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Habs Daily: Demidov Ice Time Dilemma, Hutson Excels, Laine

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montreal canadiens forward ivan demidov prospect

Here are the Montreal Canadiens news items, highlights, and stories you may have missed on Thursday.

Montreal Canadiens News

Top prospect Ivan Demidov’s situation in the KHL is far from ideal, to say the least. While it’s normal to expect a young player to work his way up the lineup, SKA Saint-Petersburg rewarded Demidov’s strong start to his professional career by cutting his ice time drastically. Since the time he was named the Rookie Of The Month to now, Demidov has been given very few opportunities, equating to about four minutes of ice time per game. To make matters worse, Demidov’s rare shifts take place with four liners, as he was also relegated to the bottom of the lineup.

Demidov was held scoreless on Thursday in SKA’s 4-2 loss to Dinamo Minsk, though he was only given four shifts throughout the entire game. It should be noted SKA was struggling to create scoring chances on their way to being out shot significantly, to the tune of 39-23. As a reminder, SKA has one of the best and most expensive lineups in the league, but are currently a mid-pack team, as head coach Roman Rotenberg has been out coached on several occasions.

This is the exact same treatment SKA gave to Matvei Michkov before they loaned him to Sochi, but that’s not an option in Demidov’s case, as players with just one year remaining in their contract cannot be loaned in the KHL.

Oliver Kapanen made his NHL debut on Thursday, playing on the fourth line alongside Jake Evans and Brendan Gallagher. The only other lineup change ahead of the game versus the Boston Bruins was goaltender Cayden Primeau replacing Samuel Montembeault, as it was the team’s second game in as many nights. [Oliver Kapanen Set To Make NHL Debut]

The Habs lost, but rookie Lane Hutson stole the show for the Canadiens on Thursday night, producing two assists to push his NHL totals to four points in four games. Even at this very early stage of his career it’s clear Hutson is one of the most talented players in the lineup, and often times, the ice. His ability to drive the offence via excellent play in transition will be a boon for this team for years to come. On the flip side of the age equation, veteran Brendan Gallagher put together yet another solid performance, a common theme since the midway point of the 2023-24 season. [Canadiens Instant Recap: Lane Hutson Shines In Defeat To Bruins]

The strong start to Hutson’s NHL career puts him in some very good Montreal Canadiens company.


Patrik Laine is doing his best to maintain a positive attitude while he deals with his knee injury. The strong support from Habs fans will do a lot of good from a mental health standpoint.

National Hockey Now Network

Red Wings goalie Ville Husso still hasn’t played a 60-minute NHL game since Dec. 14. He didn’t pull his groin muscle again, but he did get pulled. [Detroit Red Wings]

The Buffalo Sabres cannot win games by scoring one goal a night, as head coach Lindy Ruff pointed out Thursday postgame. The team’s lack of production, despite numerous grade-A scoring chances, cost them a win against the Los Angeles Kings. [Buffalo Sabres]

The Philadelphia Flyers had a number of young defence prospects pushing for an NHL roster spot out of training camp. [Philadelphia Flyers]

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