Habs highest picks are younger. Demidov (4 drafts after Raymond) meeting Lucas Raymond level ability is far from a crazy ask.
So its not crazy to say Demidov could meet Raymond's ability, but its crazy to say Kasper will meet Suzuki's?
Now they are two drafts apart. Drafted within the same let's call it section of the draft. One was 5th overall the other 8th overall.
Though their age difference is just 1 year and 8 months.
Neither of the guys development will normally be completely linear.
Yes Demidov performed better in KHL than Kasper did in SHL.
Keeping in mind, SHL usually is harder on young players than KHL.
Now Kasper did one year in the AHL to adapt better to the North American style.
While Montreal could do the same, I don't think they will with Demidov. I think they will put him in NHL from the beginning of next season. So in that sense, I believe Montreal have been better at tossing their players out in the deep end and see how it goes. Now, it doesn't automatically mean even though timeline wise compared to age, that Demidov will be best long term, there is an advantage there, though it could also be you'd see more inconsistencies in his game next season if he is staying up which is the more likely option.
Now, personally I do think Demidov will be better offensively than Kasper in terms of production, but will his full game be so much better than Kasper that it would offset how Kasper will be better defensively? It waits to be seen, its an interesting sort of duel here.
The “Yzerplan” — referring to Detroit Red Wings General Manager Steve Yzerman’s long-term rebuild plan — is often said to be failing by critics for a few key reasons:
1. Lack of True Elite Talent
• Despite several years of high draft picks (Moritz Seider, Lucas Raymond, etc.), the Red Wings have not landed or developed a game-breaking superstar like Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, or Auston Matthews.
• Seider and Raymond are very good players, but critics argue that they are not franchise-carrying talents — more like high-end complementary pieces.
• Missing on lottery wins (e.g., falling out of the top three multiple years) hurt, but other teams have managed to draft or develop elite players even without No. 1 picks.
I would say Seider and Raymond are true elite talent.
Will they be game-breaking superstars? That waits to be seen, only a select few get to that level.
Pretty sure Seider will be one of the better number 1 d-men in the league when he can settle with one or max two d-men partners and the team also gets better.
And your game-breaking superstars have 1 cup among them so far, so its not a complete necessity to gain them, even though yes obviously it would be helpful to have one.
2. Mid-Tier Veterans Blocking Growth
• Yzerman has brought in a lot of mid-level veterans (Andrew Copp, JT Compher, Jeff Petry, Ben Chiarot) on fairly expensive deals.
• Critics argue these players block younger prospects and lock the team into mediocrity rather than bottoming out for elite talent.
• This creates a “good enough to not be terrible, not good enough to contend” treadmill.
I agree on this one. That the team has too many and that the "earn your spot" argument that used to be in the past, and still is to a degree, to me more often than not is partially a wrong approach.
Now I don't disagree with that term, that you should earn it per se, but I like teams who put players in a position to give them the opportunity to win. Meaning, put players in positions where their strongest capabilities comes to its right, then develop the other aspects along the way. Which, Montreal for now might be better at. Also when you have those spots open, through the youth in there and see if they handle it.
Detroit signing mid-tier veterans I think it is okay, but they signed too many which in turn as you mention block the paths a little. There is also a fear of tossing someone out there too early, which I think is a little bit part of Detroit's history cause they in the past could afford to do so, with their team always being in the upper end of the league.
3. Goaltending Instability
• Detroit has lacked a true No. 1 goalie throughout the rebuild. Ville Husso showed flashes but has struggled with injuries and consistency.
• Without elite or even consistently strong goaltending, the team has a low ceiling no matter how improved the roster is.
Ville Husso is no longer on the team.
But yes, the team need better goaltending.
Funnily enough its on this position they have gone a bit opposite than the rest. Well the same in terms of shorter term contracts on veterans as with other positions, but opposite in terms of not going out and getting a long term option, as it looks like they want to see whether Cossa or Augustine, or both, can be "the guy" long term.
4. Inconsistent Drafting and Prospect Development
• Early Yzerman drafts (especially 2020) are looking weaker than hoped. Picks like Lucas Raymond were hits, but others (e.g., William Wallinder, Shai Buium) have not turned into surefire NHLers yet.
• Prospect pool depth is good, but the star power pipeline is questionable.
Drafting wise, its been pretty consistent. 1st round been solid. 2nd and below waits to be seen, hopefully they don't go about it from the perspective of overriping(?) many. Again, give them chances to take the spots. If it fails, okay go out spending a pick or sign in the next offseasons.
5. The Atlantic Division is Brutal
• Detroit’s rebuild is happening in the hardest division in hockey.
• Tampa, Toronto, Boston, and now Florida are powerhouses; Ottawa, Buffalo, and Montreal are also rebuilding and jockeying for the same window.
• Even if Detroit improves, there are fewer playoff spots available, making the rebuild look slower or worse than it might otherwise.
True the Atlantic is brutal at the moment. Florida, Tampa and Toronto are solid. Tampa keep at it with some re-tool to stay up there and doing well so far. Boston are re-tooling and might stay up there. Montreal, Ottawa, Buffalo and Detroit are all in the same spectre of having tools, but not full toolbox. It's key for any of them to come out of that with the right structure.
Long term hard to see who it will be, as its been changing from season to season. This season Ottawa had the most points and better end, then Montreal looks like they are closer to their long term solutions which have potential to be better than Ottawa. Then Detroit has the pieces if they develop to as a team be better than both. Then you got Buffalo which is in the mix as well.
6. Mixed Messages on Rebuild Timeline
• After years of slow patient moves, Yzerman’s big spending in 2022 and 2023 (free agency and trades) suggested a pivot toward winning.
• Yet the results haven’t caught up, leaving fans confused whether the team is rebuilding, retooling, or trying to contend now.
No one is thinking they are re-tooling or trying to contend now.
Point of it was, they weren't bad enough to tank to the bottom anymore. So they wanted to compete for playoff spot. Which they have been. But, its like you mentioned. You don't want to get stuck in this territory for too long, however, you also want to let time be on your side and let the youths you think will take spots, grow enough to take those. Whether that takes 1-2-3 more years we shall see.
In short:
The Yzerplan isn’t a total disaster — Detroit is much better than when he took over — but it’s failing to produce a true Stanley Cup contender so far because there’s no superstar, the depth is “pretty good but not great,” the path to improvement is blocked by mid-tier veterans, and the Atlantic Division is punishing. It feels stuck between two worlds: not rebuilding hard enough to get elite talent, but not winning enough to validate the veteran signings.
There is no "superstar" on Montreal, Ottawa, Detroit, Buffalo or Boston. All teams are in the same boat when it comes to generational talent. Though, there is potentials within the rosters where all teams have players who can become so. I would say each team got what we can consider stars within the league.
