F Ivan Demidov - SKA St. Petersburg, KHL (2024, 5th, MTL)

[Kshahdoo]

Yes, that's been about what I'm imagining. The worst MHL teams look worse, by my eye, than any CHL or even USHL opponents. But the best ones look good. And a lot of the MHL goalies are better than any CHL goalie.

MHL is very defensive league, many teams play traps. That's why Demidov's scoring is so impressive.

And don't forget about new division system in the league. Gold and Silver Divisions mean that teams play 2/3 games vs the same division teams and 1/3 games vs the other division teams. Gold Division is top 18 teams, and Silver is bottom 19 teams (overall 37 teams in two conferences). So Gold Division teams have higher, and Silver Division teams have lower than average MHL level opposition.

Of course, it's about the regular tournament only.

 

[SlafySZN]

His skating will take him to the moon.

His edges are so nice to watch

 

[rt]

Would be great if Arizona will draft him with desire to play for Arizona from Demidov's side. Arizona fans deserves happiness and fun product.

Of course if he sleeps because of Russian factor, I will be happy to see Devils draft him. But I see only 2-3 idiotic gms ahead of us, not 5-6.

Thanks for your post. I want to make sure I understand, are you saying that Demidov does or does not want to play for Arizona?

 

[Guadana]

Thanks for your post. I want to make sure I understand, are you saying that Demidov does or does not want to play for Arizona?

I dont think it should be a problem for him. At least for now we know nothing about it. But and Simashev are close to his age, players know each other, overall Demidov wanted to play in NHL as soon as possible.

 

[Dr Jablonski PhD]

Reminder that Michkov only had 7 points in 5 games in MHL playoffs last year. Demidov is legit.

is this a serious comment

 

[WeThreeKings]

is this a serious comment

Yes, Demidov is better than Michkov.

 

[Kshahdoo]

Yes, Demidov is better than Michkov.

Do you have any proves?

 

[Fight4yourRight]

Do you have any proves?

He’s a Habs fan. That’s why Demidov is better than Michkov.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Do you have any proves?

Yeah, I've watched them both and Demidov shows up in all 3 zones while being similarly potent offensively.

He’s a Habs fan. That’s why Demidov is better than Michkov.

We aren't gonna get either so not sure what that has to do with anything. I had Michkov behind only Bedard and Carlsson last year.

 

[Stewie Griffin]

I'm torn on whether or not I would want Sharks to take him 2OA. On one hand, the talent is there, and having him and Smith on different lines in the top-6 would be very fun to have (combined with whoever else we get over the next few years). But considering the playmakers we've taken the last few years in Eklund, Smith, Musty, etc. it gets to the point where we need to diversify the prospect pool. Whether that's a sniper, defenseman, whatever...you won't win if your team is all good at the same thing. I don't think Demidov is the clear cut 2nd best player, or if he is, it's not a large enough gap for me to easily pick him over a defenseman.

 

[Dr Jablonski PhD]

Yes, Demidov is better than Michkov.

bio/location checks out

 

[WeThreeKings]

bio/location checks out

What does that even mean lmfao

bio/location checks out

Ah I get now, you're a Flyers fan so anything that doesn't anoint Michkov as a Bedard comp is sacrilege.

There's plenty of people who think Demidov is better or a more project able NHLer, while understanding Michkov has the higher offensive upside.

 

[coooldude]

I hate to burst people's bubbles, but there is indeed a discussion as to whether Demidov or Michkov is better. I personally think Michkov has proven a lot more than the Demidov truthers are acknowledging, but I also see Michkov truthers thinking it's nonsense to raise the question when it is not.

THN: https://thehockeynews.com/news/nhl-...rini-vs-fantilli-michkov-vs-demidov-and-more#

EP Rinkside: Would you rather have Matvei Michkov or Ivan Demidov?

Both of these are from the last few months.

 

[cheechoo]

Superstar.

 

[Dr Jablonski PhD]

What does that even mean lmfao



Ah I get now, you're a Flyers fan so anything that doesn't anoint Michkov as a Bedard comp is sacrilege.

There's plenty of people who think Demidov is better or a more project able NHLer, while understanding Michkov has the higher offensive upside.

It's more like .. if the Habs drafted Michkov you would not be so plainly saying "Demidov is better than Michkov". It's ridiculous

I had plenty of criticisms for Michkov this season, and I don't think he's as good as Bedard.

But the Demidov > thing is just ridiculous. He's still at the same stage as Michkov was two damn years ago. Demidov doesn't even have one point in the VHL. Michkov was so immediately good in a small VHL sample in his DY that he forced a KHL loan in December. And Demidov couldn't even keep his spot on the VHL team

David St. Louis recently wrote an article on Demidov vs Michkov that completely invalidated his opinion. He essentially said Michkov is too selfish and focused on individual efforts. It just goes to show that he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about when it comes to Michkov, who just had a season that was one of the most unselfish seasons I've ever seen, given the quality of teammates he was dealing with. He reduced his game to skin and bones this year .. IQ and playmaking .. because his explosiveness was neutered due to having persistent pneumonia for 3/4 of the season

There's also the point that Michkov has the ability to switch between an individual effort, goal scoring type of player .. to a 100% playmaking player .. to even a two-way defensively minded player if he wants to. What I saw from Michkov in the SKA preseason was mind boggling. He looked like a two-way center. It's all about where he chooses to focus his efforts.

To summarize, Matvei broke the D+1 KHL record by a lot, while playing on a team with zero chemistry, while only on the PP2 unit anchored by Volkov, while dealing with persistent pneumonia for 80% of the season, while playing as a shell of himself and reaching insane levels of unselfishness. And you have the audacity to plainly say Demidov, who couldn't even keep his spot on the VHL team, is plainly better than Michkov? Ok, got it

 

[montreal]

When you look at Demidov vs Michkov, to me I would take Demidov over Mickhov in the hopes that if Demidov physically matures to fill out his lanky frame and vastly improve his lower body strength, he's going to be a force. I would expect Demidov to have better skating, speed, size then Michkov.

People can be lazy and just think it's because I'm a Habs fan. I did not want Reinbacher or Michkov or Slaf or Wright, and at the end of the day I could care less who they pick if it ends up helping the Habs win. Now if you look at the Habs drafting since 2008 then you can see why we are in the situation we are in as we hired the wrong coaches for many many years, bad GMs', terrible development and drafting. Now we have to hope the new group is better then the last and only time will tell. If Michkov ends up being the better pick then so be it as it's not like the Habs haven't made a ton of mistakes at the draft before.

Both are fun players to watch but I just like Demidov's game more in terms of the NHL.

 

[bert]

He’s a Habs fan. That’s why Demidov is better than Michkov.

Wright was also better than Slafkovsky. Habs fans knew better, and it would be career suicide for the GM not to listen to them. Or so im told.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

When you look at Demidov vs Michkov, to me I would take Demidov over Mickhov in the hopes that if Demidov physically matures to fill out his lanky frame and vastly improve his lower body strength, he's going to be a force. I would expect Demidov to have better skating, speed, size then Michkov.

People can be lazy and just think it's because I'm a Habs fan. I did not want Reinbacher or Michkov or Slaf or Wright, and at the end of the day I could care less who they pick if it ends up helping the Habs win. Now if you look at the Habs drafting since 2008 then you can see why we are in the situation we are in as we hired the wrong coaches for many many years, bad GMs', terrible development and drafting. Now we have to hope the new group is better then the last and only time will tell. If Michkov ends up being the better pick then so be it as it's not like the Habs haven't made a ton of mistakes at the draft before.

Both are fun players to watch but I just like Demidov's game more in terms of the NHL.

I definitely wouldn’t accuse you of that. Your reputation suggests you form your own independent opinions, but I think it becomes hard at a certain point to deny how historical Michkov’s scoring is for a Russian player over the years. Demidov is great. I don’t think it’s impossible he could end up the better player. Heck, Will Smith could end up better than Connor Bedard. There’s no way of predicting with certainty how players this age will progress or not. I think Demidov has the flashier skills, but I think there’s a reason that Michkov at least so far has proven more at the same age compared to Demidov. I don’t see how an elite KHL prospect in a historical perspective would be subject to not seeing their game translate to the NHL as it does in the KHL. The best players succeed anywhere. League doesn’t matter. The same questions were there about Shesterkin, Sorokin, Kaprizov, and they’ve translated their enormous KHL success to the NHL.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Wright was also better than Slafkovsky. Habs fans knew better, and it would be career suicide for the GM not to listen to them. Or so im told.

I had Cooley at 1 and I'm happy they took Slafkovsky now, even though I still am a fan of Cooley.

I put my lists out all the time, I have no problem being wrong, nor do I care if the Habs do or don't draft a player I like.

I don't even have Gauthier in my top 10 over f***ing Savoie. I get things right and I get things wrong, I have fun doing it.

I had Michkov at 3 last year, many spots ahead of Reinbacher who I like and have no issues with the pick. So, again, the assertions that thinking Demidov is better than Michkov is a Habs fan fueled take is just lazy posting.

I don't care that the Habs passed on Michkov nor does it change my opinion of him. If they did take him, it wouldn't change my evaluation of preferring and thinking Demidov is better than Michkov today. Just as the Habs taking Slafkovsky didn't change my preference for Cooley when that happened, and I had my fair concerns about Slafkovsky all throughout until he's hit a crazy development spike this year.

There is more to hockey than offense and while Michkov may have more on the offensive side of the puck, I think what Demidov provides everywhere else on the ice when the puck isn't his stick makes him a better player. The same way that Drouin might be more offensively gifted than Lehkonen but Lehkonen is the better player. And no, I am not comparing either of those guys to Drouin or Lehkonen, just that HF and Twitter scouts have to reduce things down to offense and just because Michkov is better offensively, doesn't make him the better player.

 

[Vasilevskiy]

It's more like .. if the Habs drafted Michkov you would not be so plainly saying "Demidov is better than Michkov". It's ridiculous

I had plenty of criticisms for Michkov this season, and I don't think he's as good as Bedard.

But the Demidov > thing is just ridiculous. He's still at the same stage as Michkov was two damn years ago. Demidov doesn't even have one point in the VHL. Michkov was so immediately good in a small VHL sample in his DY that he forced a KHL loan in December. And Demidov couldn't even keep his spot on the VHL team

David St. Louis recently wrote an article on Demidov vs Michkov that completely invalidated his opinion. He essentially said Michkov is too selfish and focused on individual efforts. It just goes to show that he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about when it comes to Michkov, who just had a season that was one of the most unselfish seasons I've ever seen, given the quality of teammates he was dealing with. He reduced his game to skin and bones this year .. IQ and playmaking .. because his explosiveness was neutered due to having persistent pneumonia for 3/4 of the season

There's also the point that Michkov has the ability to switch between an individual effort, goal scoring type of player .. to a 100% playmaking player .. to even a two-way defensively minded player if he wants to. What I saw from Michkov in the SKA preseason was mind boggling. He looked like a two-way center. It's all about where he chooses to focus his efforts.

To summarize, Matvei broke the D+1 KHL record by a lot, while playing on a team with zero chemistry, while only on the PP2 unit anchored by Volkov, while dealing with persistent pneumonia for 80% of the season, while playing as a shell of himself and reaching insane levels of unselfishness. And you have the audacity to plainly say Demidov, who couldn't even keep his spot on the VHL team, is plainly better than Michkov? Ok, got it

You're entitled to have your opinion but saying some stuff like Demidov couldn't keep his spot in the KHL or VHL... You know very well how SKA works. Michkov had similar issues with this. Demidov didn't force a loan out but he could have like Michkov and play in the KHL. He's ready for it just like Matvei was.

Both are great prospects, not sure why getting all worked up because some people believe Demidov is better. It's not the craziest take I've even read today in this site. And for the record I believe Michkov is as good as Bedard

 

[WarriorofTime]

Not sure why some feel an intense need to make Michkov and Demidov some heated rivalry. I could see if Demidov ends up on a team in the same division as the Flyers perhaps. It’s not like people are out here obsessing on who is better Fantilli or Celebrini.

 

[Kshahdoo]

SKA-1946 lost the 3rd game 4-1 (lol, all three games are 4-1), but Demidov still scored a point for primary assist.

 

[ello]

Not sure why some feel an intense need to make Michkov and Demidov some heated rivalry. I could see if Demidov ends up on a team in the same division as the Flyers perhaps. It’s not like people are out here obsessing on who is better Fantilli or Celebrini.

Michkov’s sort of an enigma where the gap between his floor and ceiling is probably as high as any high end prospect. Any fan of Michkov/Flyers fully believe in his ceiling and probably read some stuff they probably find borderline insulting about him, and vice versa where neutral fans think he’s put on too high of a pedastal

 

[Wats]

Michkov’s sort of an enigma where the gap between his floor and ceiling is probably as high as any high end prospect. Any fan of Michkov/Flyers fully believe in his ceiling and probably read some stuff they probably find borderline insulting about him, and vice versa where neutral fans think he’s put on too high of a pedastal

Why is Michkov an enigma? How is Demidov different, character wise? Genuinely asking as don't think anyone really says much of Demidov the person.

 

[ello]

Why is Michkov an enigma? How is Demidov different, character wise? Genuinely asking as don't think anyone really says much of Demidov the person.

Might wanna brush up on what being an enigma means