Hughes trade paying off early for Wild

There's a high vibe in Minnesota—sorry, “Minnesota.”

Because the defender Quinn Hughes After shockingly landing in the Hockey State last week, the Wild went crazy. They are 3-0 with Hughes in the lineup and have outscored their opponents 16-4. Minnesota has won six straight and has a 13-point home streak (11-0-2) heading into its matchup against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday afternoon at Grand Casino Arena.

Wild coach John Hynes didn't stop Hughes from making big plays. Hughes has averaged 29:30 of ice time over his last three games, including a career-high 32:02 in the Wild's win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday. (The Wild were without injured guards Jonas Brodin and Jake Middleton, both of whom are playing significant minutes.)

Although Hughes plays a lot more early in his Wild career than he did with the Vancouver Canucks (27:26 per game), he doesn't have to do as much heavy lifting. For example, his time on the ball is reduced by 44 seconds per game. That speaks to the top-tier talent surrounding Hughes in Minnesota, especially on offense. Forwards Kirill Kaprizov (1:49) and Matt Boldy (1:39) rank in the top 15 this season in time of possession per game at the forward position.

Hughes also has a new defensive partner in Brock Faber, who is comfortable with the puck. Two Americans who could be partners at the upcoming Winter Olympics have become instant successes. Minnesota scored 63.5 percent of its expected goals at five-on-five in the 65-plus minutes Hughes and Faber shared the ice.

“He makes it (really) easy to be his D-partner,” Faber told reporters. “For me, I just have to learn to stay away from him and use my legs to keep up with him. I think we should be able to work really (well) together… As his D-partner, you really can't do anything wrong (with) how gifted a skater and player he is.”

Opponents should be nervous whenever Hughes and Faber face the Wild's top line of Kaprizov, Boldy and center Joel Eriksson Ek. In 18 minutes with five men, they scored 73.3% of their expected goals at even strength.

Hughes' presence was felt most in the rush, where Wild had struggled prior to his arrival. Minnesota averaged an NHL-worst 4.78 scoring chances per game without Hughes, who helped raise that to 7.33 per game since entering the lineup. Hughes has been on the ice for nine of Minnesota's 22 chances over the last three games.

The Wild came up big on 25 of Hughes' 28 controlled outs (89.3%) and 10 of Hughes' 12 controlled entries (83.3%). His ability to stretch passes that few other players in the league can match has sparked the Wild's rushing attack.

If the Wild were playing in any other division, they would be in the driver's seat. But they play in the Central Division, aka the “group of death”. Minnesota is 18-3-2 since November 1st. The problem is that Dallas (18-4-3 over this period) and Colorado (18-1-3) are also virtually unbeatable.

As things stand, Minnesota will start the playoffs on the road despite having one of the best seasons in franchise history. It's been 10 years since the Wild last made it past the first round, losing first-round games in each of their last eight postseason appearances.

Hughes thanked Wild management for “getting fired” and trading the spoils to acquire him. The franchise is hoping he can get him to the No. 1 spot in the playoffs.

“At some point we have to get to the second, third and fourth (rounds of the playoffs),” Wild general manager Bill Guerin. said Athletic. “It's a step in (that direction) because it takes guys like (Hughes) to get there. But I believe in this team. Yes, our division is a meat grinder, but I'm only worried about us and helping us compete for the (Stanley) Cup. And Quinn Hughes is helping us continue to move toward that.”