Quinn Hughes returned to Rogers Arena with a milestone, a mixed reception and a win. The former Canucks captain scored his 500th NHL point as the Minnesota Wild beat Vancouver 4-2 on Sunday, handing the home side its 10th straight loss.
Hughes reaches 500 in Vancouver return
Hughes was back in Vancouver for the first time since the Dec. 12, 2025 trade that sent him to Minnesota. The Wild acquired Hughes for Liam Ohgren, Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium and a 2026 first-round pick that became Adam Novotny at No. 24.
The Canucks selected Hughes seventh overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, and the building reacted loudly whenever he had the puck. He was booed through the afternoon, though a first-period tribute video drew both cheers and jeers.
His landmark point came on the power play at 12:55 of the second. Hughes fed Joel Eriksson Ek from behind the Vancouver net, circled to the far side and buried the rebound into an open cage for a 3-0 Minnesota lead.
The goal made Hughes the seventh-fastest defenseman in NHL history to record 500 points, reaching the mark in 520 games. Among U.S.-born defensemen, only Brian Leetch got there faster, doing it in 496 games. Hughes added a third-period assist and left with 501 career points, including 69 goals and 432 assists.
“The passion with the fanbase is what makes it special to play here,” Hughes said. “It was cool and exciting to come back, and I’m happy we got the win. They pushed us hard early, and I thought they were the better team in the first. We answered in the second and third.”
Wild weather Vancouver’s early push
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Vancouver owned the opening period territorially, outshooting Minnesota 10-5, but the Wild struck late. At 18:33, Kirill Kaprizov found Maxim Shabanov with a cross-ice pass on the power play, and Shabanov tucked the puck inside the post before Leevi Merilainen could slide across.
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Minnesota doubled its lead at 5:54 of the second when Brink scored his first goal of the season. After a turnover at the blue line, Michael McCarron sent Brink in alone toward the right circle. Brink sold a shot, pulled Merilainen down and slipped the puck behind him.
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Hughes followed with his milestone power-play goal to make it 3-0 midway through the period.
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At 3:38 of the third, Hughes sent Kaprizov away on a breakaway. Kaprizov finished with a deke for his NHL-leading 13th goal and a 4-0 Minnesota advantage.
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Max Sasson broke through for Vancouver at 6:24, beating Calvin Pickard between the pads on a breakaway. Brock Boeser later converted a one-timer from the high slot at 16:53 after Elias Pettersson pulled up on the rush and found him. The Canucks could get no closer.
Minnesota outshot Vancouver 29-7 over the final 40 minutes after absorbing the Canucks’ best push in the opening frame.
Wild coach John Hynes liked the way his club handled the early pressure on the second half of a back-to-back. Minnesota had won 5-1 in Seattle on Saturday night.
“Vancouver came out hard, physical and aggressive, and they took the play to us for a while,” Hynes said. “As the first period went on, we got into the game the way we had to compete. I liked the way we continued to answer.”
Special teams and goaltending
Shabanov and Kaprizov each posted a goal and an assist for the Wild, who improved to 8-3-2 and are 6-2-1 over their past nine games. Pickard stopped 15 shots for his first Minnesota victory.
The win also gave Pickard victories with five NHL clubs. Among active goaltenders, only Cam Talbot with nine, James Reimer with seven and David Rittich with six have won with more teams.
- Minnesota finished 2-for-5 on the power play.
- The Wild did not score during 57 seconds of a third-period 5-on-3 advantage.
- Vancouver did not register a shot on its lone power play.
- Hughes and Kaprizov have each recorded points in 11 of Minnesota’s 13 games.
- Merilainen made 30 saves for Vancouver.
Kaprizov, despite leading the League with 13 goals, was not interested in framing his production as a hot streak.
“It’s early in the season, and there are still a lot of areas where we can be better,” Kaprizov said. “You have to stay in shape, keep doing things the right way and keep playing the right way.”
Canucks searching for a full-game response
Vancouver fell to 2-10-1 and has gone 0-9-1 during its 10-game skid. The Canucks had the better start but could not sustain their forecheck, physical play or puck-battle edge once Minnesota settled in.
“We had a very good start and established what we wanted early,” coach Manny Malhotra said. “We spent time in their zone and generated the shots we wanted. Other than the score, there were positives after the first. We just didn’t maintain it in the second.”
Boeser said the group has recognized the same pattern too often: a solid period followed by a stretch where the ice tilts sharply in the other direction.
“We do it for a period, then we stop doing it,” Boeser said. “You can see the momentum shift to them. We have to find a way to answer that, stop it and get the momentum back.”
Malhotra pointed to the same concern after another loss in which the Canucks’ early formula worked only briefly.
“We’re looking for answers,” Malhotra said. “When we are physical, aggressive and win puck battles, we look good. When we move away from those things, we let a transition team come alive. They did what we expected them to do, and that is frustrating because we know what works for us.”
