By Mikki Tuohy -
As all eyes around the league focus on the Minnesota Wild with their blockbuster trade, one thing is for sure: Quinn Hughes is no longer the lone Ghostbuster on his team. Hockey demons are real, and only a handful of players are the chosen ones to deal with them.
Hockey demons come for those with a punchable face and the spirit of an eldest daughter. They torment the dark, handsome, quiet players of a team, targeting the best of the best who don’t think that they are. The quieter players who don’t “do” social media and usually give bland answers to interview questions.
Quinn Hughes has a reputation for looking like three ghosts have visited him during his pre-game nap. Instead of a resting b**** face, he is plagued with a resting distressed face.
Skating 30 minutes a night for the Vancouver Canucks has not helped that situation. Hughes has seemingly done everything in his power to push the Canucks to be their best, but there is only so much one lone player can do, even if they are one of the best players in the league.
Now, Hughes has been traded to a team with another player who is constantly fighting hockey demons: Joel Eriksson Ek. While Quinn’s demons seem a bit more metaphorical and conceptual, Ek is constantly being given penalties for being punched in the face or cross-checked in the face. Will Quinn’s ghostbusting powers somehow help Ek’s constant state of being picked on? It would be nice, that’s for sure.
Of course, we’re no insiders to Quinn’s state of mind or outlook on hockey. But it’s no secret that he spends a lot of time looking like he was sentenced to be a top defenseman in some cosmic court of law for a crime he committed in a past life.
One thing is for sure: the Wild seems to have a plethora of golden retriever types who can help Quinn rediscover his love for hockey. Matt Boldy’s serious demeanor has been complemented by Brock Faber’s silly personality, earning them the combined nickname of Foldy. Could Quinn find a similar friendship here?
One nice thing about the Minnesota Wild is their social media presence. Most of the players are more than willing to be in silly videos, and even those who aren’t as into it still appear regularly.
For example, Kirill Kaprizov is not a social media darling, but he is still willingly pulled into a funny video here or there to help the team. When someone is comfortable with their team and their surroundings, they can loosen up. It would be great to see Quinn able to loosen up and show another side of his personality.
On the other hand, he’s coming from a highly public leadership role in the Canadian market. He’s been scrutinized from Day 1, and it only became worse when he donned the C. He’s moving to a similarly hockey-crazy market, but this time he doesn’t have the added weight of wearing a letter. Quinn can maintain a leadership presence in the locker room while focusing on his gameplay and not constantly working to right a sinking ship, as he was in Vancouver.
Could we see more smiles from Quinn in Minnesota? Maybe, and wouldn’t it be an absolute treat!
But maybe that’s his face, and we’ll need to accept it, just like we’ve accepted Ek’s punchable face. No matter what, Minnesota fans are waiting to welcome Quinn with open arms for the next season and a half and, when he falls in love with this state like we all have, eight years beyond that. He can battle the hockey demons alongside the Minnesota Wild while we do everything we can to show him how excited we all are to have him.
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