Quinn Hughes is at the center of most major trade rumors in the NHL right now. The 26-year-old star defenseman\u2019s departure from the Vancouver Canucks feels more inevitable by the day as the Canucks languish through the fall with their 11-16-3 record, the second-worst mark in the league.<\/p>\n
Hughes, who has 22 points (2g, 20a) in 25 games this season, is eligible for a contract extension next summer, and previous reports<\/a> have indicated the Canucks would prefer to deal him this season to maximize their return and decrease their risk of losing him for nothing.<\/p>\n While Hughes will likely have many interested suitors, hockey\u2019s most preeminent insider, Elliotte Friedman, floated the Washington Capitals specifically as a potential landing spot during Tuesday\u2019s episode of NHL Network\u2019s First Shift Podcast with Mike Kelly and EJ Hradek<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cOne team I\u2019ve wondered about a little bit, and I think there was some noise around them on social today, was Washington,\u201d Friedman said<\/a>. \u201cThis is a special time for the Capitals. Who knows how much longer Ovechkin\u2019s going to be playing? They\u2019re a team I could see say, \u2018You know what, we\u2019ll take our chances,\u2019 potentially, if they can make a deal. So that was one team I thought of. I think if he gets traded, it\u2019s most likely [to the] East.\u201d<\/p>\n Hughes is signed to his current contract through next season (2026-27) at a $7.85 million cap hit with no trade protections. The Capitals currently have $3.34 million in cap space, although they could easily free more up by placing Pierre-Luc Dubois ($8.5 million AAV) on long-term injured reserve.<\/p>\n According to PuckPedia<\/a>, the Capitals are also set to have $10.25 million in trade deadline space. Cap space accrues over time, so if the Caps do not make any other additions between now and the deadline, they\u2019d have plenty of room to fit Hughes come March 6.<\/p>\n The Capitals are currently crowded on the left side of their defense, where Hughes plays, with Jakob Chychrun, Martin Fehervary, and Rasmus Sandin all stationed on their three regular pairs. On the right side, John Carlson and Trevor van Riemsdyk are the team\u2019s lone scheduled defensive free agents next summer.<\/p>\n Outside of any salary concerns, the price to acquire Hughes is also expected to be very high, as the former 92-point defenseman is still in his prime. Friedman shed more light on what the Canucks could be looking for during the eventual bidding war and negotiations.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I\u2019m looking at are teams that have a center, and [Vancouver is] probably going to want a D to replace Hughes,\u201d Friedman said. \u201cSo, you go up and down the prospects. You look over the young NHL players. Washington, I think it depends on how you feel about some of their players. I always assume, guys, that there\u2019s someone out there that you\u2019re not thinking about. Until someone sent me a note today about Washington, I hadn\u2019t thought about them.\u201d<\/p>\n The Capitals do have the premier prospects and young players that would fit those needs. Down the middle, the team has prospect names like Ilya Protas and Milton G\u00e4strin and slightly older, NHL talent like Connor McMichael, Justin Sourdif, and Hendrix Lapierre. On defense, the most obvious prospect name would be Cole Hutson, who, like Hughes, is a left-handed offensive defenseman, but the club also has the 25-year-old Sandin, as well as recent high draft picks Leon Muggli and Ryan Chesley.<\/p>\n The primary risk of mortgaging some of those future-focused assets is that there is no guarantee Hughes will sign a contract extension to stay with the Capitals past next season. He will not be eligible for an extension until July, so there is no sign-and-trade deal that can be agreed upon before executing any move this season.<\/p>\n Washington, if genuinely interested, will definitely not be the only team vying for Hughes, as the most speculated team expected to be involved is the New Jersey Devils. Both of Quinn\u2019s brothers, Jack Hughes and Luke Hughes, are currently signed long-term with the Devils, and Jack has publicly expressed his desire for them to play together at some point during their NHL careers<\/a>.<\/p>\n