It could end up being a marketing boom. Demidov takes #91 to start his career and lots of jerseys get sold. Then Gallagher is gone two years later, Demidov switches to #11, and all those people with #91 jerseys buy a new one. Cha-ching!
Come on bro. Gomez wore it in between. Tarnishing had already been done lol
I wonder if it's counter productive from a marketing perspective. Hear me out. Demidov taking 11 means everyone with a Gallagher jersey (and there are a lot) can simply change the name plate. If they want to make money, you get Demidov to take #91
They might not be lying. We were told there was a few teams who didn't have Demidov in their top 5.
I was thinking he was taking Gomez number, lol. Or call it failure 2.0. First year of Gomy it was nice, but after ...
And they can’t market him if he wears say… number 15?
Demidov “chooses another number out of respect?”
Exactly. If he wants the number so bad, he can wait for it.
Why are you acting as if Gallagher wasn’t a great player and fan favourite for years? He wasn’t a plug… it was also Gomez’ number
If you’re a highly touted, offensive player, yes. You don’t think limited ice time, playing with scrubs, no PP time would hurt your development? There are a ton of posts of people bitching about prospects ice time and not getting opportunities. Why would a Khl team focus on some kid who may or may not be around for the year as opposed to another guy that will? In the end, I could be wrong (hope I am) but let’s see what shakes out this season.
It's not that big of a step IF you do not expect him to dominate. Juraj did make the move to the NHL early. I think it is fine if the player is developping.
I would like him to play in Laval not only to get used to the NA way of playing the game but to also spend an extra year with future teammates. That time is invaluable. I also believe the AHL is a better league than the K these days.
If we could get him to NA right away I think that would be a huge win. If you can control his development why wouldn't you?
Tij Iginla the powerful powerforward who's not a powerforward at all
The major difference is that Slaf spent his draft season in a pro league playing against men, plus the WC and olympics. Demidov would be going from a junior league a notch under the CHL to playing against the best pros in the world. He's ultra talented, but it's a lot to ask IMO. I don't thnik spending half a season in Laval to help with the transition would be the end of the world. Had he gotten some VHL/KHL experience, I would have been perfectly fine with him playing in the NHL right away.
I disagree on 11. It’s not koivu’s #11, even if he wore it. I think it was a good move to move on from a dark era.
