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Canadiens Wrap

Habs Wrap: Demidov Highlights, Fans Rebuild Vote, Prospect Tiers

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montreal canadiens ivan demidov

MONTREAL — There’s always Montreal Canadiens content to absorb, but there are only so many hours in a day. On Sundays, we recap the most exciting and relevant NHL news stories that you may have missed throughout the week so that you can stay in the Canadiens loop.

Monday

By adding players such as Ivan Demidov and Michael Hage to the prospect pool the Habs have adding an important element of quality to the high quantity of prospects in the system. Consequently, the team is described by a recent NHL prospect pool ranking as a “… a nearly perfect pool that doesn’t need much of anything else at this point.“‘  [Montreal Canadiens Prospect Pool Among Best In NHL]

The Montreal Canadiens made news when traded to move up five spots a few hours before the 2024 NHL draft, securing the 21st overall pick. After much debate about the goal of the trade, the Habs used the pick to select forward Michael Hage, a player Kent Hughes said was their target all along. Take a look at why the Habs brass believe they’ve added a key player to the team’s rebuild. [Canadiens Top Prospects: Michael Hage’s Road To The NHL]

Development camp gave young players an opportunity to make a name for themselves as they learn what it take to make it to the next step in their hockey careers. Several Canadiens prospects stood out, including Hage, Florian Xhekaj, and Tyler Thorpe. [Canadiens Prospect Highlights: Hage, Xhekaj, & Thorpe Standout]

Tuesday

It’s already been two years since the Habs shocked some by picking Juraj Slafkovsky first overall at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.

The KHL announced it would be run independently of the Russian Hockey Federation (FHR), a significant change when it comes to the governing body of the top Russian hockey league. The KHL also announced they would officially honour foreign contracts, though it’s fair to say the league was already honouring NHL contracts under the FHR umbrella. Teams are free to come to agreements with KHL teams when it comes to particular players. This doesn’t mean top Habs prospect Ivan Demidov is on his way to Canada, but it does point to the possibility that the Montreal Canadiens will enter a transfer discussion with SKA St. Petersburg. [KHL And FHR Changes – Impact on Canadiens Prospect Demidov]

On Tuesday we revealed the first edition of our Montreal Canadiens Prospect Tiers, with five different tiers being established for the numerous Habs prospects in the organization. Ivan Demidov is one of two blue chip prospects, while the rest of the list is certainly up for debate. Check out the rankings and make sure to leave a comment if you agree or disagree with where we placed certain prospects. Don’t forget to keep it respectful in the comments, even if you vehemently disagree with someone. [Montreal Canadiens 2024 Prospect Tiers – NHL Potential]

NHL players are enjoying a well-deserved summer off from on-ice activities, but that doesn’t mean they can’t carve out a little time for the many young Habs fans around the world, as did Arber Xhekaj this weekend. 

Wednesday

Former Hab Torrey Mitchell had current Hab Lane Hutson on his podcast. They discussed a variety of topics, including Cole Caufield’s goal-scoring ability and the excitement that came with signing his first NHL contract.

We asked Montreal Canadiens fans to share their opinions on the state of the rebuild in our latest series of polls.  A strong level of support was to be expected, but the clear message from the fans is that they’re overwhelmingly satisfied when it comes to trades, drafting, and developing prospects. It was a clear endorsement of Kent Hughes, Jeff Gorton, and the rest of the management team. [Montreal Canadiens Fans Vote – Results For The State Of The Rebuild]

Former Hab Peter Budaj has found a new home in the NHL. He will serve as the Anaheim Ducks NHL goaltending coach. [NHL]

As it stands there’s been no word the Canadiens are interested in signing a restricted free agent to an offer sheet, but it’s worth noting they do have the assets necessary to put some pressure on a few teams if the right opportunity presents itself.

Thursday

While we turn the corner toward the dog days of summer, it’s worth keeping in mind there are only three months until the next Habs game.

CapFriendly has officially gone the way of the dodo, but there’s already an alternative in place that should serve as a great replacement for salary cap information. [Alternative Salary Cap Website After Cap Friendly Goes Dark]

No one will dispute he’s a great hockey player, but I’m not sure there’s a Hollywood career in Cole Caufield’s future.

There’s no doubt the future is bright when it comes to the state of the Montreal Canadiens rebuild. They’re turning the corner toward what could be considered the next step in the rebuild, but patience will be in order as the team slowly builds a lineup that will eventually be considered a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. [Canadiens Analysis Canadiens 2024-25 Outlook: A Realistic Approach To The Rebuild]

Friday

It’s always fun to take a look at just some of Ivan Demidov’s many, many highlights during his time in the MHL. For sanity’s sake, we should probably resist the urge to overrate him, but I’d be lying if I said his style of play did not remind me of a certain Russian forward who was a dominant presence in the NHL during the 1990s.

Speaking of Demidov, SDPN’s live reaction to the draft pick is rather telling when we consider they’re diehard Toronto Maple Leafs fans.

Bogdan Konyushkov was a relatively unknown player in Canada when the Habs picked him in the fourth round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, but the smooth-skating prospect has certainly caught the attention of fans due to the heavy workload he was given at such a young age. His coach, Igor Larionov, was not hesitated when it comes to giving him as much ice time as possible. He even handed the captaincy to the 21-year-old defenceman midway through the season.

Saturday

Montreal and Boston are set to co-host the 2025 ‘4 Nations Face-Off’ tournament being held by the NHL in February. While the Bruins should be represented by Jeremy Swayman, Charlie McAvoy, Elias Lindholm, and Brad Marchand, the Canadiens will be lucky to have one or two representatives taking part, with a legitimate risk no Hab will be invited to represent their country.  [Potential Canadiens At The NHL Four Nations Faceoff Tournament]

Carey Price and Shea Weber are set to be inducted into the British Columbia Hockey Hall of Fame. This is the second such announcement for Weber in recent weeks, as he was part of the 2024 Hockey Hall of Fame induction class, alongside Pavel Datsyuk, Jeremy Roenick, Natalie Darwitz, Kristy Wendell-Phil, David Poile, and 2011 playoff MVP Colin Campbell.  [Shea Weber Inducted To Hockey Hall Of Fame]

It’s always interesting to look back at how some Montreal Canadiens players were rated early in their careers. We all know Guy Lafleur was highly criticized during his first few seasons with the Habs. Andrew Zadarnowski pulled out an interesting example of a columnist shaming one of his readers for suggesting Maurice Richard should even be considered a player who could be mentioned alongside the Stratford Streak, club legend Howie Morenz. There’s no doubt Morenz was one of the most influential and talented players to wear La Saint-Flannelle, but we all know Richard became the eternal face of the franchise once he scored 50 goals in 50 games. The Rocket was also seen as a hero for the quiet revolution that took hold of the province shortly afterwards.

There’s roughly three months until Canadiens hockey is back on the menu, which gives us plenty of time to overdose on Ivan Demidov highlights. You’ll note this has become a semi-regular feature in the daily links. Some may suggest it’s not healthy to ingest so many prospect highlights, but some also suggest pineapple on pizza is only appreciated by people with advanced palates. Let’s be honest, it’s an unholy creation made for those who really just miss Pizza Hut dessert pizza and have the taste buds of a sugar-crazed teenager, but I feel like we may be getting off-topic slightly.

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