Your going way way overboard over a third liner , non impact playerThis is why discussing contracts with you is impossible. You have such a poor understanding of contracts and what they mean.
There's no such thing as a crippling contract on a bottom feeding team. What is the "crippling" contract preventing those bad teams from doing? Crippling implies that it severely limits or deprives the ability to function normally. A crippling contract is Darnell Nurse on the Oilers.
Giving Newhook a two, four, six year contract changes nothing on this team's cap for the duration of his tenure here during said contracts. He had no leverage to ask for significantly more money and I'm told by some here that NHLers love security to avoid all those career ending injuries you see on a nightly basis. Sarcasm intended.
The length on the contract, however, completely changes the outlook of what you can do with Newhook in the future and, most importantly, how many years you can have exclusive control over him.
A two year contract: Maybe he improves, maybe he stays the same, maybe he regresses. If he improves or stays the same, he's 24 when his contract ends, all options are on the table for contract length as he'll be a RFA. If he's bad, cut him loose and move on to the next player, or try to sign him at an amount lower than the qualifying offer.
A six year contract. Contract ends when he's 28 and he's a UFA. (Remember the rule about forwards reaching their late 20s / early 30s? It's vital to know this rule if you're a manager.) Regardless of how he plays, this team is going to mostly suck during the duration of that whole contract. If he's good the whole time, great. You trade him with a year or two remaining in his contract to recoup some future prospects. Under no circumstances do you re-sign him.
We chose to give him a four year contract, which was the worst option of all. He'll be 26 and a RFA, with one year of hockey left before he becomes a UFA. If he's good, he'll want his retirement contract at a duration of 6-7-8 years and significantly more money than the $2.9M he's making now. If he's not good, he rights might get traded or we might just not even qualify him.
The main problem is, by the end of that contract, that should be around the time this team is starting to become competitive (in theory, not so sure in practice) and we can't afford to give him the money and/or term he wants.
Hugo simply lets him walk if he stinks , same as Dach