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What Wild’s Attempt to Acquire Devils’ Luke Hughes Could Mean for Brother Quinn’s Future
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- What Wild’s Attempt to Acquire Devils’ Luke Hughes Could Mean for Brother Quinn’s Future
Matt Blewett-Imagn Images
According to a recent report from Michael Russo of The Athletic , Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin attempted to acquire Luke Hughes from the New Jersey Devils during the 2025-26 season — a move that would have seen Luke leave one brother, Jack Hughes , to unite with another in Quinn Hughes .
Of course, rumors and speculation about what the future holds for all three Hughes brothers have run rampant. Just last week on an episode of The Sheet with Jeff Marek , Pat Brisson, the agent for the three brothers, spoke on the idea of them all playing together at some point:
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"We haven't had any specific discussions about this one, perhaps. Those are possibilities, I'm not going to deny the fact , but when you have three brothers getting together during the summertime or in the offseason, we have a lot of funny conversations about a lot of funny stuff."
Obviously, no deal for Luke went through. Based on the language used via The Athletic, it doesn't seem like the Devils ever seriously considered parting with Luke.
But here's what we do know. With all else being equal, there's no reason to believe Quinn would be any more inclined to sign an extension beyond his current deal (which runs through 2026-27) than he would have been had the team made a deeper playoff run.
"I'm definitely open to re-signing here," said Quinn at his exit interview today. He also added that getting a deal done in the summer "is more ideal" but is "mentally tough enough" to head into the season without one.
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Regardless, odds are that Guerin attempted to acquire Luke to increase his leverage for a Quinn extension. That would signal a GM that does not have full confidence in the potential of getting it done. Quinn's words confirm that the outlook of this situation is not certain, even if he does enjoy playing in Minnesota.
At the end of the day, the Devils have something the Wild don't: both of Quinn's brothers. There's no telling what Devils' GM Sunny Mehta's plan will be — and if he's factoring a potential pursuit of Quinn into any near-term decisions.
Furthermore, Quinn is already 0-for-1 on contract extensions when heading into a season with a lot of rumors surrounding him. Even if he's 100% genuine in his willingness to stay in Minnesota, if he doesn't extend this offseason, things can change quickly.
What Mehta, Guerin, and everyone involved does know is that Jack's contract ends after 2029-30 and Luke's after 2031-32. If Quinn truly wants to play with his brothers, the quickest avenue is in New Jersey.
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While ex-Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald rightfully was dealt his fair share of scrutiny, some of his late decisions could potentially play a huge role in any future Devils' success:
His refusal to part with Luke could one day become the reason that the Devils end up landing Quinn. And his ability to shed Ondrej Palat's contract, without any salary retention, will add some much-needed flexibility for Mehta to work with this offseason.
Time will tell what direction the Quinn saga and direction of the Devils as a whole will head. In the meantime, unless proven otherwise, Devils fans should place their full trust in Mehta.
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