Prospect Info: Ivan Demidov (2024 5th OA): SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

D+1
Michkov 41 pts in 48 gp
Kaprizov 27 pts in 53 gp
Demidov 37 pts in 45 gp

 

[waitin425]

Do you think Troll Stomper will get mad at me if I open the "Epic Calder Race 2025-26" thread already?

 

[FrankMTL]

45 GP, 16 Goals, 21 Assists, 37 Points

4.03 PTS/ 60 mins played

5 Points away from beating the highest ever point total for U20 season in the KHL

5 Goals away from beating the highest ever goal total U20 season in the KHL

D+1
Michkov 41 pts in 47 gp
Kaprizov 27 pts in 53 gp
Demidov 39 pts in 46 gp

You can already see that Demidov will get another 2 points in his next game? lol

 

[Tyson]

I didn't expect Demidov to be the best player in the KHL...that is crazy

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

45 GP, 16 Goals, 21 Assists, 37 Points

4.03 PTS/ 60 mins played

5 Points away from beating the highest ever point total for U20 season in the KHL

5 Goals away from beating the highest ever goal total U20 season in the KHL



You can already see that Demidov will get another 2 points in his next game? lol

My mistake, I thought the KHL still hadn't updated the player standings.

 

[montreal]

I doubt even his biggest fans before the 2024 draft thought he would progress this fast and would be doing some of the shit he's done in the KHL this season....This is nuts. It's making the KHL look like a peewee league. Yes, I know the KHL isn't what it used to be but this is still a men's professional hockey league and probably the 2nd or 3rd best one in the world.

I said before the draft that the only player i would consider taking over Celebrini if we won 1st OA was Demidov, but I never expected that he would put up a historic season as the best U-20 skater in KHL history.

 

[Redux91]

If Demidov ends up at Kucherov or Kaprizov level....we are Cup contenders for the next 10-12 years.

Adding a Kucherov or Kaprizov to this current core would absolutely thrust us into contender status. I have zero doubts about that.

Aaaaaand this is why our Management wanted HIM so bad

Getting Michkov would of just been getting another Caufield
(Spare me, I KNOW getting guys like Caufield is a good thing, this is different lol)

 

[Richard Bolton]

I said before the draft that the only player i would consider taking over Celebrini if we won 1st OA was Demidov, but I never expected that he would put up a historic season as the best U-20 skater in KHL history.

So he is generational, at least in the KHL.

 

[montreal]

D+1
Michkov 41 pts in 47 gp
Kaprizov 27 pts in 53 gp
Demidov 37 pts in 45 gp

Demidov 36 pts in 34 gp when he gets at least 9:15 TOI.

 

[FrankMTL]

I said before the draft that the only player i would consider taking over Celebrini if we won 1st OA was Demidov, but I never expected that he would put up a historic season as the best U-20 skater in KHL history.

The improvement year over year and especially in the last few months has been ridiculous.

It was almost a blessing that Demidov never really had the chance to play in an IIHF best on best international tournament in the last couple of years as he would have had a lot more exposure like with Michkov at the U18's.

 

[CrazyBob]

Demivod production is way above what Kaprizov did in the KHL at the same age and Kaprizov is having 100 points seasons in the NHL. The sky is the limit for Demidov

 

[ahmedou]

I didn't expect Demidov to be the best player in the KHL...that is crazy

Demidov will be the best U20 player in the KHL history! Alongside superstars of the KHL history! Kaprizov! Michkov! Kuznetsov! Buchnevich! Taresenko!

Generational U20 player in the KHL!

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

D+1
Michkov 41 pts in 47 gp
Kaprizov 27 pts in 53 gp
Demidov 37 pts in 45 gp

Michkov had 41 in 48

 

[Habs Halifax]

The improvement year over year and especially in the last few months has been ridiculous.

It was almost a blessing that Demidov never really had the chance to play in an IIHF best on best international tournament in the last couple of years as he would have had a lot more exposure like with Michkov at the U18's.

Skating, Skill, Size, Hockey IQ, Will Power to improve and overcome. All check marks.

Other fans laughed at us with our hype on Caufield and Hutson and compared the past hype we had on Poehling, Mete, Juulsen. This time around with Demidov, the non Habs fans who actually follow Demidov are either shutting their mouth or acknowledging we have a good one on our hands.

What are the flaws? This is the blind spot check with our hype. I find it very difficult to nit pick his flaws. Only thing I can say is the NHL is more physical than the KHL and there is a little less time and space. But yeah, hard to not believe Demidov's skating and skill won't overcome this

 

[NotProkofievian]

Demidov is so much fun to watch. He's going to be deadly with Laine, we gotta get these guys playing together.

 

[ahmedou]

Demidov 36 pts in 34 gp when he gets at least 9:15 TOI.

What's crazy in this stat - it's not the 36 pts in 34 games. It's about his TOI. That's at least 9:15.

I was worried about his points because of his usage at the beginning. But talent is talent. He showed on the ice to his coach and to his team that they were wrong to not give him the keys. His coach and his coach are giving him the keys now and he can finally show them his full potential.

 

[Chose]

Skating, Skill, Size, Hockey IQ, Will Power to improve and overcome. All check marks.

Other fans laughed at us with our hype on Caufield and Hutson and compared the past hype we had on Poehling, Mete, Juulsen. This time around with Demidov, the non Habs fans who actually follow Demidov are either shutting their mouth or acknowledging we have a good one on our hands.

What are the flaws? This is the blind spot check with our hype. I find it very difficult to nit pick his flaws. Only thing I can say is the NHL is more physical than the KHL and there is a little less time and space. But yeah, hard to not believe Demidov's skating and skill won't overcome this

If you want to nitpick something, you can take a look at his funky skating style. Someone mentioned it might make him prone to knee injuries, which sounds like a good analysis...

Again, only if we are looking to nitpick at something, because we all agree, he is one hell of a prospect ! We are all happy right now he fell to 5.
Generational or not, he is exactly what the team needed.

 

[FrankMTL]

Demidov is so much fun to watch. He's going to be deadly with Laine, we gotta get these guys playing together.

Good to see you post, even if it's not that often. You're one of the better posters on these boards.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

Demidov and Hutson is seriously a match made in heaven, both cerebral otherworldly offensive talents that think the game at a million miles a minute

They will be magic like McDavid - Draisaitl or the Sedins

 

[Bigtrout]

What's crazy in this stat - it's not the 36 pts in 34 games. It's about his TOI. That's at least 9:15.

I was worried about his points because of his usage at the beginning. But talent is talent. He showed on the ice to his coach and to his team that they were wrong to not give him the keys. His coach and his coach are giving him the keys now and he can finally show them his full potential.

22 points in 13 games where he gets 15+ minutes

 

[Habs Halifax]

Demidov is so much fun to watch. He's going to be deadly with Laine, we gotta get these guys playing together.

One thing I have done lately to manage any gullible hype is to nit pick the flaws. I find that a good blind spot check. I for one have a hard time nit picking his flaws. With Caufield and Hutson, we could have used the size flaw. With Demidov, I see high grades in the following areas:

Size: Very solid height/weight
Skill: Elite level
Skating: Elite level
Hockey IQ: Appears to be top notch
Will Power to improve and overcome: Also appears to be a high grade IMO

Will Power to improve and overcome was one of Drouin's biggest flaws IMO.

If you were to be picky, what would you point out for any flaws?

 

[ahmedou]

Demidov is so much fun to watch. He's going to be deadly with Laine, we gotta get these guys playing together.

I was thinking of you @NotProkofievian recently! Long time no see! Stay in touch with us!

One my favorite HFHabs prospect member!

 

[Habs Halifax]

If you want to nitpick something, you can take a look at his funky skating style. Someone mentioned it might make him prone to knee injuries, which sounds like a good analysis...

Again, only if we are looking to nitpick at something, because we all agree, he is one hell of a prospect ! We are all happy right now he fell to 5.
Generational or not, he is exactly what the team needed.

It's OK to look for stuff like this IMO. I find the flaws are difficult to find which gives us better indication on what we have.

 

[montreal]

If you want to nitpick something, you can take a look at his funky skating style. Someone mentioned it might make him prone to knee injuries, which sounds like a good analysis...

Again, only if we are looking to nitpick at something, because we all agree, he is one hell of a prospect ! We are all happy right now he fell to 5.
Generational or not, he is exactly what the team needed.

He'll need to work on getting stronger, more explosive and at times he can be lazy and give up on a play but none of these are issues to really worry about. I've said several times but in my 25+ years of very closely following Hab prospects I have never seen anyone come close to the skill level of Demidov.

The road back to the cup starts with the Demidov-Hutson show.

 

[Andy]

He reminds me a lot of Kaprizov. Like, a lot.