Quinn Hughes makes it clear that Canucks’ performance this season will influence long-term plans

With everything he brings on and off the ice, Quinn Hughes is a franchise cornerstone for the Vancouver Canucks. A year out from his eligibility to sign an extension with the team, the million-dollar question for fans this summer has been, Do we have a chance of keeping this guy in Vancouver?

At least, that was the question from a close friend of Elliotte Friedman’s. Speaking one-on-one with Hughes at the NHL Player Media Tour this week, that’s the question Friedman asked the Vancouver captain on his friend’s behalf. On Thursday’s edition of Halford & Brough in the Morning, they shared a clip of that interaction:

“I’ve really enjoyed Vancouver, I’m very thankful,” Hughes started. “When I came to Vancouver, I don’t think anyone thought I was gonna become what I have become. And that’s happened because of the people in Vancouver, management, coaching.

“As far as this year, I just feel like last year was a failure, and I wanna propel my game even further and propel my teammates even further and see what we can do,” he continued. “As far as that question, I’ll answer that with my actions next summer. You know how it is, anything can change, if we have a terrible year this year, that’s probably not gonna be very fun. But if we have a terrific year, that’s what we want, that’ll be really fun. Two years ago was really fun. I’ll just leave it at that.”

“That’s what I said to him, I said I guarantee you, this year is going to tell the tale,” Friedman said. “I bet you that’s what Quinn’s gonna say.”

“Yeah, which is true, I think,” Hughes responded.

As much as every Canucks fan wants Hughes to come out and say he intends on playing his whole career in Vancouver, it’s just not what’s going to happen. Hughes has asserted for a while now that his focus is on the upcoming season, and he’ll leave a decision about an extension to next summer, when he can actually sign that extension.

He’s mostly kept to that same script this summer, but here with Friedman, he’s saying the quiet part out loud: this season will be the referendum on his future in Vancouver. Considering the drama and disappointment of last season, you can hardly blame him. As captain, he bore the brunt of dealing with the media in a year marked by locker room issues and a missed playoff berth. Considering the run they had the year before, it’s not surprising to hear Hughes say that this year will be a determining factor in his long-term plans.

All that to say, how this season plays out will have a major effect on how the Canucks look over the next half-decade and beyond. With that in mind, Quinn Hughes is definitely not the only one in Vancouver hoping to forget last year and have a season more like they did two years ago.