Quinn Hughes isn’t a big fan of the idea of the Vancouver Canucks breaking up their top pairing.

The 24-year-old defenceman chatted with Dan Riccio and Satiar Shah on Friday’s edition of Canucks Central on Sportsnet 650 and pushed back on the idea of the Canucks moving him away from Filip Hronek, with whom he meshed extremely well during his first season as team captain in 2023-24.

“I’m always under the assumption of, ‘Don’t fix what’s not broken.’ Me and Fil were great last year. We were plus-40, the team was a goal away from going to the Conference Finals,” Hughes said. “I haven’t really talked to anyone about it, [but] I love playing with Fil.”

The Canucks acquired Hronek from the Detroit Red Wings ahead of the 2023 trade deadline in exchange for a first-round pick (Axel Sandin Pellikka) and a second-round pick (Felix Nilsson) in that year’s draft. Vancouver also received a 2023 fourth-round pick (Ty Mueller) in the deal.

Hronek, 27, agreed to terms on an eight-year, $7.25 million AAV contract extension with the Canucks back in June. His new contract extension will take effect with the 2024-25 season and run through 2032, at which point he’ll be eligible to hit unrestricted free agency.

Playing primarily with Hronek in the 2023-24 season, Hughes set career highs with 17 goals, 75 assists, and 92 points in 82 games. He added 10 assists in 13 games with the Canucks during the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“I can play with [Noah] Juulsen or [Tyler] Myers or whatnot, we’ve got a lot of good players to play with, but I also fit best with Fil,” Hughes said. “You’ve seen that, the proof’s in the pudding.”

Through 365 career games over parts of six NHL seasons with the Canucks, Hughes has collected 43 goals and 333 points. The 2018 No. 7 overall pick has added two goals and 26 points in 30 career playoff contests.

The Canucks are slated to kick off their 2024-25 regular season slate of games against the Calgary Flames at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on October 9.