Vancouver boos its former captain: Hughes scores career point No. 500 as Wild beat Canucks 4-2

Rogers Arena in Vancouver greeted an old favourite with boos on Sunday night: former Canucks captain Quinn Hughes, back for the first time as a Minnesota Wild player, was booed as he stepped onto the ice for warmups and again whenever he touched the puck, with a hostile chant audible in the opening period. He answered with a goal — a power-play marker at 12:55 of the second period that made it 3-0, stood up as the game winner, and gave Minnesota a 4-2 victory.

Point No. 500 amid the boos

The goal was the 500th point of Hughes's NHL career. A tribute video during the first intermission drew a mixed reaction, with some cheers mixed into the boos, but the crowd largely returned to booing once play resumed. Hughes was not finished: early in the third period he set up Kirill Kaprizov for Minnesota's fourth goal, and Vancouver's two late goals only cut the final margin to 4-2. Hughes finished with a goal and an assist in 26:10 of ice time, the most of any Wild skater.

The trade behind the return

Hughes was picked seventh overall by Vancouver in 2018 and spent six and a half seasons with the Canucks, winning the Norris Trophy as the league's top defenceman after a 92-point season in 2023-24. Last December he was traded to Minnesota after telling then-general manager Patrik Allvin he did not plan to re-sign long term in Vancouver; the Canucks received Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, defenceman Zeev Buium and a 2026 first-round pick. Before the game Hughes said he was prepared for a hostile reception, but that being booed would not change how he feels about the place.