Quinn Hughes has become the center of NHL trade chatter. The Vancouver Canucks are enduring a brutal season, sitting last in the league, and the organization appears open to reshaping the roster. That combination has placed their captain under a microscope and made him the top name in the rumor mill.
Now, head coach Adam Foote is offering a candid look at what’s really happening inside the locker room and how the nonstop speculation surrounding Hughes is affecting the team.
Adam Foote Gives Candid Insight on Quinn Hughes Trade Buzz Inside the Canucks Room
Talking to reporters on Wednesday, Foote was asked how much the team is feeling the buzz around their captain’s trade rumors. He didn’t sugarcoat it: “I think when I’ve been around things like that, you’re not talking about it, you’re trying not to think about it, but it’s there.”
He admitted that players do their best to block it out. Some days it weighs on the room more than others, and he feels it as much as they do. He explained, “guys are human, they can feel it. It can affect, for sure, a locker room.”
Despite that, he credited his group for handling the situation professionally. They continue to show up, work hard, and focus on winning games, even though some players feel the pressure more than others. “Like I said, I give them a lot of credit for the way they’re handling it, coming to work, coming to, trying to win hockey games and doing their job,” he concluded.
Talk ramped up after reports surfaced that the Canucks and New Jersey Devils had discussed Hughes. His own admission that “things like that could happen” only intensified the conversation.
Hughes is currently in year five of his six-year, $47.1 million deal and becomes eligible for an extension on July 1. Despite the turmoil, he’s leading the team with 22 points in 25 games.
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His recent non-committal comments have added even more fuel to the fire. Asked about his future while attending a charity event for the Langley Food Bank, Hughes said:
“I mean, right now I’m focused on what I can control, we’re in the middle of the season and I can’t even sign even if I wanted to, I can’t re-sign till July 1,” he said. “So, right now there is nothing I can do. I’m trying to focus on what I can control and what I can do and that’s what I trying to do.”
How the Canucks handle the Quinn Hughes situation from here remains one of the biggest storylines to watch across the league.
