Hutson Sets The Bar For Canadiens Rebuild, Demidov

Now that Montreal Canadiens defenceman Lane Hutson has taken home a well-deserved Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie, fans and management alike turn to the next step of the team’s long-term rebuild plans.

ON TOPIC: Lane Hutson Calder Trophy Win A Fitting Reward

By making the playoffs in 2024-25, the Habs have elevated expectations, an encouraging, if not complicated situation for a team that is not quite yet done constructing its roster.

The Right Attitude

Every night Hutson managed to impress with his borderline wizardry, he was flooded with questions from reporters about his individual performance.

WOW!

End-to-end beauty!!

It’s Lane Hutson’s world, we’re just living in it.

2-1 #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/kdPirGJei2

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) April 6, 2025

Win or lose, Hutson was quick to shift any credit to his fellow Canadiens players, while discussing the importance of improving from a team standpoint.

The former is simply smart PR by a player who is wise beyond his years, while the latter is the exact type of attitude the Habs must embrace if they’re to maintain an upward trajectory.

A perfect example of such dedication was his Calder Trophy press conference, which clearly took place at a local rink, Hutson’s natural habitat. Few players can match his production on the ice, and even fewer can match his endless desire to improve on a daily basis.

Écoutez les propos en direct de Lane Hutson, qui s’adresse aux médias après avoir remporté le trophée Calder 2025

Tune in now as Lane Hutson addresses the media after winning the 2025 Calder Memorial Trophy #GoHabsGo https://t.co/bOk2AO0Xla

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) June 10, 2025

“When you do something you love, and you get to do it, it’s not really work,” explained Hutson. “I want to help the team any way I can. I really enjoy it, and I really have fun doing it.”

As for what drives his passion, it’s clear that Hutson is hoping to push the team to new heights. Individual awards are a nice bonus, but far from the end-game for Hutson and the Canadiens.

“I think the feeling of winning hockey games, playing at the highest level, doing it in repeatable ways, the right way, drives me to want to help the team win, and be part of a winning culture.”

After taking a very brief break, Hutson is already focused on improving some of his weaknesses, a topic he does not hesitate to discuss.

“I took a little time off, and then got back on the ice to make sure I still got it. I will always try to stay in the weight room, to put on as much muscle as I can. For me, over the summer, I want to get faster, stronger, and really mentally get ready, get focused. Just find a way to bring my best every day.”

Again, his comments speak volumes.

Despite putting together one of the best rookie seasons from an NHL defenceman in league history, the highly-skilled defenceman wants to improve upon his few weak points to ensure the Canadiens can once again participate in the playoffs.

Simply put, he’s hungry for more team success, with the individual accolades serving as an afterthought.

“As a group, we fought till the end, until game 82, and got a playoff spot,” he explained. “Fighting until the end was pretty awesome, I’d love to still be playing now, but playing in the playoffs and getting that experience, I am definitely happy we got there, but I’m not satisfied with that.”

Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks

With top prospect Ivan Demidov set to attend his very first NHL training camp, much of the attention will shift to his game-changing potential, the exact type of presence the Canadiens need to add to their top-six.

Of course, no one expects Demidov to dominate that Calder Trophy votes next season, though that isn’t out of the question. More than anything, Demidov represents one of the final pieces the Habs must put in place before they can turn their attention to detailed-orientated issues, such as fine-tuning the roster.

Fortunately, he possesses the same type of attitude as Hutson, in that he’s never satisfied with individual accolades as long as the team he plays for is not enjoying a high level of success.

“When people are in their comfort zone, they have no pressure,” he said. “It’s bad for their development. That’s why, for me, Montreal is a really great city.”

A lot like Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield before him, Demidov is not just embracing the pressure he will face in Montreal.

He treats it as a privilege, the exact type of attitude you must have to thrive in a hockey-crazed market.

It’s also the right state of mind when you realize the margins between winning and losing are razor-thin. A consistent effort is required, not to mention an insatiable appetite for improvement.

There are no guarantees the Montreal Canadiens will once again make the playoffs in 2025-26, but with young players like Hutson and Demidov in the mix we can safely say there will be very few passengers in the lineup.