- Elliotte Friedman says there is no sign of much recent contact between Quinn Hughes and the Wild
- Owner Craig Leipold promised in June that Minnesota would re-sign its Norris Trophy winner
- Read below for the term fight and the Sept. 16 date that shrinks Minnesota’s best offer
The Wild gave up a small mountain to land Quinn Hughes. Nine months later, they still have not signed him past this season.
Elliotte Friedman said on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast that there is no indication of much recent contact between Hughes and Minnesota. The defenseman is a year away from unrestricted free agency.
Wild owner Craig Leipold left himself no wiggle room back in June. Asked by Minnesota Public Radio whether the team would keep Hughes, he answered without hedging:
“First of all, Quinn Hughes is an extraordinary player and an extraordinary person. We had to give up a lot to get him in this past year. We are going to re-sign him. The question will be for how long.”
Leipold said Minnesota would like five years or more. He also figured Hughes would push for something closer to three.
Friedman has put a marker on the calendar. He talked through the negotiation on NHL Tonight earlier this month and named opening night as the point where patience turns into worry.
Watch Friedman lay out the timeline:
Term is the real fight, and its clock runs faster than the season’s. Michael Russo reported in July that the Wild want five to eight years, and that the maximum drops to seven once the new CBA takes hold on Sept. 16. That shrinking window is squeezing star deals all over the league.
Money is no small piece of this either. Hughes is playing out a six-year deal worth $7.85 million a season, a number the rest of the league sprinted past this summer. Russo has already floated $20 million a year as a real landing spot.
He earned the raise. Hughes put up 76 points in 74 games last season, 69 of them assists, then added 15 points in 11 playoff games as Minnesota won a round for the first time since 2015.
Minnesota opens the regular season Oct. 1 in Nashville. Bill Guerin has about five weeks to get a signature on the biggest contract of his tenure.
