Red Wings trade buzz puts Quinn Hughes right back in the spotlight

Where there is smoke, there is usually fire. Are the Detroit Red Wings poised to make a franchise-altering move and acquire star defenseman and Michigan native Quinn Hughes?

The Hughes rumors have been building slowly since last season and have continued to gain traction over the summer. Those same trade rumors are really starting to pick up steam now in December and have to come to a head here sooner than later. The Canucks captain is a superstar in the second-to-last season of his current six-year deal that carries a team-friendly $7.85 million annually.

With the Canucks seemingly stuck in the mud, and with no guarantee Hughes will be willing to sign a long-term extension might elect to trade their captain this season while he has one year of term remaining which will only enhance what is expected to be a lucrative return.

It's no secret that the Detroit Red Wings have the pieces required to obtain a player of Hughes' stature, but will general manager Steve Yzerman be willing to pay the freight? That remains the million-dollar question.

Insider, Pierre McGuire, on Jeff Marek's show, The Sheet, mentioned that Steve Yzerman needs to be aggressive if Hughes becomes available. Marek laid out a path for Detroit to land Hughes. "If you're Yzerman, do you not take a real swing at this when he becomes available? The family lives there. Ties to the state, obviously, ties to the University of Michigan. Dylan Larkin's there too. Do you not take a real swing at Quinn Hughes?"

McGuire was quick to affirm Marek's notion. "Yeah, the answer is yes. JT Compher is another one who's there. Detroit's got to be in the mix if that's what Steve wants to do. Steve did an amazing job there, and I think he's trying to put his footprint on the Detroit Red Wings. They've developed prospects and done a really good job getting guys. But some of those guys have been able to take the next step, and some of them haven't. I think they probably need some help right now."

What would it take for the Detroit Red Wings to land Quinn Hughes?

First off, it would take a bit of luck. The Red Wings will need to fend off the New Jersey Devils who are certainly the favorite to land Hughes and pair him with his two other brothers. If Detroit is successful in that regard, it will take a boat load to land the superstar currently in his prime playing years.

Jeremy Tingly of NHL Trade Rumors suggests that the Detroit Red Wings will need to be willing to part with Lucas Raymond in order to land Hughes. Tingly claims the Canucks will seek three NHL-ready players in exchange for the franchise defender.

Having a player like Raymond in the deal for Detroit seems a bit counterintuitive to me. I understand that in order to add a great player, you need to be willing to part with a great player. Adding Hughes makes Detroit a ton better, but subtracting Raymond all but cancels out that improvement.

Raymond is a 30-goal scorer and is on pace for a 90-point season. The Red Wings have Raymond locked up long-term, and with Detroit struggling to create consistent offense, I just don't see Yzerman willing to make a deal centered around Raymond. I am fully aware that Hughes creates offense from the backend, but I don't know if Yzerman will be inclined to move a 23-year-old like Raymond.

For this to work for the Red Wings, it will need to be a prospect and draft-pick-driven deal. I would expect a hypothetical deal to look something like this.

Before you freak out about the hypothetical proposal, I am not even certain this would be enough for Vancouver to consider a deal.

Still, Detroit would need to up the ante with prospects and picks to fill the void of not being required to include Raymond in any agreement. On the positive side, consider a top pairing of Quinn Hughes and Moritz Seider in Detroit for years.