NHL Prospect Roundup: Canadiens’ Ivan Demidov is doing a lot with a little

Montreal Canadiens prospect Ivan Demidov is a special talent.

How special? He’s on pace for 46 points, which, if he kept that up, would give him the most productive U-20 season in KHL history. Carolina Hurricanes prospect Nikita Artamonov is ahead of him in scoring, so he’ll likely have the edge in the end.

But Demidov is doing that while averaging just 11:05 of ice time with SKA St. Petersburg – primarily in a bottom-six role. Demidov has played fewer than 10 minutes in 12 games this year, which is bound to happen on a team as skilled as SKA.

There have been some difficult stretches, for sure – he had a six-game pointless drought to kick off November as SKA’s offense seemingly fell asleep. But Demidov has registered at least a shot in every game dating back to mid-October, which you can’t say about many other young players.

Would analysts prefer to see Demidov get more ice time? For sure. Since the Canadiens took Demidov fifth overall this past June, a lot of the conversation has been about whether the club would try to push to have him come to North America early. But Demidov has a deal with SKA until the end of the season, and then he’s expected to trek overseas to join the Habs’ organization.

OHL

– We’ve already seen a handful of players bolt from the USHL and BCHL to a major junior team over the past few weeks. One of the most notable was Jack Pridham, a Chicago Blackhawks prospect who made the jump from the BCHL’s West Kelowna Warriors to join the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers. He has eight points in five OHL games to date, including a pair of three-point efforts against Sarnia and Erie. Pridham was also the best player by far in a recent 3-1 loss to London, scoring the lone goal. In fact, I’d argue he has looked significantly more impressive in the OHL than he did in the BCHL, which essentially is a step down from the three CHL leagues. With Pridham proving to be so successful, get ready to see more players make the move sooner rather than later.

– After starting the season wanting a trade out of Sudbury, Quentin Musty finally made his debut with the Wolves on Nov. 1. Since then, he has managed to put up 19 points in 10 games, including 14 points in his past four games dating back to Nov. 15. Musty looks almost too good to be playing at this level, with the San Jose Sharks forward playing at a pace of around two points per game. Unfortunately, a hand injury will keep him out long-term, ending his recent hot streak. Still, there’s a lot to like about his play.

WHL

– Speaking of World Junior teams, will Andrew Cristall make Team Canada this year? The Washington Capitals prospect has 40 points in 15 games – a full-season pace of 181 points. Is that realistic? No, but he’s easily one of the most productive wingers the WHL has seen in recent years. Still, there’s no shortage of quality forwards chasing roster spots, and his 5-foot-10 frame – mixed with his subpar skating – could keep him on the outside looking in. At the very least, Cristall needs to be at Canada’s training camp to prove himself.

QMJHL

– Again, sticking with the WJC theme – Alexandre Blais isn’t likely going to make Canada this year, but could be a threat for 2026. The Anaheim Ducks draft pick has 28 points in 23 games with Rimouski, which included a seven-point run during Rimouski’s seven-game winning streak. Blais isn’t dominating by any means and is on pace to produce fewer points than a year ago, but I feel like he’s a bit more physically engaged without the drawback of taking needless penalties. He’s a smart playmaker who thrives on open ice, and has been one of the QMJHL’s best wingers from the get-go.

NCAA

– The Boston Bruins have one of the weakest pipelines in the NHL – so if you’re worried about their performance now, it might get even uglier. But it’s good to see Dans Locmelis having a solid season with UMass, putting up 14 points in 14 games as a sophomore. The Latvian forward isn’t a goal-scorer, but he’s a smart playmaker who brings energy and a good 200-foot game. He did have a pair of two-point games in his last two games, which doesn’t hurt.

USHL

– I watched a recent Muskegon Lumberjacks game and liked what I saw from defenseman Xavier Veilleux. A sixth-round pick by the New York Islanders, Veilleux scored a goal against the Sioux City Musketeers and had a couple of other good looks. But it was his play away from the puck that stood out – he moved well and actually looked quite physical for a player who hasn’t taken a single penalty through 19 games. Veilleux thinks the game at a high rate and does a good job of drawing opponents to him and still making an effective pass. Keep a close eye on the Harvard University commit.

MHL

– OK, fine – one more World Junior player reference. It’s expected that Vladimir Nikitin will be the runaway starter for Kazakhstan next month, given he’s the only NHL-drafted prospect eligible to play. But he was also the top goaltender at the Division IA tournament last year, which helped see the Kazakhs qualify for the big show in Ottawa. Nikitin’s stats aren’t pretty in the MHL, but he’s a big part of a bad team. He has faced at least 30 shots in every start this season and actually won the two games in which he has faced the most shots this year – most notably, a 52-save effort against Ladia Togliatti. Nikitin is a bit of a longshot to make the Ottawa Senators in the future, but at 6-foot-5, he takes a heck of a lot of space in the net and is as competitive as they come.

HockeyAllsvenskan

– The Detroit Red Wings are no strangers to finding gems in Europe. Could 2021 fifth-rounder Liam Dower-Nilsson be the next? He has 21 points in 21 games with IF Bjorkloven in the second-tier Swedish league, putting him on pace for 52 points. That would demolish his previous best of 27 points set a year ago. He’s the highest-scoring NHL-affiliated player in the league and just two points behind third in league scoring, although many of his peers are playing in the top-tier SHL. Regardless, LDN is making the most of his opportunities, and there’s a chance we could see him in the AHL next year once his contract in Sweden comes to an end in the spring.

– I liked the nice pick of Noel Fransen by the Carolina Hurricanes at No. 69 last year. The speedy offensive defenseman had his deficiencies in his own zone, for sure. But he had one of the most productive U-20 Swedish league seasons in the 21st century and impressed in his limited playing time with Farjestad’s SHL team. Fransen is also on pace for 33 points this year, which would tie him with Lukas Bengtsson and Emil Andrae for the most by a U-18 defender in Allsvenskan history. Look for Fransen to be in the running for a roster spot on Sweden’s World Junior team in a few weeks.

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