Mostly delt with wire twisters on balers, but the last years have adjusted several twine knotters. The first step is delivering the twine to the knotter with the needle. So if the twine is not there to be picked up it is waste of time adjusting other parts.

In the past the unfindable part has been found by asking here. So I wish you luck in finding a needle, that is correct.

In my option the guy that put the wrong needle in and then sold to an inexperienced person should be dumped head first into the baler. But then again maybe they were that dumb themselves and really thought it would work. 

In the picture below you can see, for instance, how both curves have the same overall length (27 15/16"), but because the green one's bent into a slightly tighter radius, it only measure 24" point-to-point, versus the yellow one which is 25".

A non prefect needle will work so long as it delivers the twine to the right place for the  other knotter parts to pick it up as was intended.

Many other manufacturers (like many NH models) used cast needles, others use aluminum. These typically break rather than bend. I'm assuming the 444 is similar to the 442, however, which uses formed/stamped steel needles, which I like better as they're stronger and more ductile (less brittle and likely to crack), and can also be welded easier if they break.

I'd try tripping the knotter manually rolling the baler over watching the needles deliver twine to the cam discs. As Ray54 mentioned, as long as they deliver the twine in-line with the grooves in the discs (and as long as the groves in the discs are aligned), you should be ok.