Player Discussion Alex Newhook

[le_sean]

This year will determine if Newhook is the b’y that builds the boat or if he’s the b’y that sails her

 

[Runner77]

You said you're mad Hughes made a deal with Sakic and he said he thinks you should give Hughes some credit of his own. He didn't twist anything you said he just directly responded to you that Hughes deserves some benefit of the doubt. Odd reply.

Where did I say I was “mad”? I’m good with the deal. I called Sakic a Fleecer cause he’s a good horse trader, is all. He extrapolated meaning that I did not infer. Odd butting in.

 

[Whitesnake]

You said you're mad Hughes made a deal with Sakic and he said he thinks you should give Hughes some credit of his own. He didn't twist anything you said he just directly responded to you that Hughes deserves some benefit of the doubt. Odd reply.

Seems to me it was more a comment about Sakic than anything. I mean Sakic has only lost 1 trade since he joined the Avs....the O'Reilly trade. That's it. Really impressive.

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

So will Sakic.

He's not even the GM anymore.

 

[Rapala]

I agree that the goalscoring does put Caufield in a category of his own within our team and even the league.

Still, Newhook's D+1 and D+2 definitely correspond to a potential top-6 forward and probable 1st line contributor, like Caufield. The tools are certainly still there as well, and he'll add a very interesting speed element.

Personally I would've kept 31 and 37 BUT my point is; we weren't getting anyone with higher potential.

I scoured the top of the most recent drafts in an attempt to discover if there was another potential Kirby Dach like trade out there. I definitely looked at Newhook and didn't think he'd be available. As a matter of fact I decided that replicating the same type of trade was a no go. Little did I know that Sakic et al would be open for discussions because of their window. One thing that struck me as ingenious was that Hughes had to go to the other end of the spectrum to find what he wanted.

 

[Frank Drebin]

He's not even the GM anymore.

There you go!

 

[Runner77]

I scoured the top of the most recent drafts in an attempt to discover if there was another potential Kirby Dach like trade out there. I definitely looked at Newhook and didn't think he'd be available. As a matter of fact I decided that replicating the same type of trade was a no go. Little did I know that Sakic et al would be open for discussions because of their window. One thing that struck me as ingenious was that Hughes had to go to the other end of the spectrum to find what he wanted.

I recall that some posters had brought up the idea of acquiring Newhook as a Dach-like move. Lots of untapped potential for sure.

 

[Belial]

He's not even the GM anymore.

He felt he was losing it! Nice anticipation move

 

[le_sean]

Avs were in “win now mode” from the time Newhook joined prior to 2021 playoffs - 2-yrs NCAA + 6-NHL regular season GP under his belt.

Go back and reflect on how much time it took MacKinnon to become a bonafide NHLer… and that’s with Avs in development mode his first few seasons

Tyson Jost is a player they recently pretty much ruined by being impatient. Impatient by calling him up too soon for the NHL since they needed cheap production, and impatient with his results once in the league, never focused on developing him.

Newhook was a far better prospect with better production to begin his NHL career. I think there’s something really intriguing there and I’m glad that Hughes got him when he did rather than Newhook having another “lost” season.

 

[Rapala]

I recall that some posters had brought up the idea of acquiring Newhook as a Dach-like move. Lots of untapped potential for sure.

They did it was the availability that threw me. I never expected it.

 

[Rapala]

He's not even the GM anymore.

Is there anyone here who doubts he is still the boss?

 

[Whitesnake]

He's not even the GM anymore.

Come on now....President of Hockey Operations....à la Gorton. Here, we have no trouble talking about a Hughes/Gorton tandem....pretty sure it's the same over there....Will be McFarland 2nd season...

 

[Runner77]

I think there’s something really intriguing there and I’m glad that Hughes got him when he did rather than Newhook having another “lost” season.

The flip side to that is what if Newhook would have evolved or figured himself out in that third season? He then becomes impossible to acquire.

And of course, getting him now allows for a whole other developmental approach and deployment in more offensively favorable game situations and line mates than he would have had with the Avs.

 

[NewDef]

I’d be curious to know what held him back in Colorado. Not sure he was able to tap into all the tools he has. I didn’t like to hear from Avs posters that he couldn’t handle playing center but if being the best he can be means he stays a winger, I don’t see an issue.

My feel is we grabbed a winger. I'm pretty sure Hugues was the one reaching out and Sakic caved in with the offer on the table. Sakic was certainly not shopping Newhook around like we do with Hoffman. Hugues knew what he was getting, the price is high because it was the price to pay for a good young player about to break out.

I feel the conditions for development are much much better here than with the Avs considering everything (Cup window/ Bednar while here is Dev/MSL) and what you get is a known entity ready to go NOW, not 2x maybe in 3 years.

I love the guts Hugues has and his confidence in his coaching staff. MSL is the best thing that could've happened to the habs in this rebuild.

 

[Belial]

My feel is we grabbed a winger. I'm pretty sure Hugues was the one reaching out and Sakic caved in with the offer on the table. Sakic was certainly not shopping Newhook around like we do with Hoffman. Hugues knew what he was getting, the price is high because it was the price to pay for a good young player about to break out.

I feel the conditions for development are much much better here than with the Avs considering everything (Cup window/ Bednar while here is Dev/MSL) and what you get is a known entity ready to go NOW, not 2x maybe in 3 years.

I love the guts Hugues has and his confidence in his coaching staff. MSL is the best thing that could've happened to the habs in this rebuild.

Sakic sacrificed potential for right here right now stuff.

 

[ZUKI]

Health has to improve. Some things that COULD cause improvement:
- Monahan being healthy would be huge (not the most likely though). We were a bubble team when he was healthy.
- The Dach of the second half of the season is the Dach of all of next season.
- The Matheson of the second half of the season is the Matheson of all of next season.
- The RHP - Anderson combo of the second half of the season is the RHP - Anderson combo of all of next season.
- Caufield stays healthy.
- Newhook takes that next step.
- Is Slaf ready to take a step? certainly room for improvement.
- Can Dvo get back to the 48 points per 82 games production he had the first year with us if on the wing with offensive players?

This is all beautiful , but you forget something that destroys all those gains; We have lost Drouin, so...

 

[26Mats]

This is all beautiful , but you forget something that destroys all those gains; We have lost Drouin, so...

I need to edit that post and add in that important addition by subtraction!

 

[NotProkofievian]

Our boy needs to shoot a lot more. Shooting about 115 times per season pretty much guarantees 10 to 15 goals per season, doesn't matter what kind of a shot you have.

 

[nhlfan9191]

The flip side to that is what if Newhook would have evolved or figured himself out in that third season? He then becomes impossible to acquire.

And of course, getting him now allows for a whole other developmental approach and deployment in more offensively favorable game situations and line mates than he would have had with the Avs.

Does he look like he’s on the cusp of breaking out or has he just been underachieving? It seems everybody’s opinions are all over the place with him which makes him intriguing, but I still have no idea what exactly we acquired at this point.

 

[NotProkofievian]

Does he look like he’s on the cusp of breaking out or has he just been underachieving? It seems everybody’s opinions are all over the place with him which makes him intriguing, but I still have no idea what exactly we acquired at this point.

He's a player who hasn't figured out where he fits just yet. He may never actually figure it out, but he has the skills to occupy a sorta Max Pac role for us.

He's not going to be the one carrying the play, and if we try to make him into that player it'll blow up in our faces. He should be a lightning quick threat for a strong centerman.

 

[cphabs]

Is there any word on his excitement after the trade? Lmfao!

 

[26Mats]

Where did I say I was “mad”? I’m good with the deal. I called Sakic a Fleecer cause he’s a good horse trader, is all. He extrapolated meaning that I did not infer. Odd butting in.

A couple of Avs media guys that follow the Avs closely really don't think much of him:

 

[Canadienna]

This year will determine if Newhook is the b’y that builds the boat or if he’s the b’y that sails her

Hmmm

Which of these do we want again?

 

[LaP]

Seems to me it was more a comment about Sakic than anything. I mean Sakic has only lost 1 trade since he joined the Avs....the O'Reilly trade. That's it. Really impressive.

That's pretty much where i stand. Obviously all GMs will make mistake but Sakic's resume as the GM of the Avs is impressive. He might have done a mistake here but anyone thinking Sakic traded Newhook for that return thinking he could still blossom as a 2nd line player is foolish.

The avs absolutely need a top 6 winger on a good contract and Newhook wont break the bank. If Sakic would still believe Newhook could be that guy he would not have traded him for a 3rd line player and a 32nd overall pick. There's no doubt in my mind that Sakic see and evaluate Newhook as a 3rd line guy now and in the future and he prefered to go get a more experienced guy for this role.

Let's hope M. Sakic is wrong here.

 

[Hope Of Glory]

Our boy needs to shoot a lot more. Shooting about 115 times per season pretty much guarantees 10 to 15 goals per season, doesn't matter what kind of a shot you have.

That should increase a decent amout purely by giving him more ice time (lets say 16 mins/game), especially on the PP. Moving fulltime to the wing, especially if he plays with a pure playmaker like Dach, should up his shot total a decent amount. Just with that, which doesn't really requires him figuring anything out, I guess he should get to around slightly less than 2 shots a game, which would translate to 15-20 goals a season. I'd say that's his floor and anything less than that would be disappointing.

Then, if on top of that he figures out how to shoot even more, we could be looking at 20+ goals a year. Thats what we need to see for him to become a mainstay in the top 6 for the foreseable future.

Hopefully he has chemistry with Dach.