Kaprizov put up in 41 games last year, when he was a runaway Hart Trophy favorite before getting hurt.
For one, it's going to be hard to pay Hughes to the point where he's a negative value. His next contract would start at age-28, meaning the first four or five years should be ones Minnesota can reasonably expect Norris-caliber hockey.
The other thing is, Hughes knows what a bad situation is from his time in Vancouver, and that might lead him to prioritize staying in a good spot rather than squeezing every cent he can.
https://hockeywilderness.com/news-rumors/minnesota-wild/quinn-hughes-is-gonna-shatter-the-market-isnt-he-r31169/?mc_cid=54163ab0bc&mc_eid=ce7312704d
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