The Vancouver Canucks acquired Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, Liam Öhgren and a 2026 first-round pick in exchange for Quinn Hughes on Friday night, and General Manager Patrik Allvin met with the media to discuss the trade.
“It’s definitely not an easy day for the franchise here. Quinn Hughes has been a big part of the organization, and a great person and great hockey player,” said Allvin.
“But we’re also excited about the return of the players we got here.”
“Obviously, a deal like this doesn’t come through in just one day. So, it’s been going on for a couple of weeks here where we felt that this is, unfortunately, where we were heading with Quinn and [then were] trying to maximize the return for Quinn.”
The first piece of that return is Marco Rossi, who was selected ninth overall in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild and has put up 49 goals and 65 assists for 114 points in 202 games played.
Rossi led the CHL in scoring during the 2019-20 season, when he scored 39 goals and added 81 assists for 120 points in his draft year. He scored a career-high 24 goals and 36 assists last season, playing in all 82 games.
Zeev Buium was the 12th overall selection in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. He won two gold medals with Team U.S.A. at the World Junior Championships (2024 & 2025) and, most recently, a gold medal alongside Conor Garland, Drew O’Connor, and Kevin Dean at the 2025 World Championships.
The 20-year-old defenceman had the primary assist on the gold medal-winning goal for the U.S.A. at the 2025 WJC and had won the NCAA Frozen Four championship with the University of Denver in 2024.
“He’s an extremely talented, offensive-minded defenceman, that in a very short period of time here, experienced playoffs last year when he was done in Denver and stepped right into the National Hockey League, playing for Minnesota,” said Allvin on Buium.
“And then following up here this year, where I think he is, he looks stronger, [and] more composed. Our scouting staff have followed him here; it’s exciting. The path is coming. He’s still very young, and we know that for a defenceman, it takes some time, but he definitely has the ability to quarterback a power play here, and we’re really excited to continue to work with him.”
Liam Öhgren was selected 19th overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft and led the J20 Nationell league with 33 goals in 30 games during his draft season. Öhgren played alongside Jonathan Lekkerimäki throughout their youth and won a silver medal with Lekkerimäki and Elias Pettersson (D) at the 2024 World Juniors.
The Canucks also picked up the Wild’s 2026 first-round pick in the trade. That addition gives the team two first-round picks in the 2026 draft, bringing their total to two first-rounders, a 2nd, a 4th, a 5th, and a 6th.
Allvin closed out his media availability with a message to Canucks fans.
“I think they should be excited about the youth that’s coming in here, and they should be excited about the championship in Abbotsford last year, and the growth of those players. You see them in the lineup here today,” said Allvin.
“I can’t say enough about the fans at Rogers [Arena] and the support for the team. They’re cheering every night, and the players they feel it. I think the resiliency and the compete has been here for the team going through adversity with injuries, and we’ll just continue to build a franchise championship team here with younger players and continue to push forward.”
