Quinn Hughes still doesn't have a new deal with the Minnesota Wild, and insiders are starting to get nervous about the timeline.
Elliotte Friedman addressed the situation Monday night on NHL Tonight, saying he will "worry about this if it's not done at the start of the season."
That's about as direct as it gets from Friedman on a contract that hasn't been finalized.
Hughes posted 76 points in 74 games this past season with Minnesota, tallying 7 goals and 69 assists.
He was even better once the games mattered more, putting up 15 points in 11 playoff games including 4 goals.
His current cap hit sits at $7,850,000, a number that looks like a steal given his production on the back end.
The Wild finished the regular season 46-24-12, good for 104 points and the 7th overall spot in the league.
The Wild's cap sheet faces a Quinn Hughes reckoning
Bill Guerin has built a contender around pieces like Kirill Kaprizov, Matthew Boldy and Brock Faber, and Hughes is the engine that makes the blue line work.
Losing him to term uncertainty heading into training camp would be a self-inflicted wound for a team that just won 46 games.
Coach John Hynes has leaned on Hughes in every situation, power play included, where the defenseman piled up 32 assists.
Comparisons get thrown around loosely in hockey, but Hughes running Minnesota's back end without a long-term deal is like building a house and delaying the roof. Everything else can look finished and it still doesn't hold up.
Friedman's comment wasn't a five-alarm fire. It was a pointed reminder that this needs to get sorted before puck drop.
The Wild have the horses to contend again after a 6-4-0 stretch over their last 10 games and a playoff run that pushed into a second-round fight with Colorado.
None of that matters much if the top defenseman in the locker room is playing out a contract year with no resolution in sight.
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Guerin has leverage, cap space and a winning roster. What he doesn't have yet is Hughes' signature, and that clock is the only stat that matters right now.
Should the Wild be worried if Quinn Hughes isn't signed before training camp opens?
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