‘I think Quinn will be really happy here’: Wild GM Bill Guerin discusses Hughes’ acquisition
A day after swinging a blockbuster trade for superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks, Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin held a press conference Saturday to discuss the deal, which sent center Marco Rossi, defenseman Zeev Buium, winger Liam Ohgren, and a 2026 first-round pick to the Canucks.
“Bringing a player like Quinn Hughes here, you just don’t get these opportunities all that often,” Guerin said. “Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, Liam Ohgren, all great kids, great players with bright futures. Definitely hard to part with guys that you draft, develop, you spend time with, you get to know them and their families. But when a player of Quinn’s caliber comes available and you have an opportunity to get him, there’s a cost to it, and we were willing to do what it takes.”
Hughes, whose brothers Jack and Luke play for the New Jersey Devils, hails from Orlando, Florida. There’s been speculation that Hughes would prefer to either join his brothers in New Jersey or play in a warm-weather city reminiscent of his hometown. Guerin addressed why he believes Hughes will be content in the frosty northern clime of Minnesota.
“I think Quinn will really like it here,” Guerin said when asked about the possibility of Hughes signing an extension with the Wild. “He just loves hockey, and I think there’s no better market than Minnesota to be a hockey player.”
“I love Minnesota. Our players love Minnesota. This is a great place to play, but no matter what — whether you have good weather, good taxes, good — I don’t know, whatever. The hockey has to be good. You can live in the sun, you can live in these great places or make a little more money, but if the hockey isn’t good, you won’t be happy. So, that’s what really matters. If the hockey is good, if your job is good, you will be happy — and I think Quinn will be really happy here.”
As proof that being an NHL GM is a round-the-clock job, Guerin said he got the trade-finalizing call from Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford while he was prepping for a family holiday dinner.
“I was making meatballs for our Christmas Eve dinner, and Jim called. So I had to take my latex gloves off because I was rolling meatballs. He told me we have a deal, and there was a fist pump involved.”