Talk about a wild week, in more than one way. Typically, there’s a news bomb on Friday night that has the hockey world in shock. This week, there were two big moves, one of which was the biggest blockbuster in recent memory, with Quinn Hughes going from the Vancouver Canucks to the Minnesota Wild for four pieces. It’s what leads this week’s column.
The Starting Lineup:
- 8 Thoughts From The Quinn Hughes to Minnesota Wild trade.
- Does the Stuart Skinner and Tristan Jarry trade open the door for more moves?
- Has the head coaching hot seat cooled?
- Checking in on the AHL’s Pacific Division.
- Quick Hits: Italian Ice, Overtime & more.
The Hughes trade has been dissected, graded, and looked at enough. But now that it’s a few days removed, it’s worth looking at the other factors and the big ideas surrounding the trade. So, since this piece is long enough, let’s dive right in.
Canucks Trade Hughes to Wild: 8 Thoughts on the Deal
At this point, everyone has seen the news and is over the shock of it all. The blockbuster happened as a classic Friday night news bomb, and we’re a few days removed from it all. It’s time to figure out what this means for the Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks, and the NHL as a whole.
1. Jim Rutherford Operates on his Timeline, For Better or Worse
This trade is confirmation that Canucks president and long-time general manager (GM) around the league, Jim Rutherford, doesn’t wait around to make a deal. When he sees an offer on the table, he’s quick to pull the trigger. It happened with Bo Horvat as he sent the elite center to the New York Islanders during the 2023 All-Star Break. It happened last season as well with JT Miller, as Rutherford moved him to the New York Rangers ahead of the Four Nations Faceoff break.
Now, he’s trading Hughes well before he has to. Rutherford could have waited until the trade deadline or even the next trade deadline and instead made the move now. There’s plenty of debate about whether this philosophy is better or worse. The argument for making the trade early is that the value of the player goes down the moment they are put on the trade block. In this case, the Wild have two seasons to make a run at the Cup with Hughes and are willing to offer more because of it. The downside of course is that he’s leaving other offers off the table and instead pouncing on the earliest deal and not the best per se (who knows whether other teams would up the ante).
Ultimately, this is the tendency of Rutherford. What this means moving forward is that he won’t wait on other deals earlier, and the Canucks have other players to trade. So, keep a close eye on them.
2. Canucks Should Rebuild But Probably Will Retool
Trading Hughes is an indication and the green light to tear it down. The Canucks have a lot of veterans and not many future assets but their veterans are tradeable. They can tear things down the rest of this season and head into a rebuild.
The problem is that Rutherford can look at this team and easily talk himself into a retool. Assuming the Canucks keep Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser while maintaining the players with multiple years left on their deals, they can add a few pieces and be a borderline playoff team.
The Canucks got a lot of young NHLers in the return, notably Marco Rossi and Zeev Buium. Both players can make an immediate impact (Buium scored a goal and added an assist in his first game with his new team). Then there’s the first round pick the Canucks received which is fascinating since Rutherford can keep it to help the prospect pool but knowing his tendencies, he’ll flip it for a player. It’s what happened with Filip Hronek and Marcus Pettersson as Rutherford got another pick in trades and flipped them for both. It’s why fans don’t trust the long-time GM with a rebuild.
3. Canucks Front Office Has the Rest of This Season to Figure It Out
The Canucks fanbase was willing to give Rutherford and GM Patrick Allvin a chance to build a contender. Patience is running low with this regime, especially since they’ve moved on from Horvat, Miller, and Hughes, the best defenseman in the team’s history, but don’t have a lot to build around now. This tenure has resulted in only one playoff appearance in four seasons, and even that season is seen as a disappointment (they won the Pacific Division but lost in the Second Round).
The front office will have a few months to get this team back on track. That doesn’t mean the Canucks are pushing for a playoff spot. What it means is that there are enough prospects and young players (plus a top-five pick) to confidently say that this team can eventually compete for a Cup. It might mean trading Kiefer Sherwood, Conor Garland, and Hronek but if it means a good rebuild is in place, Rutherford and Allvin will be trusted with it.
4. How The Wild Will Build in Win-Now Mode
It’s no secret that the Wild are going all-in, not just this season but next season as well. It’s the message they sent the moment GM Bill Guerin picked up the phone while making meatballs (which, as an aside, he shouldn’t be wearing latex gloves to do so). The Wild must keep adding to prove capable of making a run at the Cup.
The Wild have plenty of star power. Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy are two of the best wingers in the game, and with Hughes, they have a defenseman to open things up. What they lack are centers. Up the middle, they have Joel Eriksson Ek, Ryan Hartman, Danila Yurov, and take your pick on the fourth line. So, expect Guerin to target the position at the trade deadline and in the offseason as well.
5. The Wild Core Stacks Up Against Any
The truth is that the Wild will face the Colorado Avalanche or the Dallas Stars in the First Round and possibly the Second Round in their next two playoff runs. Comparing the four or five best players on those teams to the Wild, they stack up fairly well.
Top Five Avalanche Skaters (Give or Take): Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Martin Necas, Devon Toews, Arturri Lehkonen
Top Five Stars Skaters: Mikko Rantanen, Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston, Miro Heiskanen, Thomas Harley
Top Five Wild Skaters: Kirill Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, Matt Boldy, Brock Faber, Joel Eriksson Ek
Throw in the goaltending, and the Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt duo can go head to head with Scott Wedgewood and MacKenzie Blackwood of the Avalanche or Jake Oettinger of the Stars.
The question is whether the Wild have the depth to compete with the Avalanche or Stars. The second and third lines are where these games will be decided, and the Wild don’t have those players. At least not yet. Guerin will address that knowing he has a core good enough to win it all.
6. Wild Have a Pivot if They Need
The instant reaction to this trade is that the Wild won the deal and everything will work out. There’s always a chance that the deal flops in their face. Injuries or other issues can come up, and the Wild can stumble into the playoffs. If that happens and they get off to a slow start in 2026-27, then they must pivot.
And the good news is that Guerin can always trade Hughes next season to get a great haul. The Wild won’t get four pieces back but still enough to retool on the fly. Rantanen was traded twice in a month’s span, and the Carolina Hurricanes still got a respectable return at the trade deadline for him. The Wild can use the exit ramp if they must.
7. The First Wave of Trades is Here, The Second and Third Aren’t Far Behind
Last season had two “trade deadlines” or two points in the season when the big moves were made. The first came before the Four Nations Faceoff with the first Rantanen blockbuster and the JT Miller deal. Then there was the normal trade deadline while Rantanen went to the Stars and Brad Marchand was sent in the final seconds to the Florida Panthers.
This season will have three waves. It looks that way early on. This is the first wave of trades, with a few teams looking to get their moves done before the holiday break. Then there will be another wave before the Olympics, followed by the normal deadline in March. Rutherford isn’t the only GM who wants to get his work done early, so expect a few deals earlier than expected.
Some might think that the best trade is in the rearview mirror. It’s hard to top the Hughes blockbuster. That said, there are more trades in store, and expect a thrilling trade deadline as well.
8. The Trade Frenzy is the New Free Agency Frenzy
This is something that’s been trending since the offseason. With the salary cap going up and teams having the money to keep pending free agents, they aren’t letting great players walk out the door anymore. Everyone thought the 2026 free agency class, headlined by Connor McDavid, would be incredible, and now, it looks lackluster.
So, all the action instead will shift towards the trades. With a rising salary cap, teams have the space to take on long-term contracts, even the bad ones. Steven Stamkos can go to a contender if they want to take on the $8 million average annual value (AAV) attached to it. Likewise, the Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau, or MacKenzie Weegar deals are manageable with more money on the books. Circling back to the Canucks, the Pettersson contract, while expensive, is something a contender can look to take on.
The Jarry-Skinner Swap Opens The Door for More Trades
There’s a common hockey cliche that starting goaltenders aren’t traded midseason. The position is tough to predict, and a move can easily backfire. Usually, goaltenders are dealt in the offseason, and the Colorado Avalanche last season were the expectation and not the rule.
They might have started the trade since they realized early on that their goaltending tandem wouldn’t work out with a Cup-caliber team. The Avalanche traded Alexandar Georgiev to the San Jose Sharks for MacKenzie Blackwood while adding Scott Wedgewood in exchange for Justus Annunen. The move turned a weakness into a strength.
The Avalanche might have started a trend but the Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins are confirmation. If a team needs to address goaltending with a win-now roster, they will be willing to do so. There’s plenty of talk about whether Tristan Jarry is an upgrade over Stuart Skinner but in the big picture, the Oilers had to make a change, and they did.
This is just the start. There are a handful of teams in the Cup conversation, or they have rosters built for a run but don’t have the goaltending. Between the Columbus Blue Jackets, Montreal Canadiens, Utah Mammoth, and Vegas Golden Knights, one of those teams will be in a playoff position at the trade deadline while lacking reliable goaltending. There’s also always a chance that the Carolina Hurricanes have goaltending woes, even though this season looks like one of the rare ones where they have stability at the position. These teams will make a move or at least expect them to do so.
Related: Oilers Might Benefit From Jarry but Skinner Doesn’t Fix Penguins
The team to keep an eye on is the Buffalo Sabres. They have three goaltenders on their roster and can’t send any of them down to the American Hockey League (AHL) without them getting claimed by another team. On top of that, Devon Levi is having a great season in the AHL. So, they can flip a goaltender.
Then there are the St. Louis Blues, who don’t have a surplus but they have Jordan Binnington. Binnington is having a rough season but is a wild card since he’s proved he can put together a great game if needed, and teams will want his “clutch” performances for a playoff run. The Blues want him around for a playoff run. The problem is that they are nowhere close to one. So, trading him for a team willing to spend big will help them in the big picture.
Has the Hot Seat Cooled? Let’s Look at Why Head Coaches Have Longer Leashes This Season
The past two seasons saw coaching changes left and right, even early on in the season. It seemed like a trend that was only going to build moving forward. Last season, the Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, and St. Louis Blues all made midseason changes while the Philadelphia Flyers fired John Tortorella after the trade deadline.
This season, there’s less pressure, at least for now. With the holiday break, there has yet to be a coaching change, and there isn’t one on the horizon either (even with the suspects on the hot seat). There are a few reasons for the hot seat behind the bench suddenly cooling off.
The most obvious is the parity. There aren’t as many bottom feeders in the NHL, and with everyone bunched up together in the standings, it’s hard to make a change when a winning streak puts anyone near the top of the division. Even the Buffalo Sabres, who are in last place in the Eastern Conference and in a typical season would make a coaching change, are only seven points out of a wild card spot.
It’s also worth adding that all the turnover in recent seasons is catching up to teams. Take the Blues, for example, who are in a spot in the standings to make a coaching change but have already made two in the past two seasons. More importantly, they have a reliable coach to lead them with Jim Montgomery behind the bench. Sure, it’s not out of the realm to see one-and-done coaches but this time around, GMs are more patient.
That leads to the other factor. Owners are impatient and want to see their teams win but they are also cheap or have a willingness to cut corners. They’ll fire on head coach and keep them on the books but won’t pay three when only one is employed. With all the firings in recent years, this season is when things are starting to level out.
It doesn’t mean that coaching changes are a thing of the past. Last offseason saw nine teams hire a coach. While it’s unlikely to see the number that high, there will be plenty of turnover in the offseason, especially once the contenders start to separate themselves from the pack.
AHL’s Pacific Division Check-In
Most of the AHL coverage at Hockey Hot Stove is centered around the Eastern Conference and more specifically, the Atlantic Division. It makes sense since yours truly is based out of the Atlantic Division area and driving distance to four teams who often play eachother (and not the teams out west).
So, this week’s column is devoted to the teams out west. The Pacific Division is a fun one and with some fascinating stories, including one that has AHL fans everywhere mesmerized. Let’s start with that team that, surprisingly, went from Calder Cup champ to the worst team in the division.
Abbotsford Canucks
The Canucks won the Calder Cup in 2025 and looked like a team on the rise. They have a 6-15-1-3 record, which is the worst in the division and third-worst in the AHL.
Their collapse speaks to the turnover that happens in the AHL. They lost a lot of talent in the offseason, including the Calder Cup Playoffs MVP and starting goaltender Arturs Silovs, who is part of the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending unit now. Max Sasson was the only player to start for the Canucks in Game 6 of the Final and the opening night game.
The turnover didn’t help, and the injuries made things worse. Sure, the injury bug hits teams around the AHL but head coach Manny Malhotra has clawed to ice a competitive roster (at least Malhotra can look forward to his son being a top pick in the draft and maybe the player who saves the Canucks). Six goaltenders have started for them so far this season, including CJ Kier, who was an EBUG against the Colorado Eagles.
Tucson Roadrunners
It’s a slight surprise to see the Roadrunners struggling when their NHL team, the Utah Mammoth, is known for having a great prospect pool. This season, the talent drain is getting to them. Take Daniil But, a forward with nine goals and eight assists, who was a key part of the offense but was called up, and the AHL team is struggling to replace him.
Henderson Silver Knights
The Silver Knights aren’t a good team but they are a fun one. They average 3.7 goals per game thanks to a forward trio of Tanner Laczynski, Rafael Lavoie, and Jonas Rondbjerg leading them. The defense, meanwhile, is what’s let them down as they allow 3.2 goals per game and, like the Vegas Golden Knights, have gone through a surplus of goaltenders.
San Diego Gulls
The Gulls are one of the few teams in the division with a great defense, allowing under 2.7 goals per game. It helps when Ville Husso is part of the group (at least when the Anaheim Ducks are healthy) but the defense has a few regulars, including rookie Stian Solberg. Speaking of rookies, the Ducks have a lot of young players making a big impact on their NHL roster but might have another waiting in the wings as 24-year-old center Tim Washe has 11 goals and eight assists in 23 games.
Bakersfield Condors
The Condors have been a pleasant surprise on offense with a talented forward group. Quinn Hutson has 16 goals and 12 assists in 24 games and joins Isaac Howard and Rhett Pitlick as the young forwards who can make a strong case to join the Edmonton Oilers for a Cup run. Although admittedly, having these skaters develop in the AHL and make a Calder Cup run might help the Oilers in the long run, knowing they need young reinforcements for an aging team.
Calgary Wranglers
It turns out that scoring is an organizational issue. The Wranglers, like the Calgary Flames, have struggled on offense, averaging only 2.8 goals per game. Unlike the Flames, they don’t have the elite goaltending to make up for it. So, if there’s any team that can regress in the second half, they are the one to watch.
Coachella Valley Firebirds
The Firebirds entered the league on fire as one of the best teams. In 2023 and 2024, they took the Hershey Bears the distance and nearly won the Calder Cup. Now, (as the kids say) they are mid. So it goes in a league where change is commonplace.
Ontario Reign
The Reign, fittingly, has a Lord leading them. All jokes aside, Andrew Lord has done a great job in his first season behind the bench, getting the team to buy in and play a balanced game. It’s allowed the offense to hit its stride with a forward unit that comes at teams in waves, averaging 3.5 goals per game with Nikita Alexandrov, Cole Guttman, and Glenn Gawdin leading them (while Taylor Ward adds scoring to the second line).
What separates the Reign from the other teams in their division is their ability to defend. They allow only 2.8 goals per game thanks to their forwards’ forechecking and the team’s buy-in to defend in their end. The Reign look like one of the teams out west capable of winning the Calder Cup as they check off all the boxes.
San Jose Barracuda
The trio of elite teams in the Pacific Division includes the Barracuda, the San Jose Sharks affiliate and beneficiary of a rebuild. The rookie duo of Igor Chernyshov and Quinton Musty is one to watch as they’ve combined for 18 goals and 25 assists this season and look poised to add more youth to the Sharks down the road (as though they don’t have enough young talent already).
Colorado Eagles
If there’s one team that views this season as a Calder Cup or bust, it’s the Eagles. Last season, they had the best record in the Pacific Division and were stunned by their upset loss to the Canucks. This time around, they are a team on a mission.
The veterans are back and ready to lead this team on a deep playoff run. TJ Tynan, Jayson Megna, and Jacob MacDonald lead the group, and a veteran-heavy roster is bac,k knowing what it takes to get over the hump. The difference with the Eagles is that they have a suffocating defense, allowing only 2.3 goals per game, with rookie goaltender Isak Posch being the standout.
The 23-year-old is kicking off his AHL tenure running with a .919 save percentage (SV%) and a 2.01 goals-against average (GAA) while putting together two shutouts. If the Eagles get into a goaltending duo in the playoffs, like they did last year, they’ll have the advantage this time around.
Two Quick Pacific Division Notes
An interesting takeaway from the division is how many teams have great offenses, or average over 3.0 goals per game, so far. Only two of the 10 teams are below that mark, which is a stark contrast to the other divisions. There are plenty of theories why this is the case but it’s hard to pinpoint one as the reason for the influx in scoring.
The other note is that when every Pacific Division writer was asked which team would give them the most problems down the road, they all pointed to the Eagles and the Reign. They are playing like the two best teams in the division and look like the Calder Cup hopefuls so far (the recent mini-series where the two teams split the set reflects the battles that they’ve had and will likely have in a playoff series).
Quick Hits: Olympic Ice Trouble, Overtimes & More
The Olympic arena and ice problems are ones that just won’t go away. The latest news is that the arenas will be smaller than Olympic and even NHL standards. It’s one thing to wonder whether the games will be played altogether and another to wonder how the compact space will impact the game.
For old-time hockey fans, this brings back some NHL nostalgia. Back in the 1970s and even the 1980s, every arena had an uncanny uniqueness to it. The Aud in Buffalo and Boston Gardens had notably smaller rinks, and the teams’ strengths reflected that. The rink dimensions were different, and it’s debatable whether that was better for the game (on one of the preseason episodes of Ice Time, Bill Meltzer joined to talk about how it’s something we miss about the game).
Ice surfaces are still impacted depending on the arena. The weather outside impacts the speed of the game, as humidity and heat can slow things down. Likewise, other events and older rinks have worse ice than newer state-of-the-art arenas. If teams could have different dimensions, it would give hockey a baseball-like feel where every home venue is unique (although it’s hard to see the NHL wanting that to be the case).
- This Saturday, five of the 13 games went into overtime. It helps explain why the standings are clustered, and there aren’t many teams pulling away from the group.
- Speaking of overtime, the Penguins have lost back-to-back games in overtime despite boasting comfortable leads to the San Jose Sharks (5-1 after the second period) and the Utah Mammoth (3-0 after one).
- The Penguins are clinging to the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference thanks to two overtime losses in a row and nine on the season. The Philadelphia Flyers have three overtime losses in a row, and they have the top wild card spot because of it. They
- With their comeback win, the Sharks are in a wild card spot in the Western Conference. They’ve surprised everyone this season, and Macklin Celebrini will be a Hart Trophy finalist if the team ends up sneaking into the playoffs.
- The Florida Panthers had the worst record in the Eastern Conference a few weeks back. With four wins in their last five games, they are only three points out of a wild card spot, which again speaks to the parity in the NHL this season.
