"Traded to the Leafs I fear": NHL fans spark Quinn Hughes trade speculation after Canucks captain's late scratch vs Red Wings

The Vancouver Canucks hosted the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday night, but fans grew worried when the most important member of the Canucks was not on the ice. Canucks captain and current reigning Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Quinn Hughes was made a late scratch by the team despite being a participant in the pregame warmups.

And in the wake of some monumental trades in recent days that have rocked both the National Hockey League and National Basketball Association, worried Canucks fans began expressing their fear that Hughes could somehow soon be on the move out of Vancouver.

"If Luka Doncic can get traded, Quinn Hughes can get traded," wrote @BayAreaTrev.

"Traded to the Leafs I fear," opined @DailyPlanetCW.

"Hughes to the Lakers confirmed," wrote @LJG32803.

More fans speculated about Hughes.

"He is counting how many days before he is in New Jersey," added @Clarke0614.

"Chris Drury, you absolute madman," added @cranst4, implying Rangers GM had made another move shortly after the J.T. Miller trade.

However, one fan was not having all the Quinn trade talk.

"All these replies are hilarious. He’s injured day 2 day rn and was a game time decision. Quinn isn’t being traded. He’s the one Canuck who management would never trade," wrote @Huggy_Bear43.

Hughes has scored 14 goals while adding 45 assists for the Canucks in 47 games so far this season.

The Canucks have already pulled a pair of major trades in recent days

The Canucks played Sunday night's game for the first time since a series of major trades went down during the weekend.

First, they traded J.T. Miller, Erik Brannstrom prospect Jackson Dorrington to the New York Rangers in exchange for Filip Chytil, rookie defenseman Victor Mancini and a protected 2025 first-round Draft pick.

Then, they traded Danton Heinen and Vincent Desharnais to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Marcus Pettersson and Drew O'Connor.

The Miller trade brought an end to the in-house drama that had overshadowed the Canucks thanks to a confirmed rift between Miller and teammate Elias Pettersson, which was confirmed by team president Jim Rutherford despite repeated insistence from both players that there was no internal issue.

In other major trade news that stunned sports fans everywhere, the Dallas Mavericks traded superstar Luka Doncic and Maxi Kleber to the Los Angeles Lakers in an absolute stunner of a blockbuster deal, and in return received Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a draft pick.

While it doesn't appear as though Hughes is on the verge of being traded by the Canucks, the major deal that has sent shockwaves throughout the NBA indicates that nearly anything is possible.