Trade completed between the Canadiens and the Avalanche: Kent Hughes has surpassed his transaction with the Blackhawks, on paper, with Alex Newhook

We had been talking about it for several weeks, as Kent Hughes was looking to replicate the successful trade he made last year with the Chicago Blackhawks involving Kirby Dach.

It made sense. After all, it became a real home run for the Canadiens.

Finally, on June 27th, just hours before the 2023 NHL Draft, this "new Kirby Dach-like trade" materialized as Montreal acquired Alex Newhook from the Colorado Avalanche.


For reasons we can understand, this trade generated less consensus than expected.

Last year, after acquiring Kirby Dach, fans were almost unanimously thrilled and excited.

This year, after acquiring Newhook, we've had more mixed reactions, even though Newhook came at a lower cost.

However, there's a post that speaks volumes.

"Newhook in 2023 better than Dach in 2022?"

Take a look at the post by the excellent Eric Engels of Sportsnet.


That shows how solid of a move and a great bet it is from Kent Hughes, both in terms of the trade and the contract.

Alex Newhook could certainly be as good as Kirby Dach in a year, and perhaps even better.

Let's be excited about this trade as well!