Player Discussion Alex Newhook

[teamfirst]

He has speed and he can play in and through contact. Not everyone has to be 6'3 in the bottom 6.

Agree with that, but i would prefer the kind of center Beck could be ...match with better player than Newhook on my 3rd line and i don't see Newhook being a good fit on the 4th either....so ya a jersey filler for now is what he is imo.

 

[Eegs]

Had such higher hopes for Alex when we acquired him, but man he has disappointed this season.

He ended last year really well but none of that seems to have seeped into this season.

 

[le_sean]

He really gets to pucks first which gets many plays going and opens up D’s, plus he goes hard to the net and can shoot so he brings more than speed…Not a top 6 guy for me either but I feel these pro guys all need at least one trick they can exploit and he does.

Was doing his best Kostopoulos impression on all fours in the crease a few times recently so that’s noteworthy.

I agree about production, it’s what counts in the end.

Maybe he needs to play with more north-south players. He was at his best at the end of last season with Armia and Gallagher. He maybe doesn’t think the game fast enough to be with skilled guys and just needs to keep his game simple. A true 3rd liner

 

[HuGort]

Calculated risk to take but this trade was not good. He’s not even a goal scorer and he has 0 assists. There’s snakebitten and then there’s just not thinking the game at a high enough level.

He’s a 3rd liner at best and once Demidov is here, we should see Newhook there. Maybe between Anderson and Gallagher, assuming we can’t get rid of either.

Newhook bottom 6 winger, we way overpaid.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Had such higher hopes for Alex when we acquired him, but man he has disappointed this season.

He ended last year really well but none of that seems to have seeped into this season.

I'm wondering if a lot of these kids went into the off-season and maybe prioritized the wrong thing? Or if just the slow start as really put them in a tailspin they haven't recovered from yet.

Kirby pretty much admitted he focused on the wrong things in the Summer and would do it differently now if he could. I think we kind of get the same sense from Slaf.

 

[teamfirst]

I'm wondering if a lot of these kids went into the off-season and maybe prioritized the wrong thing? Or if just the slow start as really put them in a tailspin they haven't recovered from yet.

Kirby pretty much admitted he focused on the wrong things in the Summer and would do it differently now if he could. I think we kind of get the same sense from Slaf.

Aren't we suppose to tell them what to focus on during the summer ......i mean i tought that was the reason of the end of season one on one meeting with the players.

Maybe they did focus on the thing the management asked them to focus on......not a good optic then.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Aren't we suppose to tell them what to focus on during the summer ......i mean i tought that was the reason of the end of season one on one meeting with the players.

Maybe they did focus on the thing the management asked them to focus on......not a good optic then.

We are and I hope it's a lesson learned for all involved.

 

[Rapala]

I get worried when a kid doesn't see the obvious play quickly enough.
I get really worried when a kid doesn't see the obvious play at all.
It seems to me Newhook was much better in tight spaces last season.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Aren't we suppose to tell them what to focus on during the summer ......i mean i tought that was the reason of the end of season one on one meeting with the players.

Maybe they did focus on the thing the management asked them to focus on......not a good optic then.

Such a bizarre camp and we got off to a brutal start. Wtf happened there?

Dach I can understand but I expected more from Newhook. I didn’t expect him to be able to carry a line but I thought he’d be much better.

 

[chapeau]

Newhook bottom 6 winger, we way overpaid.

Yes and no. Out of 2 2nd rounders, odds are that 1 of them turns into a bottom 6 player. Draft balls are shiny but in the end. I agree it was a slight overpaid, though. If the 31st pick had been a late 2nd it would look much better.

 

[HuGort]

I'm wondering if a lot of these kids went into the off-season and maybe prioritized the wrong thing? Or if just the slow start as really put them in a tailspin they haven't recovered from yet.

Kirby pretty much admitted he focused on the wrong things in the Summer and would do it differently now if he could. I think we kind of get the same sense from Slaf.

Dach probably rushed too. Certainly never helped. He need work on faceoffs and defensive responsibility. He should when back to dominate at junior then 2 years in AHL. Where no Pressure and he could work on his game. Never hurts two years in A.

Newhook maybe too. He should be better than this

 

[Yasuo]

On pace for 15 points with almost half the season in. He is truly horrible and worse than Dvorak/Dach imo

 

[austin316]

I think it’s time we stop trading with Colorado. Absolutely fleeced us for Lehky and now Newhook.

Zero assists half way through a season is mind boggling

 

[teamfirst]

Hey Alex, good to see you man, glad you came merry christmas........oh by the way, don't worry i told everyone to not talk to you about your assists drought tonight

 

[Tyson]

On pace for 15 points with almost half the season in. He is truly horrible and worse than Dvorak/Dach imo

I prefer Jonathan Drouin over him AIAEC

 

[River Meadow]

I prefer Jonathan Drouin over him AIAEC

Dear god.

Hughes traded a 1st and 2nd round pick for someone worse than Drou-Drou.

 

[Kennedys]

The guy is skating. I saw him skate last night and then he skated again.

 

[NotSNFan]

Maybe he needs to play with more north-south players. He was at his best at the end of last season with Armia and Gallagher. He maybe doesn’t think the game fast enough to be with skilled guys and just needs to keep his game simple. A true 3rd liner

I semi-agree.

I don't think that it's that Newhook can't play with skilled players. Dach and Laine are slow and neither of them are good at 50/50 battles along the boards. Armia and Gallagher are not fast, but they were better in 50/50 battles and along the boards. They hustled. Neither Laine nor Dach are good support for someone like Newhook. Neither Dach or Laine seem to hustle much/if at all.

Once the Habs are clearly tanking again, I'd switch Laine and Caufield. Suzuki and Slaf would be much better support for Laine and Caufield can match Newhook's speed, and I think Caufield would improve the puck possession when they are in the O-zone, making the other 4 Habs on the ice more effective

 

[vokiel]

The guy is skating. I saw him skate last night and then he skated again.

We require our players to do more than skating. Otherwise they can pick these kind of skates:

 

[Habby4Life]

The guy is skating. I saw him skate last night and then he skated again.

Haha - the absolute best description of Newhook.

 

[Playmaker09]

Yes and no. Out of 2 2nd rounders, odds are that 1 of them turns into a bottom 6 player. Draft balls are shiny but in the end. I agree it was a slight overpaid, though. If the 31st pick had been a late 2nd it would look much better.

We'll see what comes of it in the end, but on paper, 2023 was a particularly strong draft to have two late firsts.

To start we could have simply traded up to grab Perreault or Ritchie who both deserved to go much higher.
But even at our picks, we had available to us a plethora of: big two-way forwards (Edstrom, Wahlberg), big goal scorers (Rehkopf, Halttunen), big RHD (Strbak, Gibson), two-way Cs (Brindley, Fisker-Molgaard), homerun swings (Cristall, Heidt, Dragicevic), goalies (Hrabal, Augustine, Bjarnason)

I said it at the time and I'll say it again, the only positive about the Newhook trade was his age and subsequent contract signing when it comes to being flipped for a bigger fish later on. He's a nice piece to include along with a 1st to target a legitimate solution at C or RD. The player himself is just a small tweener that doesn't belong on a contender.

 

[Balthazar]

Newhook bottom 6 winger, we way overpaid.

Bottom 6 wingers need be good defensively or energy/physical guys and he's neither of those things. If he's not producing offensively he doesn't bring anything to the table and he's not going to produce in a bottom 6 role.

He'll finish this contract in the NHL then maybe one team will give him a one year deal then he's Europe bound.

 

[Victoire HuGo]

I don't hate Newhook but he's probably the player with the least defined future on the team right now. He really needs to add elements to his game or find his identity as a player. I'm sure 10 years ago he'd be a much more visible player on the ice and his separation speed would be more obvious.

If it comes down to Evans vs Newhook in order to make room for roster spot and cap space, I take the latter. I was looking at capwage, worst case scenario if his value is negative and he can't fetch a pick, his buyout isn't too bad from a cap perspective. 400K in year 3/4 as cap penalty.

I think Demidov will be a better fit in the top 6 and right now I think everybody in the bottom 6 is doing a better job than him with the roles given.

 

[WeThreeKings]

I don't hate Newhook but he's probably the player with the least defined future on the team right now. He really needs to add elements to his game or find his identity as a player. I'm sure 10 years ago he'd be a much more visible player on the ice and his separation speed would be more obvious.

If it comes down to Evans vs Newhook in order to make room for roster spot and cap space, I take the latter. I was looking at capwage, worst case scenario if his value is negative and he can't fetch a pick, his buyout isn't too bad from a cap perspective. 400K in year 3/4 as cap penalty.

I think Demidov will be a better fit in the top 6 and right now I think everybody in the bottom 6 is doing a better job than him with the roles given.

His exit meeting this year will be all about how he can invent himself kind of like Anderson has.. use your speed on the forecheck, use your speed on the PK, and define yourself as a premium 3rd liner who can pitch in at center when needed.

 

[salbutera]

I don't hate Newhook but he's probably the player with the least defined future on the team right now. He really needs to add elements to his game or find his identity as a player. I'm sure 10 years ago he'd be a much more visible player on the ice and his separation speed would be more obvious.

If it comes down to Evans vs Newhook in order to make room for roster spot and cap space, I take the latter. I was looking at capwage, worst case scenario if his value is negative and he can't fetch a pick, his buyout isn't too bad from a cap perspective. 400K in year 3/4 as cap penalty.

I think Demidov will be a better fit in the top 6 and right now I think everybody in the bottom 6 is doing a better job than him with the roles given.

Newhook will slot in as Dvorak’s replacement as 3C w Demigod slotting next to Laine & Dach