Avalanche acquires picks, defenseman from Canadiens

The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the organization has acquired a first-round selection (31st overall, previously acquired) and a second-round pick (37th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft, along with defenseman Gianni Fairbrother, from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for forward Alex Newhook.

Fairbrother, 22, was Montreal's third-round pick (77th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft. He missed the 2022-23 season due to a knee injury. The Vancouver, B.C., native spent four-plus seasons with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League (2016-21), where he served as team co-captain during his final year in 2020-21. The 6-foot, 204-pound blueliner made his professional debut with the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League at the end of the 2020-21 campaign and spent his first full AHL season with Laval in 2021-22. Fairbrother has eight points (1g/7a) in 28 career AHL games.

Newhook was selected by Colorado in the first round (16th overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft. He recorded 66 points (27g/39a) in 159 career games with the Avalanche and added seven points (1g/6a) in 27 postseason contests. The Saint John's, Newfoundland, native was a member of Colorado's 2022 Stanley Cup championship team.

The Avalanche now have two selections in the first round (No. 27 and 31), one in the second round (No. 37), as well as one in the fifth (No. 155), sixth (No. 187) and seventh (No. 219) rounds.