{"id":325044,"date":"2025-12-04T15:12:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T15:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/325044\/"},"modified":"2025-12-04T15:12:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T15:12:11","slug":"nhl-rumor-mill-december-4-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/325044\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Rumor Mill \u2013 December 4, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest speculation regarding Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes<\/a>, plus the latest on the Maple Leafs in today\u2019s NHL Rumor Mill.<\/p>\n

WHERE COULD QUINN HUGHES GO IF HE LEAVES THE CANUCKS?<\/p>\n

THE PROVINCE<\/a>: Ben Kuzma noted the uncertainty over Quinn Hughes\u2019 future with the Vancouver Canucks<\/a> has led to a growing line of suitors for the 26-year-old superstar defenseman.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes (NHL Images).<\/p>\n

Hughes has a year remaining on his contract and will be eligible for unrestricted free-agent status on July 1, 2027. If an extension isn\u2019t in the works, Kuzma believes the Canucks could move him for a multiplayer return to get younger and eventually better.<\/p>\n

Kuzma thinks any team acquiring Hughes will want assurances he\u2019ll be more than a one-year rental player. He thinks ties to certain teams could determine where the former Norris Trophy winner could land.<\/p>\n

The Detroit Red Wings<\/a> could be an option, given that Hughes spent his formative years in Michigan with the US National Team Development Program and the NCAA Wolverines. Kuzma speculated the Canucks could push for winger Lucas Raymond<\/a>, rookie defenseman Axel Sandin-Pellikka, rookie center Nate Danielson<\/a>, and a 2026 first-round pick.<\/p>\n

SPECTOR\u2019S NOTE: To which Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman will reply, \u201cWell, thanks for the call, and the best of luck in your future endeavors\u201d. Giving up Raymond would blow a big hole in their forward lines. It\u2019s also unlikely he\u2019d give up both Sandin-Pellikka and Danielson.<\/p>\n

Kuzma also noted the obvious tug for Hughes to head to New Jersey, where his brothers (Jack and Luke) play for the Devils. There\u2019s also the Philadelphia Flyers<\/a>, who are coached by former Canucks bench boss Rick Tocchet.<\/p>\n

SPECTOR\u2019S NOTE: The asking price for the Devils would be defenseman Simon Nemec<\/a> and a first-round pick in 2026 for sure. Center Dawson Mercer<\/a> and rookie winger Arseny Gritsyuk<\/a> would also likely be part of it.<\/p>\n

DAILY FACEOFF:<\/a> Anthony Di Marco reported a Flyers source claimed the team hasn\u2019t had any conversations with the Canucks about Hughes, but they are interested in him.<\/p>\n

Di Marco speculated that winger Tyson Foerster<\/a> and top prospect Porter Martone<\/a> could be part of the Canucks\u2019 asking price. He thinks the Flyers would prefer sending a package to Vancouver centered around a defenseman like Jamie Drysdale or Cam York.<\/p>\n

SPECTOR\u2019S NOTE: The Canucks would likely hold firm to their projected offer rather than one centered around Drysdale or York. The Flyers probably won\u2019t get into the bidding for Hughes, based on Di Marco\u2019s comment that they don\u2019t want to gut their roster in a trade.<\/p>\n

THE LATEST ON THE MAPLE LEAFS<\/p>\n

SPORTSNET<\/a>: Ryan Dixon recently looked at which members of the Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> were most likely to be traded and those who are not.<\/p>\n

Of the most likely trade candidates, Dixon listed forwards Nick Robertson, Bobby McMann<\/a>, and Matias Maccelli<\/a> as those who might have more value to another team than the Maple Leafs.<\/p>\n

SPECTOR\u2019S NOTE: Robertson\u2019s been a fixture in trade rumors since the summer of 2024. He shows flashes of scoring potential, but he remains unable to establish himself as a reliable top-six forward.<\/p>\n

McMann had a promising 20-goal performance last season, but has just six in 26 games thus far this season. The Leafs hoped Maccelli might regain the 57-point form of his 2023-24 season, but he has only nine points in 22 games and was a healthy scratch in three of the Leafs\u2019 last four games.<\/p>\n

TORONTO STAR<\/a>: Nick Kypreos suggested the Leafs might be able to draw on their goaltending depth at the trade deadline.<\/p>\n

If Anthony Stolarz<\/a> can establish himself as a 1A or 1B goalie with Joseph Woll<\/a> once he returns from injury, Kypreos suggested dangling a goalie prospect such as Dennis Hildeby or Artur Akhtyamov as a trade chip. If Hildeby shows he\u2019s ready for a larger role, that could make Stolarz a trade candidate, though they\u2019d have to work around his 16-team no-trade list.<\/p>\n

Kypreos believes the Maple Leafs\u2019 biggest need is finding a puck-moving defenseman to take some of the burden off of Morgan Rielly<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The latest speculation regarding Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes, plus the latest on the Maple Leafs in today\u2019s NHL…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":325045,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[433],"tags":[49,48,448,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-325044","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-nhl","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325044"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325044\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}