Sunday Overreactions: Wild need clarity from Hughes as soon as possible

Landing Quinn Hughes was nothing short of a home run for Bill Guerin.

Hughes helped the Minnesota Wild down the Dallas Stars in round one, an obstacle they hadn’t been able to overcome in more than a decade. The Wild defenceman instantly vaulted the team up the pecking order of the NHL. He made them more dynamic and harder to match up against. There was real belief the Wild could go on a Cup run.

That wasn’t in the cards, though. The Central division is a gauntlet and even though Minnesota put up a fight, the Colorado Avalanche were inevitable. There’s no shame in losing to the juggernaut Avs, but now the attention in Minnesota is going to shift from on the ice to off of it. That means Wild fans will be holding their breath on a Quinn Hughes contract extension.

Hughes gave Guerin no assurances he would stay long-term when he was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks, but there was more optimism Friday. The Wild blueliner acknowledged he would be open to extending in Minnesota, something he could do as early as July 1. The 26-year-old is a year away from free agency and could still opt to enter the season without an extension or ultimately test the market next summer.

That could mean some difficult decisions looming. I’m sure Guerin would rather still be watching his team play than starting to ponder what path to take with one of his star players, but perhaps the most important part of any general manager’s job is making hard decisions. Considering everything the Wild gave up to get him, it would be catastrophic to lose Hughes for nothing.

Minnesota may have to explore trading Quinn Hughes if he won’t sign an extension

There is still a chance this could all be very easy for Guerin. Hughes may have enjoyed his time in Minnesota so much that he’s ready and willing to commit to the team long term come July. If Hughes extends with the Wild — and factoring in all the other young talent the team boasts — Minnesota would be a Cup contender for years to come.

That would be an ideal scenario for Guerin, but it’s possible Hughes isn’t ready to ink a new deal just yet. He noted this week he’d be comfortable starting the season without an extension. It’s no secret the Hughes brothers want to play together and if that desire still holds true, it’s hard to see that happening in Minnesota. Both Jack and Luke Hughes are signed to long-term deals in New Jersey and Quinn could theoretically join them in a year. Newly hired Devils general manager Sunny Mehta is probably already salivating at the opportunity to make that happen.

That said, Hughes could sign a shorter-term extension for three years that would align with Jack’s contract, making them unrestricted free agents at the same time and allowing them to pick their next team together. If you listened to Hughes talk at the Wild’s end-of-season media availability, it sure didn’t sound like he was planning to walk out the door. But until pen is put to paper, nothing is done until it’s done.

Without a commitment from Hughes, Guerin would probably have little choice but to at least explore the trade market. Moving Hughes, who has no trade protection, this summer would fetch a much greater return than if he tried to do so midseason as a true rental. Sure, Guerin could be so bold as to just keep Hughes all year and push all his chips in the middle and go all in on a Cup pursuit next season. That would be hard to justify for the future of the franchise, though. If you know Hughes is likely leaving, the responsible thing would be to look at packages you could bring back to bolster your team, as opposed to risk watching him walk out the door for nothing.

Overreaction? – No

It would be a last resort for Guerin, but a Hughes trade could end up being critical for the team going forward if he isn’t willing to stay. We saw the Carolina Hurricanes make that difficult choice with Mikko Rantanen last season. Rantanen’s time was very short in Carolina, playing just 13 games with the team after a midseason trade from Colorado. Once the Canes realized he wouldn’t be re-signing, they flipped him for Logan Stankoven and a pair of first-round picks. They valued the trade return more than rolling the dice on one playoff run with Rantanen and I’d say that worked out pretty well.

We’ve also seen a disastrous recent example of losing an elite player for essentially nothing. The Toronto Maple Leafs watched Mitch Marner exit last summer and plummeted all the way to the bottom five this year. I don’t think it would hurt the Wild as much if Hughes left, but much like Marner, those players are nearly impossible to replace.

Minnesota also has some other holes on its roster that need addressing this summer. A lack of centre depth really stood out against the Avalanche, so they’ll likely need to add in that department. Maybe they can look at moving Filip Gustavsson to bring in a centre, now that Jesper Wallstedt has emerged as a quality number one, but goalie trades don’t always bring back the best returns. If Hughes is non-committal, he would easily net the most in a swap that could help the Wild now and in the future.

At the end of the day, the best situation for all parties would be to continue the relationship. The Wild will have a much better chance at competing with the Stars and Avalanche if Hughes is still around and he was a perfect fit for this team. Minnesota has a handful of high-quality forwards who know how to finish that Hughes can get the puck to, and they will only build on that chemistry going forward.

Guerin wasn’t afraid to give Kirill Kaprizov a massive payday and he may have to do the same to make sure Hughes sticks around. Whatever it takes.

Sabres should stick with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen the rest of the way

It’s been a rocky postseason for Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. He’s had a handful of inconsistent outings and that brutal goal he allowed from centre against the Boston Bruins was tough to watch. That’s why, after a rough outing against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5 on Thursday night, it wasn’t a surprise to see Alex Lyon start in a must-win affair on Saturday. Lyon quickly gave up three goals on four shots, though, and Luukkonen was pressed into action early on. He stopped all 17 shots he faced in relief and it was clear he gave the Sabres a lot of confidence as soon as he entered the crease. There should be no doubt that it’s Luukkonen’s net in Game 7.

Overreaction? – No

Lyon has done an admirable job coming to the Sabres' rescue during these playoffs, but the moment looked too big for him Saturday night. He was overwhelmed early and Buffalo ended up in a hole that it nearly couldn’t dig itself out of. The stage is only going to be bigger in Game 7 and Luukkonen is Buffalo’s number one goalie, so they should give him the crease and hope he can build off Saturday’s strong performance. Jakub Dobes has been excellent after a loss in this postseason and the Sabres will likely need a great effort from Luukkonen to counteract that if they hope to move on to the Eastern Conference Final. Buffalo has tried to ride the hot hand in net all postseason and right now that’s Luukkonen.

Kris Knoblauch deserves most of the blame for Oilers' shortcomings this season

Once the news got out that the Edmonton Oilers requested permission to speak to Bruce Cassidy, the writing was on the wall for Kris Knoblauch. The Oilers made the inevitable official on Thursday when Knoblauch was let go, as the head coach took the fall for Edmonton bowing out of the first round. It was a major step back for the Oilers, who went to back-to-back Cup finals and had huge expectations coming into 2025-26. Knoblauch failed to get the Oilers playing with any consistency this season and they squandered a very friendly path in the postseason through the mediocre Pacific division. It was clear Knoblauch should’ve been able to get more out of this roster and Edmonton’s disappointing season rests mostly on his shoulders.

Overreaction? – Yes

Oilers management needs to accept the bulk of the blame here. Stan Bowman failed to fix the goaltending despite trading for Tristan Jarry and the Oilers ended up having to turn to Connor Ingram when Jarry couldn’t handle the job. Their numbers between the pipes in the playoffs were worse than their previous two postseasons.

Edmonton also showed its lack of depth this spring, too. Not keeping Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg was a massive mistake and the Oilers failed to replace other key contributors as well. Losing Connor Brown, Corey Perry and Viktor Arvidsson really stung, as players like Trent Frederic failed to make an impact. The Oilers signed Frederic to a long-term deal and he managed just four goals in 74 games this season.

If the Oilers don’t find a way to surround Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard with more talent and fix the goaltending, don’t expect the new head coach to get better results than Knoblauch.

Maple Leafs should focus on a young up-and-coming coach for their next hire

John Chayka wasted little time making his first big move as the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs when he fired Craig Berube on Wednesday. The Leafs will now begin the search for a new head coach and there is no shortage of good candidates available. One of the biggest names out there is Bruce Cassidy, who has taken two different teams to the finals and owns a Stanley Cup ring from only a few years ago. That said, if the Leafs are retooling or possibly eventually rebuilding, would it make more sense to lock in on some younger options that may be a first-time coach? We’ve seen the likes of Spencer Carbery and Dan Muse jump in recently and have decent success with the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins, respectively. Given Berube was an older veteran coach, the Leafs could look to move away from that to re-energize the organization.

Overreaction? – Yes

While I do think it could be a great idea to bring in a younger coach with fresh ideas, it shouldn’t be the be-all and end-all of the search. The likes of Manny Malhotra and David Carle, for example, would be great options and coaches the Leafs should certainly be looking into; they also shouldn’t dismiss a more veteran option if they’re the best fit. Cassidy’s teams have always played with great defensive structure, something the Leafs desperately need, but he’s also a thoughtful and insightful guy who’s open to new ideas. Someone like Jay Woodcroft, who coached parts of three seasons with the Edmonton Oilers and is a current Anaheim Ducks assistant, is also a more experienced name who deserves consideration.

The reality is that a first-time coach very well may be the best option for the Leafs, but focusing on a specific type of bench boss right now would be premature. Cast a wide net and talk to a bunch of options and pick the one that’s the best fit, no matter their age or past experience.

Blue Jackets will regret Charlie Coyle extension

Cross another UFA off the list. The Columbus Blue Jackets inked Charlie Coyle to a six-year, $36M extension earlier this week, giving the veteran a big payday for a strong season. Coyle finished with 58 points in 2025-26, the second-best statistical season of his career at age 34. There was a good chance Coyle would’ve been the top free agent centre available if he hit the market on July 1st, but instead, he’ll likely finish his career as a Blue Jacket. On the surface, it’s not a bad number for Coyle, especially with the cap going up, but this deal will take him to the age of 40. It’s very possible this contract is going to age poorly and won’t be ideal for the Blue Jackets on the back end of the deal.

Overreaction? – No

From an offensive perspective, it’s going to be hard for Coyle to keep up this pace throughout the course of this pact. This past campaign was only the second time Coyle reached the 20-goal mark and only the third time he hit 50 points. To expect that Coyle is going to continue to be as productive as he was this year well into his thirties is a big ask. What the Blue Jackets have to hope for is that Coyle continues to be a strong defensive presence, but even that will be challenging if his skating drops off over the next few seasons.

The cap is likely going to continue to rise, which could make Coyle’s deal more palatable, though it’s still going to be a tough one to offload in a few years if things aren’t working out. Columbus will be crossing its fingers they get the most out of Coyle over the next few seasons and has a handful of playoff runs while he’s still in top form.