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

[TheKrebsCycle]

Lapointe was asked if the Russian/contract issue was a factor and while he did say yes I got the impression that there were a few things about Michkov that Montreal didn't like.

Never said that they were right, but the contract thing just never made sense.

Reinbacher played all of last year in Europe and likely won't be a full timer till 25-26. Was that extra year that important to the habs that they were willing to pass over what they felt was the better player because of it?

I don't think Montreal had eyes on Michkov for a long time before the draft.

So Lapointe admitted it was a factor . … doesn’t really matter if it doesn’t make sense to you . It made sense with the people in charge of making the actual decision .

 

[MoneyManny]

Consider the source of the comment


No need for a player of Michkov’s caliber.
Hilarious

I know, i would love Michkov, it was a hypothetical lol.

 

[TheKrebsCycle]

Again this is crap. It had nothing to do with his contract. A combination of not liking his character and feeling Reinbacher was the more valuable asset were the liklely reasons.


Reinbacher is likley the more valuable player if he can stay health but that is irrelevant. They presumably felt Michkov was a selfish player. Even if Michkov is putting up big points he may be a loser (like Huberdeau for example).

Thats a lot of presuming and not much if any factual knowledge behind it . Lapointe literally admitted that the contract/ uncertainty did play a role in the decision. Anyway back to Demi. Guy does have a presence/ it factor

 

[Baksfamous112]

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Silayev can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Demidov considering NJD current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Dickinson can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Demidov considering SJS current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Lindstrom can become a steady two-way force and play 20 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Demidov considering CBJ current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Nemec can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Slafkofsky considering NJD current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Mintyukov can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Slafkofsky considering ANA current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Jiricek can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Slafkofsky considering CBJ current strength and weaknesses.

I personally don’t care too much if one player is more skilled/flashy than the other. If Alex Vlasic can become a steady two-way force and play 20-25 hard minutes a night, I’ll take that over a 90-95 points Caufield considering CHI current strength and weaknesses.

Just want to make sure these same arguments hold when the flashy, high point player is on MTL (Hutson, Caufield, Demidov, etc) and the less flashy, 2 way player is on another team?

I think Silayev was a brilliant pick for NJ. You don’t need another Dickinson or Buium when you have Hughes, Hamilton & Nemec to generate offense in your top 4. Silayev should bring grit & good defense (PK work mostly). He fits right in.

And before you say it, yes I think Nemec was the better pick than Cooley although the latter has way more skills and is more dynamic than the former. You already have Hughes, Bratt, Hischier, Mercer & Meier to generate offense and you were pretty thin at the time at RHD after Hamilton.

 

[DavidpauseReinbacher]

Probably the third best Russian prospect in the world atm. What a player. Russia's future looks sick Michkov Nikishin and Demidov. Damn.

 

[CanadienShark]

Wow habs fans are still trying to convince anyone that reinbacher > michkov

You're in the wrong thread.

 

[majormajor]

Anaheim and Columbus two years in a row passing on uber-talented Russian wingers might be the point where we look back on their rebuilds and say they weren’t willing to take the risk to acquire the superstar that you generally need to become a Cup contender.

Looking at who those two teams picked, it's obviously not about risk tolerance. They just rank the players differently than you would. Get over yourself.

 

[Kshahdoo]

With Habs luck he'll come next season just to be killed in the preseason by some ECHL goon...

 

[Baksfamous112]

Thats a lot of presuming and not much if any factual knowledge behind it . Lapointe literally admitted that the contract/ uncertainty did play a role in the decision. Anyway back to Demi. Guy does have a presence/ it factor

He will be a treat to watch and fit right in. In the past couple of years Montreal have a way to draft pieces that fit the puzzle to the T

Looking at who those two teams picked, it's obviously not about risk tolerance. They just rank the players differently than you would. Get over yourself.

it’s crazy isn’t it? Teams actually watch these kids play a lot and most - if not all - management teams has a plan to build a contender and not just ice a bunch of talents because “hockeydb” stats are cute

 

[HeadLiceHatty]

There’s a lot of decent Habs fans here, keep it about Demidov, the dude is doing great and on SKA with limited minutes. I will admit I was a skeptic I thought he wouldn’t produce at the rate he is but he’s doing it KHL, and the NHL is diff the point production isn’t the same it’s a diff league, Demidov is an elite prospect and watching him progress this year has been pretty cool tbh. It’s not always about the points but how they do it and he’s been very impressive, give props where it’s due. ( assuming you’re watching the games and his shifts ). I truly feel these last few drafts where Michkov and Demidov slipped because they’re Russian is going to haunt and change the way teams pick in the future. I'm not a massive Levshunov believer, I think Chicago picked for position and not BPA, shoulda took Demidov.

 

[River Meadow]

Yeah but then Montreal would have a huge freaking hole at RHD and a top pairing RHD is the hardest position to fill with 1C, so yeah, I’m ok with Montreal taking a swing at a potential top pairing RHD over yet another winger

It's over, Jonny.

Habs got jobbed.

If they could do a re-do, we know who they would take now.

 

[Zalos]

There’s a lot of decent Habs fans here, keep it about Demidov, the dude is doing great and on SKA with limited minutes. I will admit I was a skeptic I thought he wouldn’t produce at the rate he is but he’s doing it KHL, and the NHL is diff the point production isn’t the same it’s a diff league, Demidov is an elite prospect and watching him progress this year has been pretty cool tbh. It’s not always about the points but how they do it and he’s been very impressive, give props where it’s due. ( assuming you’re watching the games and his shifts ). I truly feel these last few drafts where Michkov and Demidov slipped because they’re Russian is going to haunt and change the way teams pick in the future. I'm not a massive Levshunov believer, I think Chicago picked for position and not BPA, shoulda took Demidov.

The coming years will tell. We still don't know how Michkov, Demidov, Levshunov, and so on will perform in the NHL.

It's over, Jonny.

Habs got jobbed.

If they could do a re-do, we know who they would take now.

Let's talk in like 2-3 years.

 

[viceroy]

Yes, it is. Heck, we found Casey in the 2nd round in the same draft as Nemec and he looks like he may surpass Simon this year.

Finally some NJD fans are calming down about him. I've felt for a while that Nemec was overrated. I mean I see a solid mid-pairing guy in the making but some of y'all were going nuts with Norris talk.

Wow habs fans are still trying to convince anyone that reinbacher > michkov

Why does only MTL get ragged over not picking Michkov? Criminy the kid got drafted 7th. He's a very talented small Winger, that is all.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

Finally some NJD fans are calming down about him. I've felt for a while that Nemec was overrated. I mean I see a solid mid-pairing guy in the making but some of y'all were going nuts with Norris talk.

I've been this way on Nemec since his draft year. He will be a solid #2/3 IMO but doesn't have the tools to be a Norris level defenseman. He's a smart dman though, glad he's a devil.

 

[JeffreyLFC]

Wow habs fans are still trying to convince anyone that reinbacher > michkov

Stop including the whole fanbase in that.

Reinbacher received online threat when he was selected. The whole fanbase were angry and deflated when they passed on Michkov. The media/fan still talk about it weekly and now daily with the Laine injury + Michkov preason. Many supporters are still very angry about it. There are always supporter that will defend the club no matter what.

Still a good majority of fans including me, never wanted Reinbacher but we still wish he can develop as a good top 4 NHL defenseman.

As pointed out, getting Demidov softened the blow.

 

[SlafySZN]

Demidov is rookie of the month!

 

[Baksfamous112]

Finally some NJD fans are calming down about him. I've felt for a while that Nemec was overrated. I mean I see a solid mid-pairing guy in the making but some of y'all were going nuts with Norris talk.



Why does only MTL get ragged over not picking Michkov? Criminy the kid got drafted 7th. He's a very talented small Winger, that is all.

Because it’s valid when another team said they preferred the bigger guy playing a more important position but when it’s Montreal, this argument is not valid. Our 6’4 RHD prospect is also a bust if he can’t win a top 4 spot out of camp in his D+2

 

[AvatarAang]

Why does only MTL get ragged over not picking Michkov? Criminy the kid got drafted 7th. He's a very talented small Winger, that is all.

Why does only MTL brag constantly over picking Hutson? Criminy the kid got drafted 62nd. He's a very talented small Defenseman, that is all.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

As pointed out, getting Demidov softened the blow.

This bears repeating. Feels like the hockey gods gave the Habs a do over with Anaheim taking Sennecke. Nothing against the kid, but he's much more of a project than Demidov, while also not having the same ceiling IMO.

Demidov falling to them + Hutson looking like no worse than a top 15-20 pick in a redraft makes the Michkov oversight a lot less painful. They should get a lot of extra offense from those 2.

I still think the Habs would prefer both Michkov and Demidov, but at this point the Habs future looks bright. Hughes is emerging as one of the top GMs in the game.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

Why does only MTL brag constantly over picking Hutson? Criminy the kid got drafted 62nd. He's a very talented small Defenseman, that is all.

Lmfao what

 

[TheKrebsCycle]

Because it’s valid when another team said they preferred the bigger guy playing a more important position but when it’s Montreal, this argument is not valid. Our 6’4 RHD prospect is also a bust if he can’t win a top 4 spot out of camp in his D+2

Who said he’s a bust if he doesn’t make the team in his d plus 2 season ? Seems a bit straw man ish to me .,

Why does only MTL brag constantly over picking Hutson? Criminy the kid got drafted 62nd. He's a very talented small Defenseman, that is all.

Because he’s a good pick that late ? Who else could brag about drafting him when only Montreal holds his rights ? Strange post ..

 

[AvatarAang]

I still think the Habs would prefer both Michkov and Demidov, but at this point the Habs future looks bright. Hughes is emerging as one of the top GMs in the game.

Montreal finished 28th overall, 28th overall, and 32nd overall in the last 3 seasons. They will most likely finish at the bottom of the league again this season.

I was surprised when habs fans thought Bergevin was an amazing GM. But it looks like they are brainwashed again with Hughes.

The average hfboards member would have selected michkov instead of reinbacher. That decision alone brings more value to the habs than anything Hughes has done so far.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Leafs fan above btw