Quinn Hughes played 29:54 for the Wild in Utah last night. A day later, Bill Guerin says nobody has talked extension with him in a long time.
The Wild GM went on WCCO Radio and didn't exactly sound like a man refreshing his inbox. “What am I gonna do? Go, ‘Please, please, please, please?'”
Guerin said he hasn't spoken with the defenseman or his agent “in a long time.” And the situation, by his account, isn't keeping him awake at night.
Bold stance. Risky, too, considering the blue liner just set up two power-play goals in a 3-1 win over Utah.
Hughes has 18 points this season, and 15 of them are assists. Only Kirill Kaprizov has more on this roster.
The Wild sit first in the Central at 9-3-2. They've won three straight and carry a +13 goal differential.
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Kirill Kaprizov money changes the math on the Wild blue line
Hughes carries a $7,850,000 cap hit right now. Kaprizov sits at $17,000,000, the second-highest number in the league.
That gap matters. Whatever the next deal looks like, it lands on a cap sheet already built around one massive contract up front.
Jared Spurgeon is 36 and still counts $7,575,000 against the cap. Jonas Brodin is at $6,000,000. Minnesota's back end is expensive, and it isn't getting younger.
The only defenseman in that group who drives the power play is No. 43. He has 8 power-play points, with 2 of them goals.
And this is where Guerin misplays it. Playing hard to get works fine at a used car lot. It reads differently when the other guy runs your breakout.
Nobody expects a GM to grovel on the radio. But a 27-year-old with 6 points in his last 5 games deserves more than a public eye roll from his own front office.
Hughes has also shown up in the big moments, with 2 game-winning goals and a +8 rating.
John Hynes already has Nick Foligno and Marcus Foligno on IR. The head coach doesn't need a contract storyline hanging over his top pairing during a winning stretch.
The Islanders visit Thursday night. Expect the contract question in the locker room afterward, whether or not Guerin has dialed the agent by then.
Should Bill Guerin be worried that he hasn't talked extension with Quinn Hughes in a long time?
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