The Minnesota Wild made a seismic move last December when they traded for Quinn Hughes. Hughes made the Wild a Stanley Cup contender, but he also left a massive hole for the Vancouver Canucks to replace.
The Canucks did well as Zeev Buium, Liam Ohgren and Marco Rossi appear to be key figures in their current rebuild. But Vancouver got their final piece of the trade in the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft on Friday night when they selected Peterborough (OHL) winger Adam Novotny with the 24th overall pick.
Novotny completes a deal where the Wild likely have no regrets but he also gives both sides an interesting dynamic with how things can play out moving forward.
Canucks add final piece of Quinn Hughes trade during NHL Draft
After taking Caleb Malhotra with the third overall pick earlier in the night, the Canucks added another key piece in Novotny as he scored 34 goals and posted 65 points in 58 games. That offensive ability led The Athletic’s Corey Pronman to list him as the 30th overall prospect in this year’s class and a potential top-six forward.
“Novotny is a great skater, with the quick burst in his first few steps to pressure even the faster NHL defenders,” Pronman wrote. “He has good stick skills. He’s not a natural playmaker, but Novotny has a great shot and can score from the dots and in tight effectively. He works hard enough. Novotny isn’t very physical, but he can be reliable off the puck, and coaches could trust him in a lot of situations. He projected as a top six winger.”
The Wild gave up a haul to acquire Hughes and all three players sent to Vancouver in the trade had a difficult time playing under Adam Foote. Rossi battled a lower body injury before scoring eight goals with 22 points in 33 games for Vancouver but Ohgren (eight goals, 18 points) and Buium (three goals, 12 points) showed positive signs moving forward and could have an easier time under new head coach Manny Malhotra.
With Rossi already in the top six and Buium on the top defensive pairing, Ohgren could become a middle-six wing with Novotny eventually joining Rossi down the line. That looks like a haul for the Wild to have given up for Hughes, but general manager Bill Guerin sounded like he had no regrets as he spoke to reporters after the first round concluded on Friday night.
“I didn’t mind not having a first-round pick this year because we have Quinn Hughes, and sometimes that’s just what you have to do,” Guerin said via The Athletic’s Michael Russo. “A lot of down time and we like where we are.”
The Wild won their first playoff series since 2015 and have their eyes on maximizing their cup window this offseason. While Dylan Larkin seems like their top target for a No. 1 center, they may not even be in a position where he’s willing to waive his no trade clause if they hadn’t made the trade for Hughes back in December.
While Hughes needs a contract extension this summer and Novotny’s potential could make things interesting, the trade has the potential for both sides to be happy. That could help the Canucks pick up the pieces after Hughes’s departure and help the Wild get where they want to go by competing for a Stanley Cup.
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