Montreal Canadiens: Top Five Players Under 25

Alex Newhook

Given up on by the franchise that drafted him, Alex Newhook will look to follow Kirby Dach, by posting the best point output of his career. Selected in the exact same draft as Cole Caufield and Kirby Dach, he is very young and struggled to emerge as a top-six centre behind Nathan MacKinnon in Colorado. The high expectations and a low tolerance for mistakes proved to disrupt the young St. John’s, Newfoundland., native’s development.

His speed and confidence with the puck are his calling card, and he is able to work the give-and-go with ease, burning past defenders, before receiving breakout passes. Newhook’s game is predicated on many of the things that his new head coach, Martin St. Louis used during his Hall of Fame career. Fast skating and brilliant puck skills allow him to find open ice to put his great shot to use, and his feisty style isn’t on par with St. Louis’, but he has a great toolkit.

Newhook was acquired by the Canadiens just ahead of the 2023 Draft, in a trade that saw the Canadiens send a 2023 first and second-round selection to the Avalanche. Along with Dach, Caufield and Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Newhook was also selected in the 2019 Draft at 16th overall, providing the Habs with four 22-year-olds to help with the rebuild.

The 2022-23 season was just Newhook’s second in the NHL, so he certainly didn’t get much time to prove to the Avalanche what he could be. A la Dach, Kent Hughes took a bit of a gamble, but Newhook will have ample opportunity under St. Louis’ tutelage. With some freedom to play his game, the former Boston College product will have ample time to renew his confidence.

It’s yet to be determined whether he will play on the wing or at centre, but you have to think that Hughes gave up a significant package for a reason, so a top-six role seems likely. Certainly, Caufield, Suzuki and Dach will fill three spots in the top six, but Newhook could form a nice duo with Dach, which would certainly benefit both players. The fifth and sixth forwards are also unknown, but the young group will welcome him with open arms, and I think it’s a fair bet that he will become an important part of the Habs’ future.

These five players, lead a group of promising young talent set to join Laval and the Habs, as early as this year, with some strong prospects developing in junior, the NCAA and across Europe. Training camp is upon us, and soon the young talent will battle for their spot on the Canadiens roster. And not all of them will make it, but the Rocket will have some great pieces that land there, which is going to help them in the bid for a playoff berth.

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