- Wild owner Craig Leipold says Minnesota will re-sign Quinn Hughes to a new contract
- Hughes is entering the final year of his deal and can hit free agency next summer
- Read below for what Leipold said about term and the gap between the two sides
The Minnesota Wild have no intention of letting Quinn Hughes reach free agency.
Owner Craig Leipold all but guaranteed the team will re-sign its star defenseman, telling Minnesota Public Radio on Wednesday that a new deal is coming. Asked straight up whether the Wild would lock Hughes up, he didn’t dance around it:
“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.”
How long is where the two sides might not match up. Leipold spelled out the gap.
“We would like to go as long as we could. He will probably want it to be a little shorter, shorter being maybe three years. We hopefully will end up at five.”
A shorter deal would line Hughes up to reach unrestricted free agency the same summer his younger brother Jack can leave New Jersey, the scenario fans who want the two playing together have chased for years.
Here’s a reminder of what Hughes brings to Minnesota’s back end:
The Wild landed him in a December 12 trade that sent Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, Zeev Buium and a 2026 first-round pick to Vancouver.
He paid off in a hurry, scoring in his Wild debut and never really slowing down:
Hughes put up 7 goals and 69 assists in 74 games split between the Canucks and Wild, then added four goals and nine assists in the playoffs before Minnesota fell to Colorado in five games in the second round.
The 26-year-old is heading into the final season of the six-year, $47.1 million contract ($7.85 million per year) he signed in Vancouver back in 2021. He can become a free agent next summer.
Hughes has sounded comfortable in Minnesota. Talking about his future once the season ended, he kept it simple.
“I really like it here.”
Leipold made clear the actual negotiating belongs to general manager Bill Guerin, not him.
“I have a voice, and Guerin knows it’s just a voice. I am first a fan of the Wild, and I’m second the owner.”
Minnesota has spent the offseason locking up its own, including a six-year extension for Michael McCarron. Hughes is the one name that towers over the rest. Get the term sorted, and the Wild keep a 2024 Norris Trophy winner off the open market.
