Former Canucks captain Hughes booed in Vancouver

A chorus of boos echoed through Rogers Arena as Quinn Hughes stepped on the ice for warm-ups on Sunday night. They never stopped.

The former Vancouver captain was back for the first time since being traded to Minnesota in December last year. He made it memorable, scoring a goal to reach 500 NHL points and adding an assist in the Wild’s 4-2 victory.

“The passion with the fan base is what makes it special to play here,” Hughes said.

The Vancouver Canucks’ Filip Hronek, right, defends against the Minnesota Wild’s Quinn Hughes in their NHL game at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Sunday.

Photo: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

Hughes scored off a rebound on a power player midway through the second period to make it 3-0, and set up Kirill Kaprizov’s NHL-leading 13th goal early in the third for a 4-0 advantage. In 13 games this season, Hughes has three goals and 13 assists.

“He was pretty dominant again tonight, especially the second half of the game,” Canucks defenseman Luke Schenn said. “So, obviously they’re booing him, but at the end of the day I think everyone is proud that he was once a Canuck.”

Hundreds of people — many clad in Canucks jerseys emblazoned with Hughes’ name and No. 43 — stood around the glass ahead of warm-ups, hoping to get a glimpse of the star American defenseman.

One held a sign reading: “And I thought I had commitment issues.”

More boos rained down when Hughes’ name was mentioned on the big screen ahead of puck drop, and again as a tribute to the blue liner began on the big screen during the first TV time-out.

However, the boos transformed into a mixed review, with whistles and clapping, and some in the crowd standing in ovation.

“He definitely deserved the cheers,” Schenn said. “I don’t know if there’s really much reason to be negative as far as what he’s done for the organization.”

As the video ended, Hughes skated out from the bench and raised his stick in salute as both his current and former teammates tapped their sticks on the boards.

“I was just proud,” Hughes said. “And obviously I was here for six-and-a-half-year; I tried my best. And got some cheers there. That was cool for me.”

Elsewhere, the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Winnipeg Jets 2-1 in the Time Hortons NHL Heritage Classic played outdoors at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg, while the Florida Panthers beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 to snap a two-game losing streak.

The Dallas Stars beat the New York Islanders 6-3 and the Nashville Predators overpowered the Colorado Avalanche 6-2 to avoid a third consecutive loss and win for just the second time in seven outings (2-2-3).