Canucks Trading Away Quinn Hughes to Wild Leaves NHL Fans Shocked: “Darkest Day in Franchise History”

Quinn Hughes is the highest-scoring defenseman in Canucks franchise history with 432 points (61 goals, 371 assists) from 459 regular-season games.

Canucks Trading Away Quinn Hughes to Wild Leaves NHL Fans Shocked: “Darkest Day in Franchise History”

Quinn Hughes (Image via Imago)

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In a massive turn of events on Friday, the Vancouver Canucks traded away their captain, Quinn Hughes. The Canadian side gave away the defenseman to the Minnesota Wild and received forwards Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren, defenseman Zeev Buium and a first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Hughes was in his 8th season with the Canucks, having joined the team through the draft in 2017. He was also in the fifth year of his six-year deal, which he signed in 2021.

The 26-year-old had penned down a six-year, $47.1 million contract ($7.85 million Average Annual Value) in October 2021. He can become an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) following the end of the 2026-27 season.

Before the start of the 2023-24 season, Hughes was named the captain of the team. He would become the 15th captain of the Canucks organization. That season turned out to be an important one for him as he ended up winning the Norris trophy, an honor given to best defenseman.

Hughes finished that season with 92 points (17 goals and 75 assists). Meanwhile, the Canucks were crowned Pacific Division champions and finished with 109 points. After beating the Nashville Predators in the first round, they suffered a 4-3 loss in the second round against the Edmonton Oilers.

The following season saw the team miss the playoffs. While Hughes was a finalist for the Norris trophy again, with 76 points (16 goals and 60 assists), the Canucks had a disappointing campaign under head coach Rick Tocchet and finished with a 38-30-14 record.

This season, the team has started slow again. Following their 3-2 loss against the Buffalo Sabres in their previous game, they were left with an 11-17-3 record, bottom of the Pacific Division standings. In the midst of increasing speculation regarding his future, the team on Friday shocked the hockey fandom and traded away their captain.

Hughes is the highest-scoring defenseman in Canucks franchise history with 432 points (61 goals, 371 assists) in 459 games. He had a further 26 points (2 goals, 24 assists) in 30 Stanley Cup Playoffs games for the team.

Social media reacts to Quinn Hughes being traded away by Canucks

As the Vancouver Canucks continued to struggle in the 2025-26 season, there were several trade speculations regarding Quinn Hughes. On Friday, this came true as the team gave away their captain to the Minnesota Wild and received 3 players and a draft pick in exchange.

Quinn Hughes
Quinn Hughes (Image via Imago)

Fans on social media were left stunned by this development. Canucks fans were left shaking their heads in disappointment as one of their top players left them. One distraught fan wrote, “Darkest day in franchise history” on X while reacting to this.

Check out that and some other reactions from X below:

Speaking of the returns, Zeev Buium and Marco Rossi were the 6th and 7th leading scorers for the Wild this season. The Wild are currently third in the Central Division with a 17-9-5 record. After starting the year with a 3-6-3 record, the team has gone 14-3-2 in the last 19 games.

Canucks President admits it was ‘difficult’ to trade away Quinn Hughes

Quinn Hughes is no longer a member of the Vancouver Canucks. On Friday, he was traded away to the Minnesota Wild in a shocking trade. Following this development, the team president Jim Rutherford made a statement and expressed it was ‘difficult‘ to trade him away.

Quinn Hughes
Quinn Hughes (Image via Yardbarker)

The American international was the leader of the team and wore the Captain’s ‘C’ on his uniform. While speaking about him, Rutherford hailed him as one of the greatest players in their franchise history.

It’s difficult trading a player like Quinn. We love him as a person and as a player, one of the greatest players that’s ever played for the Canucks.

Jim Rutherford said regarding Quinn Hughes

Meanwhile, Hughes’ agent Pat Brisson praised the Canucks for the way they handled the trade. He also expressed that the player was “relieved” following the trade.

With Hughes now gone, it will be interesting to see how the Canucks go from here on. The team that has lost 6 of their last 7 games, will be hoping to bounce back and start the post-Hughes era on a positive note against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

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