{"id":538531,"date":"2026-04-03T14:21:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T14:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/538531\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T14:21:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T14:21:13","slug":"quinn-hughes-faces-backlash-over-remarks-on-ex-canucks-teammates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/538531\/","title":{"rendered":"Quinn Hughes faces backlash over remarks on ex-Canucks teammates"},"content":{"rendered":"

Quinn Hughes<\/a> found himself at the center of controversy ahead of his first game against the Vancouver Canucks<\/a> since his blockbuster move to the Minnesota Wild<\/a>. What began as a routine media session soon turned into a talking point across the NHL<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Hughes tried to downplay the moment, saying the reunion would not feel real until puck drop. He also noted that facing former teammates is something he has handled before. However, one comment stood out and drew immediate reaction.<\/p>\n

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\u201cHonestly, I don\u2019t even really know a lot of their guys,\u201d Hughes said, referencing the current Canucks roster.<\/p>\n

MORE: Maple Leafs\u2019 $92M star gives honest take on his future in Toronto<\/a><\/p>\n

While he pointed out roster turnover since his departure, the remark did not sit well with some analysts.<\/p>\n

NHL analyst Wyatt Arndt took to social media, saying, \u201cTwo years ago I would have never imagined we\u2019d have Quinn Hughes trying to track down Mark Messier as most disliked ex-captain lol.\u201d The comparison carries weight, given Messier\u2019s controversial tenure with the franchise.<\/p>\n

Hockey writer Adam Kierszenblat also criticized Hughes\u2019 statement, arguing it reflected poorly on a former captain. He later clarified that Hughes had actually played with the majority of the current roster.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPlayers on the #Canucks active roster that Hughes has played with: 20 Players on the Canucks active roster that Hughes has not play with: 4,\u201d Kierszenblat said.<\/p>\n

The backlash shows the emotional connection between Vancouver fans and their former leaders. Captains are often seen as cultural anchors, and any perceived disconnect can quickly become a flashpoint.<\/p>\n

Quinn Hughes and the Wild are going into the NHL playoffs<\/p>\n

On the ice, Hughes continues to perform at an elite level and has helped his new team secure a playoff spot. He recorded an assist in a 5-2 win over Vancouver and remains one of the league\u2019s top offensive defensemen this season.<\/p>\n

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MORE: Senators coach brushes off Tkachuk Family\u2019s criticism over Brady Tkachuk\u2019s usage<\/a><\/p>\n

So far this season, Hughes has registered 73 points in 69 games and has recently played his 500th NHL game.<\/p>\n

Still, the focus has temporarily moved from his play to his words. As the Wild push toward the playoffs, Hughes now faces added scrutiny every time he speaks about his former team.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Quinn Hughes found himself at the center of controversy ahead of his first game against the Vancouver Canucks…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":538532,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5118],"tags":[536,5,1582,161,38,5280,4,1496,66,27,162],"class_list":{"0":"post-538531","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-wild","8":"tag-brady-tkachuk","9":"tag-hockey","10":"tag-mark-messier","11":"tag-minnesota","12":"tag-minnesota-wild","13":"tag-minnesotawild","14":"tag-nhl","15":"tag-quinn-hughes","16":"tag-toronto","17":"tag-vancouver-canucks","18":"tag-wild"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116341223265575617","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/538531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=538531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/538531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/538532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=538531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=538531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=538531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}