Quinn Hughes Says ‘Feet Are Planted’ In Minnesota

When asked about his contract extension, Quinn Hughes reassured that he wanted to remain in Minnesota.

According to Joe Smith of The Athletic, Hughes had a lot of positive affirmations regarding his current situation and how he feels regarding his current club in the Wild;

“I’m here. I’ve always been. I’m excited. My two feet are planted in Minnesota. Something could happen soon. I’m not too sure. I’m really enjoying playing here. I see playing with you see (Jonas Brodin), (Jared Spurgeon), when (Brock Faber) comes back — there are a lot of things that are set up for me to have success, individually and for us as a team. We have a great team. The first thing is you want to get in the playoffs, but I think we have a chance to win this season.”

Something could happen soon, but that has been the case for the star defenseman since July 1 of this year. The 26-year-old has a year left on the six-year, $47.1MM deal he signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 2021. He ended the 2025-26 season with 76 points, 53 of those with Minnesota in 48 games, adding 15 points in 11 playoff games, all after they traded key young pieces like Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, and other assets to acquire him.

Back in May, Hughes mentioned in his end-of-season availability that he was open to extending with Minnesota. Any form of inking a new contract would be beneficial to the Wild as they are trying to ensure a Western Conference Final bid in their current contending window, especially after the trade it took to acquire him. Hughes is a once-in-a-blue-moon player for the Wild that they need in their quest to lift the franchise’s first cup.

However, that status of being a pending free agent remains the case. In 2026-27, Hughes is already dominating the scoresheet, tallying three goals for 16 points in 13 games, while playing nearly 27 minutes of ice time a game. That point total comes second only to Edmonton’s Evan Bouchard’s 21 to start the campaign. Among defenseman with 10+ games so far this year, Hughes is sixth in shot attempts percentage, tallying a 59.9% clip, emphasizing how impactful a player he is when he possesses the puck.

That impact will no doubt make the salary among the NHL’s best, especially with top defenseman counterpart Cale Makar signing at a $20.4MM AAV. It was believed Hughes might wait until that deal to see what money he wants, but still, nothing has come to fruition.

This discussion from Smith also came about because of the recent Connor Hellebuyck trade, as well as the looming decision on Dylan Larkin in Detroit. Hughes talked about both at length with Smith, saying he’s seen the case that if Detroit trades its long-time center to the Wild, it’d push Quinn to sign. Hughes said he “love[s] the hockey aspect [in Minnesota]. That’s not something where I’m talking to Billy about and would impact anything.”

Further to this, Hughes shed some light on the potential intrigue of joining brothers Luke and Jack in New Jersey, with Hellebuyck heading over from Winnipeg. Amid the discussion of the term for Quinn in Minnesota, some speculated he could opt for fewer years than what the Wild want, say a 3-4 year deal. Jack, who is signed for three more years in New Jersey, was a potential parallel to try to match his unrestricted free agency status in 2030. However, Luke is on a much longer tenured deal, so this doesn’t seem as likely. For Quinn, he “was happy for Helly from a personal friendship aspect of it,” and “for Jack and Luke because it helps their team. But … I haven’t been thinking about that, that’s for sure.”

As the season began, Hughes addressed his contract status with the Wild, telling media that his extension would “be done whenever I feel like it needs to be done.” He added that he does not feel “backed up against a wall” to rush into signing a new contract. He’s repeated that any delay is because he “want[s] to make sure I’m taking my time on everything and make sure I’m making a decision that is going to be good for everyone.

Of note, since 2020, among defensemen, only Makar and Hughes have surpassed the 90-point mark per 82 games three times in that span, with Makar nearly having four if not for 90 points/82 games in 2022-23. So we’ve seen $20MM passed for one player annually, would Hughes make it two? Depending on how things progress, it isn’t unlikely given the pedigree that both blueliners have built for themselves.

Sooner rather than later would be what the Wild want in these contract negotiations; continuing to have this loom over both sides’ heads would only ramp up the speculation into the 2026-27 season and create angst. Nonetheless, Minnesota has money, almost $45MM in cap space for 2027-28, enough where they will need to figure out what to do with the expiring contracts of Ryan Hartman, Blake Coleman, captain Jared Spurgeon, and standout young goaltender Jesper Wallstedt.