Prospect Info: [2024 - 5th] Ivan Motherbleeping Demidov (RW), SKA St. Petersburg (MHL)

[montreal]

I agreed with you on Demidov skill. But at the same time, I don't buy the whole ''Demidov will be the best player on day 1''. Both Nick Suzuki and Caufield are in their prime age.

I have not doubt that Demidov will be in our PP1. I highly doubt is going to be in his first NHL game.

Take Michkov right now(example). He is the second best player in his team . Behind Konecny. Michkov points will put him behind Suzuki and Caufield with us. He will third or fourth (with Hutson).

Do you honestly believe Demidov will be better than Suzuki, Caufield (prime) and Hutson (second season) on day 1?

Demidov who turned 19 last month, could be leading the KHL in points. He could have crushed the KHL record for U-20 points. You never know how a player will adjust to the smaller ice and we need to see what kind of off-season does he have but yes he should be better then everyone on this team. I've been saying since last year that I think he's a bit better then Michkov who I think is going to be a bit better then Caufield.

But keep in mind, it's not about him being best on day 1, it's about what's the best way to develop him. If we landed Bedard at the draft, would you put him on the 2nd line and 2nd PP unit on day 1?

 

[ahmedou]

Exactly as I said just a week ago while everyone was happy he was on the 1st line and producing. One little excuse and he’s back to being benched by the moronic egomaniac. f*** Rotenberg

f*** Rotenberg!

All my HFHabs homies hate Rotenburg!

 

[the valiant effort]

Retarburd’s water carrier in 5…4…

 

[JustAHabFan]

If you are playing Demidov where is the redundancy Suzuki Laine Caufield or Hutson.
It would have to be one of the right handed trigger men IMO.

I think I will move Caufield to PP2.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

I think I will move Caufield to PP2.

Yeah even though CC is great there. I’m sure it won’t happen right away. Demidov will feast on the 2nd unit PKers regardless.

 

[Ezpz]

I think I will move Caufield to PP2.

Cole is two goals from second in the entire league in goals and nearly a point per game. Laine isn't consistent enough to build the entire PP around. The only thing that's certain is Slaf isn't going to be getting PP1 over Nick or Demidov and is currently behind both Cole and Laine.

Nick or Demidov probably end up moving out front with Laine and Cole on the sides.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

You never know how a player will adjust to the smaller ice and we need to see what kind of off-season does he have but yes he should be better then everyone on this team.

SKA Arena is 61m×25.9m. 1m longer and 10cm less wide than NHL regulation. There won't be much adaptation.

 

[themilosh]

I think I will move Caufield to PP2.

It was and is, always a decision as to which "small winger" we keep - which is why Caufield was kept over drafting Michkov. This is the ONLY reason we didnt draft him.

 

[montreal]

SKA Arena is 61m×25.9m. 1m longer and 10cm less wide than NHL regulation. There won't be much adaptation.

I should have said North American hockey since I knew the KHL switched to NHL sized rinks a few years ago

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

It was and is, always a decision as to which "small winger" we keep - which is why Caufield was kept over drafting Michkov. This is the ONLY reason we didnt draft him.

Highly unlikely. if they thought he was close to Bedard (talent and character) they would have drafted him and traded him or Caufield if necessary.

 

[Kennedys]

So he's back at playing 11-12 mins ?...

 

[rahad]

Demidov who turned 19 last month, could be leading the KHL in points. He could have crushed the KHL record for U-20 points. You never know how a player will adjust to the smaller ice and we need to see what kind of off-season does he have but yes he should be better then everyone on this team. I've been saying since last year that I think he's a bit better then Michkov who I think is going to be a bit better then Caufield.

But keep in mind, it's not about him being best on day 1, it's about what's the best way to develop him. If we landed Bedard at the draft, would you put him on the 2nd line and 2nd PP unit on day 1?

If your center is having a PPG season. Yes, I would start Bedard in the second line in his first NHL game. Make him earn that PP1 and #1 center role from Nick Suzuki. (like Hutson did with Matheson)

Suzuki is having a 80pts+ season at the age of 25. With a better team, I can see Nick Suzuki hitting the 90+ points next season. Caufield is in the top 10 in goals this year.

I have no doubt that Demidov will end up being our best forward one day. I just don't believe he will outperform our captain (in his prime) in his first season in the NHL.

 

[rahad]

Forget the Habs haters and Flyers fans, Michkov is inferior to Demidov and much less NHL ready. I won’t compare Bossy to Potvin. They’re on two different planes. But I think he’ll be better on Day 1 than the other forwards. Perhaps with 2 to 3 games feeling out process.

We will see next season what Demidov does. I just hope people are not building some high fantasy about a 19 years kid. The more I read here and the more I'm expecting him to score 100pts in his first nhl season.

Having Demidov score 65-80pts in his rookie season is a huge win for us.

I would give Demidov a slight edge over Michkov. His size (6ft1) is a huge advantage. Him Being a playmaker with a 2 snipers like Caufield and Laine would also help. Suzuki can also score! At the same time, the Flyers have a weak team. They don't have any good center for Michkov. They are very close in skills.

 

[themilosh]

Highly unlikely. if they thought he was close to Bedard (talent and character) they would have drafted him and traded him or Caufield if necessary.

I dont think they "thought" he was close to Bedard to begin with. At the draft the narrative (true or not) was whether he would even be in the NHL in 3 yrs. He's got flare (no doubt) but the league has already figured him out. You cant have a team full of small perimeter snipers, we already have one. They balanced the risk and went RHD.
Is RB the correct choice? Rn nope, total whiff..... but understand the logic, and you will understand that Michkov does not fit the mould of the current Habs.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

I dont think they "thought" he was close to Bedard to begin with. At the draft the narrative (true or not) was whether he would even be in the NHL in 3 yrs. He's got flare (no doubt) but the league has already figured him out. You cant have a team full of small perimeter snipers, we already have one. They balanced the risk and went RHD.
Is RB the correct choice? Rn nope, total whiff..... but understand the logic, and you will understand that Michkov does not fit the mould of the current Habs.

That is the point. They didn't believe Michkov was going to be a star. They did with Demidov. Anything negative said about Reinbacher is garbage (other than if you believe he is injury prone). He will liklely be a top 2 two way d.

 

[The Last Red]

That is the point. They didn't believe Michkov was going to be a star. They did with Demidov. Anything negative said about Reinbacher is garbage (other than if you believe he is injury prone). He will liklely be a top 2 two way d.

Holy wild speculation, Batman. None of us know whether they believed Michkov will be a star, nor does it matter. They chose, for whatever reason, to not draft him. We’ll know in a decade if that was a mistake, and whether Reinbacher will be top two way D.

 

[Rapala]

Cole is two goals from second in the entire league in goals and nearly a point per game. Laine isn't consistent enough to build the entire PP around. The only thing that's certain is Slaf isn't going to be getting PP1 over Nick or Demidov and is currently behind both Cole and Laine.

Nick or Demidov probably end up moving out front with Laine and Cole on the sides.

You might want to check your facts. 9 goals in how many actual PP attempts. We've Never has anyone as consistent as Laine on our PP.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Holy wild speculation, Batman. None of us know whether they believed Michkov will be a star, nor does it matter. They chose, for whatever reason, to not draft him. We’ll know in a decade if that was a mistake, and whether Reinbacher will be top two way D.

Yes we know HuGo didn't think so. They aren't stupid,. If they thought he was close to Bedard level they would have drafted him. So either they didn't rate him that high or he was being an asshole and refusing to report if he was drafted. If he would only sign with Philadelphia then they wouldn't likely get anything as good as Reinbacher in a trade.

 

[themilosh]

It's good honestly, I didn't mind that one
Just a taaaad long maybe lol

What do you think @Habs

Branch Demidian

 

[Zalos]

I don't get why people are so bothered by how our PP will look with Demidov here. Having 'too many' talented players is a good problem to have. It means you can switch the game plan if needed, forcing the opposite teams to adapt on the fly. You can also build two pretty good PP waves.

I'm sure the PP lines will evolve depending on which players have good chemistry together. I think Hutson has a guaranteed slot on PP1 for the next decade. Laine seems to have more success with one timers than Caufield on the PP, so if he remains with us I'd keep Laine on PP1. Suzuki definitely has a spot on there too. He's our first center for the foreseeable future.

So that leaves two slots on PP1 that they can rotate players in: Caufield, Slaf, Demidov, Dach, maybe even Hage later on. Imo, you just go with what seems to work at the time.

You could end up with two PP waves like...

Laine-Dach-Demidov
Suzuki-Hutson

Caufield-Slaf-Hudon/Newhook
Hage/Guhle-Matheson/Mailloux

 

[jaffy27]

Who da f*** is Hudon? @Zalos

 

[Ezpz]

You might want to check your facts. 9 goals in how many actual PP attempts. We've Never has anyone as consistent as Laine on our PP.

He'll have a cold streak eventually.

 

[26Mats]

I would have loved to get Cole just because his trade value would have been much higher than the position he was drafted in. Pickup the best asset available, no?

(then again, if he doesn't sign a contract with us, his value drops in a trade)

Hard to see Cole not sign a contract to play with his brother, even knowing his father's comments.

 

[Next Best Thing]

Demidov?

 

[SpeedyPotato]

I don't get why people are so bothered by how our PP will look with Demidov here. Having 'too many' talented players is a good problem to have. It means you can switch the game plan if needed, forcing the opposite teams to adapt on the fly. You can also build two pretty good PP waves.

I'm sure the PP lines will evolve depending on which players have good chemistry together. I think Hutson has a guaranteed slot on PP1 for the next decade. Laine seems to have more success with one timers than Caufield on the PP, so if he remains with us I'd keep Laine on PP1. Suzuki definitely has a spot on there too. He's our first center for the foreseeable future.

So that leaves two slots on PP1 that they can rotate players in: Caufield, Slaf, Demidov, Dach, maybe even Hage later on. Imo, you just go with what seems to work at the time.

You could end up with two PP waves like...

Laine-Dach-Demidov
Suzuki-Hutson

Caufield-Slaf-Hudon/Newhook
Hage/Guhle-Matheson/Mailloux

Hudon? Is he our best prospect again?