Should the Red Wings Trade for Quinn Hughes?

So, how do the Red Wings fit into this? Well, rumours have swirled around Detroit as a possible landing spot for Hughes, both in the short and long term. Today, I want to take a look at where he would fit on the Red Wings, find some comparable trades to assess his value, and finally take a stab at whether or not Detroit should really be interested in trading for Hughes given the massive package that Vancouver will rightfully be looking for. 

Where Would Hughes Fit?

If we assume Detroit doesn’t give up either Moritz Seider or Simon Edvinsson in a Hughes trade (more on that later), then I think it’s safe to assume Hughes immediately becomes the 1LD above Edvinsson. Detroit would be free to try him with Seider to create a two-headed monster, or they could stick with their current, massive top pair and find a righty to put next to Quinn.

Regardless of deployment, having three defenders of this caliber would essentially guarantee that the Red Wings would have at least one dependable defenseman on the ice for 50+ minutes a night. Hughes would clearly become the power play quarterback for Detroit, freeing Seider up to play more even strength and penalty killing minutes, while Axel Sandin Pellikka (ASP) leads the second unit. 

In Vancouver, Hughes has become a one-man-offense, creating chances on a dime with his ridiculous stretch passes and elusive skating. In Detroit, he wouldn’t be leaned on quite so heavily on offense, with Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin reliably scoring 70+ points each year. 

Trade Comparisons

Now, this won’t be perfect given that Hughes isn’t extension eligible until July 1, 2026, but let’s quickly run through some of the biggest trades of the past few years to get a bit of a sense for the market on star players these days.

Mikko Rantanen (the first one) to the Carolina Hurricanes

Mikko Rantanen was on an expiring, set to become a UFA, and was flipped to the Carolina Hurricanes for Martin Necas, Jack Drury, a second round pick and a fourth round pick. Necas has been a great fit next to Nathan MacKinnon and Drury looks like a nice player, but with Rantanen on an expiring deal and being traded so suddenly, I expect the bidding war on Hughes will drive the price quite a bit higher than this. 

Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers

Matthew Tkachuk had one year remaining on his contract, which would have left him as an RFA, though he was traded a week or two before he was eligible to sign an extension. The Calgary Flames did quite well (at least at the time it seemed that way), recouping Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt, and a 2025 1st Round Pick. This situation might be the most similar I’ve found for Hughes, though Quinn could theoretically give the acquiring team two full playoff runs, so I expect the value to be set here or higher. 

Jack Eichel to the Vegas Golden Knights

Jack Eichel was traded with five years remaining on his contract. He was supposed to be the saviour of the Buffalo Sabres, but a medical dispute fractured the relationship irreparably and he asked out. The Vegas Golden Knights obliged, sending Alex Tuch, Peyton Krebs, a 1st round pick, and a 2nd round pick back to the Sabres.

The Sabres really didn’t have much leverage here, with a player who refused to play unless they let him get a surgery that had never been performed on an active professional hockey player, so they did okay all things considered. However, I expect a healthy Hughes would be worth more.

Erik Karlsson to the San Jose Sharks

Erik Karlsson was traded from the Ottawa Senators to the San Jose Sharks with one year remaining on his contract, just before the opening of the 2018-19 training camp. The Sens landed Josh Norris, Chris Tierny, Rudolf Balcers, Dylan DeMelo, a 1st round pick, and two 2nd round picks. If the Canucks aim for a win-now trade, then the volume of NHL players to go with the picks and prospect might be a decent comparison for what they’re looking for. 

What Would Detroit Need to Give Up?

So here’s the rough blueprint for one of the best defenders in the league at the top of his game and on a sweetheart deal for another year and a half (two playoff runs). Keep in mind, Vancouver’s biggest need by far is at center, with bargain bin signing David Kampf recently lining up as their 1C this past weekend. I’ll give two blueprints, one for a futures-based deal that would likely return the most value and give the Canucks the best chance at competing long-term, and one that is more likely, where they are looking for significant current value at the expense of long-term thinking (which is how they’ve operated for . . . like 15 years now). 

Futures Trade

Promising young star player (A-level prospect)
Middle-sixer (salary and/or depth)
Promising young-ish AHLer (B-level or lower)
At least one guaranteed 1st rounder (likely unprotected)
At least one conditional 1st
2nd rounder

Win-Now Trade

High-end NHL Contributor
Promising young prospect (A-level prospect)
Middle-sixer (preferably center)
Depth defender
1st round pick
Mid-to-late round pick

Could/Should Detroit Make This Kind of Trade?

What? Are you kidding? A Red Wings team in need of elite talent and with no lottery luck to help them acquire it should absolutely make just about any trade to land someone of Hughes’ caliber that they can. NHL free agency is dead (at least while the market resets due to the rising salary cap) and the only ways to reliably acquire star talent is through the draft and in trades.

Obviously, the Red Wings would have a short list of un-touchables, a list that would need to include Raymond, Larkin, and Seider (likely including Edvinsson and DeBrincat as well though), but the Red Wings have done a good job of accumulating young talent through the draft and this is just the time to cash in.

If the Canucks are looking for a futures-based trade, then Detroit should be locking Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin in a room over the next day or so while the team is in Vancouver until a trade gets done. Detroit should absolutely be comfortable including one of Nate Danielson, Marco Kasper, or ASP in a Hughes trade as a “promising young star player”, and probably one of their prospects in the next tier like Michael Brandsegg-Nygård or Carter Bear as well. 

Detroit has plenty of quality middle-six forwards, and either Andrew Copp or J.T. Compher would immediately become Vancouver’s 2C. Trading multiple first round picks would hurt, but a trade like this wouldn’t damage Detroit’s current lineup all that much, while increasing the team’s floor and ceiling considerably. 

On the other hand, a win-now trade is much trickier for the Red Wings to do well on. If the Canucks hope to have a big shiny player to market the Hughes trade on, I think the only players who are valuable enough to do that would be on the “untouchable” list I mentioned above. 

Could the Red Wings overwhelm the trade market on volume of depth and high draft picks? Possibly, but Vancouver’s short sighted management might price Detroit out of contending seriously for their superstar captain.

Could the Red Wings Land Hughes?

Look, Hughes went to the University of Michigan and spends his summers in the state of Michigan so the chances that he’d be willing to join them and even extend are probably second to only the New Jersey Devils (the team that employs both of his younger brothers). If Detroit can make a trade happen while keeping their core intact, then I say sell the farm! You accumulate prospects and picks with the hopes of them becoming contributors, so why not flip a handful of them to land the second or third best defenseman in the world? What better use is there?!