2023-08-21 15:38:11
Kent Hughes can shout mission accomplished. His summer work came in full line with the club’s second phase of rebuilding.
Posted at 11:38 a.m.
The general manager wasn’t going to encumber his roster with veterans hired on the free agent market; he had to subtract some to make even more room for the youngsters, mainly on the attack.
The three-team trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins and San Jose Sharks in early August to drop Mike Hoffman and Rem Pitlick is almost genius.
At 33, soon to be 34, with his annual salary of 4.5 million and a sometimes questionable work ethic, not to mention his irresponsible playing choices, Hoffman had become an undesirable in Montreal.
The general manager of the Canadian managed in the process to divest himself of a slightly overpaid support player, at 1.1 million for the role in which he was now confined and unhappy to have been overtaken in the hierarchy by the Rafaels Harvey-Pinard, Jesse Ylonen and company.
Hughes would have been happy to offer those two forwards to anyone for nothing in return, but by allowing the Penguins to get rid of Jeff Petry to facilitate Erik Karlsson’s arrival in Pittsburgh, Montreal secured a second-round pick in 2025. The other piece acquired in the transaction, forward Nathan Légaré, 22, is destined for Laval for the time being.
Much has been made of the “return” of Jeff Petry, knowing full well that his chances of playing a match with the Canadiens were slim, but he was an anecdote in history. By then trading Petry to the Detroit Red Wings at half his remaining salary, Hughes was still able to salvage a fourth-round pick and 24-year-old supporting right-handed defenseman Gustav Lindström to fill a lack of depth at this position.
Could the Canadian have waited more in order to obtain better assets for Petry? Perhaps, but the organization often talks about the importance of creating a new corporate culture and the presence of an unfortunate defender in training camp would not have corresponded to the objectives of the team.
The main objective, it will be recalled, was to make room for the attack, with Hoffman as the first target, and not to obtain a defender to sell him at a better price.
The CH offloaded 5.6 million by exchanging Hoffman and Pitlick. He receives 2.3 million by withholding a portion of Petry’s salary and 1.8 million with the contract of goaltender Casey DeSmith, who we would still try to exchange. We realize savings of 1.5 million by the time a goalkeeper is traded, and we could reach 3.3 million if DeSmith finds a buyer by the start of the season.
We must salute the proactivity of Kent Hughes here: he contacted the Penguins seeing that a transaction was in the air with the Sharks and that they needed the support of a third team to reduce their payroll in order to receive Karlsson and his monstrous contract.
We almost forget Joel Edmundson, traded to the Washington Capitals on July 1 for third- and seventh-round picks in 2024. With left Mike Matheson and youngsters Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris and Arber Xhekaj, Edmundson’s departure was inevitable. .
Edmundson was still a positive influence in the locker room, but at 30 he was in the final year of his contract and his back pain had slowed him down considerably.
Le pari Alex Newhook
PHOTO JEFF LE, ARCHIVES USA TODAY SPORTS
Alex Newhook (no 18)
Kent Hughes also spoiled himself this summer by acquiring a 22-year-old forward previously linked to his agency, Alex Newhook, 16th overall pick in 2019, one rank behind Cole Caufield. Newhook was still considered a top prospect not too long ago.
But he had a disappointing season last year when he was put in an important role at center of the Colorado Avalanche’s second line to replace Nazem Kadri. The youngster has 30 points, including 14 goals, in 82 games.
Montreal sacrificed the 31st and 37th overall picks in 2023 to get it, but it’s not a good price, but not exorbitant either. Kirby Dach had just amassed 26 points, including just 9 goals, in 70 games at Chicago and cost him the 13th and 66th overall picks in 2022.
In his first season in Montreal, Dach had 38 points in 58 games, including 14 in his last 19 outings, and usually over 20 minutes per game down the stretch.
Dach and Newhook obviously have different profiles. The first is a tall 6-foot-4 right-handed center, already effective defensively at 22, not the fastest, but capable of imposing his own rhythm and protecting the puck effectively because of his imposing size.
Newhook is seen as a centre, but he can also be employed on the wing. He concedes several inches to Dach, from a height of 5-foot-10, but he’s beefy nonetheless at 190 pounds. It stands out for its speed.
Newhook was placed in a particular context in Colorado. The Avalanche had a league title to defend and there was little room for error for a second center, regardless of age and experience. Perhaps he will be able to flourish more in Montreal, where the young player has the right to make mistakes.
The new acquisition of CH remains the ninth counter of a rich 2019 vintage, behind Jack Hughes, Trevor Zegras, Dylan Cozens, Matthew Boldy, Kaapo Kakko, Kirby Dach, Moritz Seider and Cole Caufield.
Canadian formation
Forwards (13)
Nick Suzuki Cole Caufield Kirby Dach Sean Monahan Josh Anderson Juraj Slafkovsky Brendan Gallagher Christian Dvorak Alex Newhook Joel Armia Jake Evans Rafaël Harvey-Pinard Jesse Ylönen Michael Pezzetta
Emil Heineman
Sean Farrell
Lias Andersson
Defenders (9)
Mike Matheson
David Savard
Kaiden Guhle
Jordan Harris
Johnathan Kovacevic
Arber Xhekaj
Justin Barron
Gustav Lindström
Chris Wideman
David Reinbacher
Logan Mailloux
William Trudeau
Mattias Norlinder
Guardians (4)
Samuel Montembeault
Jake Allen
Casey DeSmith
Cayden Primeau
Jakub Dobes
Mattias Norlinder still with CH
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, ARCHIVES LA PRESSE
Mattias Norlinder
A recent rumor suggested the return of young defenseman Mattias Norlinder to Sweden, after only one full season with the Laval Rocket last year.
Norlinder participates in the training camp in Frölunda, but he should in principle head for Quebec soon for the camp of the Canadian. This is at least the information received by the organization from the agent of this young left-handed defender.
This news should interest Rocket fans more than Canadian fans. Compared to the legendary Nicklas Lidstrom by some Swedish media a few years ago, Norlinder is destined for Laval. He was able to maintain a regular position in the American League, but his modest production, 19 points in 64 games, remains far from that of a top offensive defenseman.
He will have to style Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, Arber Xhekaj, Justin Barron, Johnathan Kovacevic, William Trudeau and maybe even Logan Mailloux and David Reinbacher to hope for a position in Montreal, not to mention veterans Mike Matheson, David Savard, Gustav Lidström and Chris Wideman…
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