Former Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet doesn't hold back addressing Quinn Hughes being traded
Former Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet has reacted to the news that the team's now-ex captain Quinn Hughes, who he was close with, was traded to the Minnesota Wild.
The Vancouver Canucks completed a shocking move on Friday night, as Jim Rutherford worked out a deal with Minnesota to send Quinn Hughes to the Wild in exchange for a package headlined by Marco Rossi and Zeev Buium.
"We would like to thank Quinn for his time with the Vancouver Canucks. Quinn is a great person, a great player, and one of the greatest Canucks of all time." Jim Rutherford said in a statement following the trade.
Moving on from a player like Quinn Hughes is never easy to do for one reason - he's one of the greatest players in franchise history, setting the record for most points by a blueliner, and in recent days, many former and current Vancouver Canucks players & staff have given their thoughts on the trade, most recently Rick Tocchet.
Rick Tocchet reacts to Vancouver Canucks' decision to trade Quinn Hughes
During an appearance on Donnie & Dhali on Monday, former Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet, who is now with the Philadelphia Flyers, spoke about the team trading away Quinn Hughes and believes that in the long run, it's going to benefit both parties.
"Yeah, first of all I think a lot of teams wanted the guy. The guy is an incredible human being, an incredible kid to coach. He changes analytics for your team. If you're an average rush team or you're an average possession team, if you acquire him, you all of a sudden become one of the top teams. So that's what he can do. The Makar's. That's why there's a lot of noise around, he's such a great player and the guy wants to win. He loves the U.S., to play for the U.S. Olympic team, that's a big thing for him too. So there's a lot of moving parts and it's just unfortunate but I think both parties are going to win on this, I really do." Tocchet said.
Tocchet was also asked if Quinn Hughes' future in Vancouver played a role in him ultimately leaving the Canucks at the end of the 2024-25 season and while he said there wasn't one specific reason that led to his departure, he did consider all factors before parting ways to join the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Vancouver Canucks organization has seen a lot of change in 2025 from J.T. Miller's trade to the New York Rangers, Rick Tocchet leaving to join the Philadelphia Flyers, as well as Quinn Hughes being dealt to the Minnesota Wild and given the state of the organization and the direction they're heading, it looks like we're in for a very busy 2026 as well.
Previously on Vancouver Hockey Daily
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 16|2178 ANSWERS Former Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet doesn't hold back addressing Quinn Hughes being traded Do you think Rick Tocchet and the Philadelphia Flyers had a legit chance at landing Quinn Hughes before Friday's trade? | ||
| Yes | 223 | 10.2 % |
| No | 1955 | 89.8 % |
| List of polls | ||