The Montreal Canadiens signed Alex Newhook to a four-year contract extension yesterday, and it was a good deal for both sides.
While everyone expected the Montreal Canadiens to sign Arber Xhekaj to a new contract, few, if any, expected another announcement: an extension for Alex Newhook. And yet, that’s exactly what happened. The Newfoundlander signed a four-year extension, which will see him earn $5.55 million per season. That’s a sizeable raise from the $2.9 million he was earning this season, but it’s still a very reasonable deal.
We weren’t on the line with Hughes and Newhook’s agent, so we don’t know for sure how those negotiations went, but the cap hit makes it clear Newhook agreed to slide exactly where he fits in the team’s salary structure. Despite the salary cap rising and the contracts we’ve seen signed left, right, and center in the last few days, Newhook’s salary is below that of the Canadiens’ main core players: Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Ivan Demidov, Lane Hutson, Noah Dobson, and Mike Matheson. They all have a higher cap hit than Newhook.
The message is clear, though: Newhook has passed his audition. When he joined the team after a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on the eve of the 2023 draft, he signed a four-year deal to show the organization what he could do. Like Kirby Dach, he has had injury issues over the years, missing 67 games over the first three years of his deal, but when he’s been in the lineup, he’s been reliable. In year one, he averaged 34 points in 55 games, 26 points in 82 games in year two, and 25 points in just 40 games last season. Playing with Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov, he had the best season of his career and was on pace for 51 points projected over an 82-game season. Newhook has got speed and skill, and he can play anywhere in the lineup, which makes him a very useful player.
That performance came at the right time, right before he became eligible for a contract extension, and his playoff contribution was essential to the Canadiens. The team won two Game 7s last spring, and Newhook scored the series-winning goal both times. Although he’s only 25, Newhook already won the Stanley Cup once with the Avalanche in his rookie season; he knows what it takes to reach the ultimate prize, and that matters.
While the organization and the winger haven’t commented on the deal yet, it will be interesting to find out who initiated talks. Did Newhook convince the Habs, and did they want to get the deal done right away, or did the player love what he saw in Montreal, want to stay, and not want to worry about a new contract this season? Either way, this is a great deal for the team given the league's current financial landscape, and once again, Hughes gets full marks for his negotiating.
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