The Minnesota Wild have turned into one of the NHL’s biggest surprises, and they’ve done it while dealing with a road-heavy opening stretch, Brock Faber on injured reserve, and a pile of other injuries. Against that backdrop, they’re sitting atop the Western Conference, tied with the Carolina Hurricanes at 30 points in the East, and almost nobody saw this version of the team coming.
A lot of the names that powered Minnesota last season are either gone or unavailable. Mats Zuccarello, Vladimir Tarasenko, Marcus Johansson, and Brock Faber combined for 205 points a year ago. This season, the Wild have kept rolling anyway because the replacements have shown up.
Kirill Kaprizov is leading the league with 17 goals. Jesper Wallstedt has been better than advertised.
Maxim Shabanov has stepped into Zuccarello’s spot on the power play and already has eight goals, which is more than Matt Boldy and Joel Eriksson Ek. Danila Yurov keeps improving and is winning faceoffs.
The depth has held up.
But the real driver is Quinn Hughes. He’s eating huge minutes, running the power play, and sitting second on the team in scoring with 27 points, behind only Kaprizov’s 32. The trade Bill Guerin made to bring him in changed the Wild immediately.
The catch is that Hughes still hasn’t signed an extension. At this point, he’s become the most expensive rental in hockey.
Minnesota paid heavily to get him, sending out three of its own first-round prospects - Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, and Liam Ohgren - along with its 2026 first-round pick. Before that, Guerin had already spent a 2025 first-round pick and several other assets on David Jiricek, only for the Wild to later flip him.
Even earlier, he moved Marat Khusnutdinov and another pick for essentially nothing of lasting value. In a short stretch, Guerin has burned five first-round picks and a stack of other assets, and all he has to show for it is an unsigned Quinn Hughes.
That’s why few people expect Hughes to stay in Minnesota. The idea that he ends up in New Jersey with his brothers next season feels more believable by the day.
There is, though, one possible escape hatch.
Nikita Kucherov has said publicly that he wants out of Tampa Bay and has long wanted to play with his friend Kaprizov. A direct one-for-one swap with Hughes would be messy. Tampa Bay can’t easily fit Hughes’s contract without moving money out, and Hughes may not want to land in Florida when his brothers are in New Jersey.
A three-team deal involving the Wild, Lightning, and Devils makes more sense.
New Jersey would get Quinn Hughes, who would presumably sign so he can play with Jack and Luke. Minnesota would land Nikita Kucherov, who would sign an extension and give the Wild a true long-term star after all the draft capital they’ve already spent.
Tampa Bay would get cap relief and assets from New Jersey - likely Timo Meier, who would need to waive his no-move clause, plus a prospect or two such as Arseny Gritsyuk, Cody Glass, or young Lavr Gashilov - to help offset the loss of Kucherov and make room for Hughes. Even that might not be enough for a player of Hughes’s caliber, so a draft pick, maybe New Jersey’s 2027 first, would probably have to be part of it too.
It’s the kind of trade that could leave all three teams feeling like they won. Guerin would get a franchise scorer who actually stays after draining the prospect pool.
Julien BriseBois would move on from a superstar who has already asked out. And New Jersey would finally get the elite defenseman its young core has been waiting for.
If Tampa Bay doesn’t want to take on all three salaries, there are still ways to make the math work, including sending players to the minors or even moving Cody Glass for future picks.
In Other News...
Brock Faber Could Fix One Wild Problem Fans Know Too Well
Brock Fabers return is arriving at a useful moment for the Wild, who have managed to stay afloat without him but still know what his presence can mean on the back end. After missing seven weeks with a fractured skull, the young defenseman is expected to rejoin the lineup and give Minnesota a steadier look in its own zone, while also helping the club move the puck with more confidence.
The bigger ripple effect may come at the other end of the ice, where the Wild have leaned heavily on their top line to carry the offense. Getting Faber back should help spread some of that burden around, giving Minnesota another defenseman capable of pushing play and opening up more scoring chances for a team that could use a little more balance in how it generates goals. [Read more 🡒]
Bill Guerin Faces A Wild Decision That Could Define This Season
With the Wild tied for the top spot in the Western Conference, Quinn Hughes has quickly become one of the biggest reasons their season has taken this shape. The defenseman has fit in well and given Minnesota the kind of impact on the blue line that can change the outlook of a contender, which is why his contract situation is already looming as one of the more important questions on the teams horizon.
As the 2027 trade deadline gets closer, Bill Guerin may have to decide whether to ride this out for a playoff push or start bracing for what comes next if Hughes is not part of the long-term picture. Keeping a player like that without an extension carries obvious risk, and the Wild would have to weigh the value of a deep run against the possibility that a major roster shift could follow soon after. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Fast Start Is Testing Whether This Identity Can Really Last
The early-season version of the Wild has looked a lot like the team John Hynes keeps talking about, one built on fundamentals, attention to detail and a standard of play that does not leave much room for slippage. Minnesota has gotten balanced contributions at both ends, with Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy helping drive the offense while the group has also handled injuries without losing its structure. In recent wins over the San Jose Sharks and Montreal Canadiens, the results have reinforced the idea that this is not just a hot stretch, but a team leaning into a clear identity.
Hynes has made the consistency of the mindset almost as important as the standings, and that is what makes the next stretch worth watching. It is one thing to look disciplined when the legs are fresh and the game is going your way, and another to keep that edge when fatigue starts to creep in and opponents push back harder. For a Wild team that has started well, the real test is whether the habits that got it here can survive the grind that comes next. [Read more 🡒]