LAS VEGAS — Quinn Hughes knew the question was coming, of course, and he didn’t flinch.
The Vancouver Canucks captain had zero issue with his brother Jack saying what he did this week — putting out in the world what was already assumed: that the three Hughes brothers would love to all play together one day.
Well, duh.
But the reality of the situation, in the moment at least, is that they’ve got NHL contracts with different teams.
“I mean, he’s my brother,” Quinn Hughes said Wednesday morning, meeting assembled writers at the NHL Player Media Tour. “What’s he supposed to say, first of all? Like, ‘I don’t want to play with him,’ you know? … I mean, we have contracts and whatnot. He’s on a different team. Would it be fun to play with those guys at some point? Of course. I think if you guys have brothers, you guys would say the same thing. But we do have contracts. I’m excited to be in Vancouver, and I feel like last year was a little bit of a failure. So I feel like I’ve got things to do there. And I know Jack loves — he loves Jersey, and he’s got stuff to do also.”
He wouldn’t have preferred that his brother stay quiet on it, though?
“No, I don’t care at all,” the Canucks captain said. “I think that’s just him being authentic, and if a fan base can’t understand why he would say that, that makes no sense to me.”
Let’s be real, there’s no question in my mind that the Hughes brothers, including Jack’s teammate Luke in New Jersey, talk about this dream scenario of all of them playing together on one NHL team almost every single day in their group chat. Why wouldn’t they? It’s a natural feeling for them as brothers to want that. No one should begrudge them for that.
So Jack this week simply said out loud what was already assumed.
“This is the headline question, you know?” Jack smiled when I asked him about it Tuesday, also at the NHL Player Media Tour. “Honestly, I’m not afraid to say it. Yeah, I would love for Quinn to — eventually I’d love to play with him. And whether that’s in New Jersey or at what time that takes, at some point, I want to play with Quinn. But yeah, that’s the question going around. They talk all day about it up in Vancouver, you know? But yeah, I’d love to play with Quinn at some point.”
The comment dropped like a grenade in the Vancouver market, of course.
Quinn Hughes’ NHL future is already front and center with one of the game’s most passionate fan bases. Fans are concerned they’re going to lose their franchise defenseman. Normally, like Connor McDavid entering the final season of his contract in Edmonton, this kind of hysteria is saved for players with 12 months to go on their deals. That the Vancouver market is already on hyperdrive with Hughes still having two years to go on his deal is what sets this story apart.
Does it surprise the Canucks captain that it’s already such a big story?
“Yes and no,” he said. “Obviously, Jack wasn’t the first one to bring it up, in fairness to him. I just think that I’ve been fortunate to play in Vancouver because of the fans and what a special place it is and how well you’re taken care of because they love their hockey so much and care about their hockey. I think that it’s normal in a Canadian market, and I feel like, especially with how much noise there was last year, people want to know what direction the team’s going in. Is there a direction and whatnot, etc., etc.?
“So I can understand why it’s being brought up. I think if we had a terrific season last year and we were Cup contenders, I don’t think, you know, I would be the noise right now.”
Presumably, when Quinn Hughes says his brother wasn’t the first to bring it up, that’s a reference to Jim Rutherford, the Canucks’ president of hockey operations, mentioning at this season-ending presser last year that the elephant in the room is the possibility of all three Hughes brothers wanting to play together one day.
That certainly raised eyebrows. But the Hockey Hall of Fame executive wasn’t saying anything that wasn’t already being talked about around the league.
The Canucks, of course, will do everything they can to keep their captain happy and in Vancouver.
“Our hope is to keep him long term,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin told The Athletic via text message Tuesday. “We will do whatever we can to keep him.”
Will Jack and Quinn Hughes play together one day — in New Jersey, Vancouver or elsewhere? (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
It’s why I think there was no much urgency for the front office to deal with the Elias Pettersson-J.T. Miller situation last season. It is absolutely critical for the front office to have an environment that their captain wants to continue to be part of.
That’s why so much is riding on this season, too. The Canucks need a bounce-back season, but just as importantly, they need a season without distractions.
The Pettersson-Miller drama of a year ago was taxing for the franchise. A lot of it landed on Hughes to handle as team captain, and he was impressive in how he dealt with that as far as having to speak to it publicly.
“Yeah, it’s tough,” Quinn Hughes said Wednesday. “I was proud of myself just because I tried to help out those guys, and also, there was a lot of nonsense on the side, but my game never dipped. I always felt like I was there for my team. If anything, my game got better just because I knew we needed wins. That’s the main thing I could control, is my game. But obviously it was a distraction.
“Jim and Patrick did what they had to do — what they thought would help our room — and I commend them for that because no one wants to trade Millsy, who was one of our terrific player in the league for a long time, but they did what they felt they had to do, and I think our team should be in a position now where there’s no distractions, we’ve got a good coaching staff and hopefully (goalie Thatcher Demko is) healthy and we’ll be ready to go.”
It’s a huge year in Vancouver, no question. How this season goes will influence the events of next summer when Hughes is eligible to sign an extension one year out. Or not.
Until then, there won’t be a hotter topic in Vancouver. Buckle up.
(Photo: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)