A potential Hughes brothers reunion just got a little more real.
However, no trade is close.
“I do not believe there is anything imminent. I don’t even know that they’re anywhere far along. But I do believe that a conversation was had about where things stand and where they might be going,” Friedman said.
Hughes’ contract expires after next season. His brothers, Jack and Luke, have deals with the Devils that run through the 2029-30 and 2031-32 seasons, respectively.
Quinn Hughes has played his entire career with the Canucks, suiting up in 456 games while tallying 61 goals and 370 assists.
However, he has only made two post-season appearances with Vancouver, and has been non-committal on his future with the Canucks beyond his current contract. Hughes took the Canucks’ captaincy ahead of the 2023-24 season, succeeding Bo Horvat.
Meanwhile, with the Canucks sitting last in the Western Conference with 23 points in 28 games ahead of Saturday’s action, the B.C. squad appears set to begin a sell-off. Friedman reported in late November that the Canucks were ready to reshape their future.
The Devils, on the other hand, were in a four-way tie for third in the Metropolitan Division (33 points in 28 games), but have lost four straight games amid Jack Hughes’ recent absence after he cut his hand at a dinner.
Hughes, who was given a two-month timeline in mid-November, had 10 goals and 10 assists in 20 games prior to the injury. Luke Hughes, meanwhile, has dressed in every game for New Jersey, putting up one goal and 13 assists from the blue line.
New Jersey, which has multiple balls in the air, is also eyeing a pair of upgrades from the Nashville Predators in the forms of Steven Stamkos and Ryan O’Reilly, Friedman reported.
But a complication in any Devils trade is that they are at the salary cap, meaning any deal would either require salary retention or a direct money-in, money-out swap of players.
The Hughes brothers were born in Florida and relocated to Toronto for some time before heading back south of the border to Michigan to train with the U.S. National Team Development Program.
