Author: Dose

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KHL: things are (really) going badly for Ivan Demidov’s team at the moment

SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA - 2024/09/23: Ivan Demidov (91) SKA Hockey Club and Darren Dietz (4) Avangard Hockey Club seen in action during the Hockey match, Kontinental Hockey League 2024/2025 between SKA Saint Petersburg and Avangard Omsk at the Ice Sports Palace. (Final score; SKA Saint Petersburg 4:1 Avangard Omsk). (Photo by Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Since the start of the season, we’ve been keeping a close eye on Ivan Demidov in Russia. The Habs prospect, who is the organization’s most promising right now, is being closely watched because people are anxious to see him in Montreal.

And if his activity on social networks is anything to go by, he too seems to be looking forward to being in town.

That said, when you look at what’s been going on with the SKA for a while now, you notice one thing: things have been going (really) badly for the club ever since.

Yesterday, for example, SKA was defeated in overtime…

And in the process, they’ve now lost six of their last seven games.

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Of course, for a club that pulled out all the stops this summer by bringing in some big names, it’s a difficult sequence. The expectations were clear at SKA: we wanted to be a dominant team and be at the top of the league standings.

And that’s why we’re starting to feel the tension around the team. Yesterday, after the defeat, coach Roman Rotenberg criticized his players for their lack of discipline… and he also served up some rather cold and acerbic responses to journalists in connection with the lack of offense recently.

No, it’s not ideal.

Demidov, for his part, seems to be affected by the whole situation, as he still hasn’t scored a single point since the start of the month (six games). We’re starting to see him play less than 10 minutes a game again, and much like the rest of his team, he seems to be stuck in a slump at the moment.

It’s not ideal, of course… but let’s hope for Demidov’s sake that things turn around soon for SKA. Because at the moment, the mood within the team seems rather heavy, and we’ll just have to hope that it starts to calm down quickly.

Overtime

– Congratulations to the Rouge et Or, who will be taking part in the 14ᵉ Vanier Cup in their history.

– Interestingly, Jeff Gorton’s son Jack will play his first game with Boston University, taking the place of Lane Hutson’s injured brother Quinn.

– Will Pastrnak have another 60-goal season?

– The Russian seems to have understood that he no longer has the right to make mistakes.

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Jacob Fowler receives NCAA suspension

Last night in the NCAA, Jacob Fowler went ballistic. After awarding a goal, he smacked his opponent in the face with a cookie… which earned him an ejection.

It was the right thing to do, even if it doesn’t necessarily seem to be the young keeper’s habit.

The question now was whether he would get a suspension… and now we know the answer.

Hockey East, the conference in which he plays, has just announced that Fowler will be suspended for one game.

He won’t be able to play on Tuesday.

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More details to come…

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Draft 2025: What would be the best top-4 pick for the Habs?

Photo by Chris Tanouye/Getty Images

Three near-first-round picks… That was the case in 2022, and it’s likely to be the case again in 2025.

As we speak, the Montreal Canadiens are headed for a glittering top-4 pick and a mouth-watering top-20 (Flames), not to mention the1st pick of the second round, 33rd overall.

I don’t know if Hughes and Gorton will be tempted to do the same thing they did in 2023, when they traded picks #31 and #37 to get Alex Newhook, but it’s an avenue to be used with great caution, because better players than Newhook regularly remain in the draft at the start of the2nd round…

Good scouts need to be able to identify them…

That said, with the time at my disposal, it’s too early to make an informed judgement on potential early-second-round picks. It’s a difficult exercise just a few days before the draft, so in November, it’s a no!

However, a good deal of thought has already gone into the top-4, which, while not set in stone, seems set to take shape fairly quickly.

If we all agree that the Habs have just as many needs up front as they do at the back, in light of what we’re seeing on the horizon, what would be the Habs ‘optimal top-4 pick next June?

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A top-4 for every taste

If the Habs finish last in the overall standings – which would surprise me enormously, but hey – 5’10 Boston College center James Hagens, Missisauga right winger Porter Martone, Erie defenseman Matthew Schaefer and Saginaw center Michael Misa will all be available for the Habs to take.

In my opinion, none of them stands out all that much from the other three right now, and once again this year, the first teams to draft are likely to go with the optimal choice in their eyes, considering both the player’s talent and their organizational needs and culture.

And what would be the Habs’ optimal pick as of today?

A left-handed center with more talent than Nick Suzuki?

A big, right-handed winger capable of filling the net and distributing the puck at least as well as Slafkovsky does as a lefty? Martone even has a much better scoring touch than Slaf, who remains bigger, stronger and a better passer than the Ontarian.

Or a #1 left-handed defenseman somewhere between Miro Heiskanen and Rasmus Dahlin?

For his part, if he were in the shoes of Hughes and Gorton at the moment and had doubts about his future defense (recurring injuries to Guhle and Reinbacher, defensive potential of Huston, Mailloux, Xhekaj, etc.), the ever-relevant Simon “Snake” Boisvert, would turn to defenseman Schaefer, probably the safest bet of the four players mentioned, all things considered.

Talent is coming out of Schaefer’s ears, both offensively and defensively. We’re talking about a skater with rare fluidity, excellent hands, a good shot and above-average vision. A guy who can play 25 minutes without a problem, night after night. A future number 1 every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

According to Boisvert, Schaefer’s selection would even guarantee the Habs a Stanley Cup within 6 years! Nothing less!

Schaefer-Reinbacher
Hutson-Guhle

In theory, it would be quite a top-4!

All that’s left is to decide between Struble, Xhekaj, Engstrom on the left and Mailloux, Barron on the right.

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With all this talent coming of age, we would have seen teams win the Cup with lesser defensive skills. Just think of the 2016-2017 Penguins, WITHOUT Kristopher Letang!

Finally, if the Habs don’t draft a guy like Schaefer, they’ll have to try to be the first team in the modern era to win the Stanley Cup with a #1 defenseman under 5’11 and 170 lbs in Lane Hutson!

BUT, we all also know that Nick Suzuki isn’t the ideal first center for a champion club, or at the very least, that the Habs need another top-quality center to help them out.

Is that center Kirby Dach?

Is it Ivan Demidov?

Is it Juraj Slafkovsky, who should at least deserve a try in this year… of tries?

For the moment, nothing is less certain, and left-handed centers James Hagens and Michael Misa would be hard to ignore, because in the last 40 years, we haven’t seen many teams win the Cup without the equivalent of at least two very good center players.

I dare you to name just one!

Very fluid on skates, superb playmaker, good defensively, very supple hands, James Hagens is a kind of blend of Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes.

The American practically treaded water last year with the USNDT (102 points in 58 games) and at U18 (22 points in 7 games).

A favorite on most lists right now, Hagens could go downhill in the coming months. He’s playing well, but isn’t throwing anyone off their chair at Boston College with his 11 points in 8 games, including just 1 goal.

Does he lack chemistry with his teammates, having played with several different wingers since the start of the season, including the talented Ryan Leonard (Washington, 8th, 2023) and Gabriel Perreault (NYR, 21st, 2023)?

Then there will always be legitimate doubts about a 5’10 number-one center, especially from a playoff perspective…

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That’s why another left-handed center, Michael Misa, 6’1, 185 lbs, former OHL first choice and player of exceptional status at 15, teammate of Owen Beck and Memorial Cup champion with Saginaw last spring, is likely to make more and more noise in the coming months.

Misa is an agile skater who shows great finesse in his game and has a surgical shot that he unleashes at lightning speed. An instinctive and intelligent player, he also does very well defensively. Finally, 23 goals and 39 points in 19 games so far this season is “something I think…”, as the great Mario would say! Over a projected 68-game season, that’s 82 goals and 139 points!

In short, even if there’s no unanimous candidate for the top spot, it’s hard to see how the teams drafting in the top-4 can go wrong next June.

For now, as far as I’m concerned, if I were HuGo, I’d say it’s between Misa and Schaefer, with perhaps a slight advantage for Misa.

But we’d still have to try out Slaf in the center before making a decision, unless we’re already certain that’s where we’ll be playing Demidov in the near future…

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Morning practice: a day of treatments for Brendan Gallagher

The Canadiens de Montréal were on the ice at the Bell Centre this morning for their morning practice ahead of their game tonight at 7pm.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are on the menu, arriving in Montreal after playing last night as well.

It’s worth noting that all the regular players jumped on the ice for this morning’s practice, except one.

Brendan Gallagher had a day of treatment this morning.

The Habs’ number 11 was not present to take his usual reps on the third line with Christian Dvorak and Josh Anderson.

Rafaël Harvey-Pinard took Gallagher’s place in practice.

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RHP skated again with his teammates in a regular jersey, as he had done earlier in the week.

So he’s getting really close to a return to action, which could be as early as next week.

It’s not impossible that we’ll see him in the lineup today, but the odds are that Gallagher will play tonight, and RHP was just filling in the empty space.

As for the full line-up, let’s wait and see what Martin St-Louis has in store for us, and the same goes for the starting goaltender.

The Habs will be looking to win a 6ᵉ game this season, while another team that’s pulling out all the stops this season will be in town.

Overtime

– Very cool.

– It was very predictable.

– That’s right.

– Read more.

– A very nice addition for the Islanders.

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Jared Davidson takes Laval Rocket to AHL summit

The best sports team in Quebec right now is clearly the Laval Rocket.

Pascal Vincent’s troupe has been simply dominant since the start of the 2024-2025 season, when it currently boasts 11 wins in 13 games.

In fact, the Rocket notched its 11ᵉ victory of the season last night with a 4-3 shootout win over the Syracuse Crunch.

I’ll come back to it later in this text, but the main player in this victory was really forward Jared Davidson.

With this win, not only did the Rocket solidify their place at the top of the North Division, they also took over first place in the entire AHL.

In fact, with 22 points, the Rocket currently leads the AHL with a .846 points percentage.

(Credit: TheAHL.com)

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Everything’s going swimmingly for the Laval Rocket, and that’s good, because with the Montreal Canadiens’ woes, the Rocket’s solid performances are truly refreshing.

All the players, except perhaps only Sean Farrell, are producing at a good pace and playing excellent games night after night.

One player is flying under the radar somewhat, given the pace at which Joshua Roy, Logan Mailloux and Alex Barré-Boulet are producing.

Jared Davidson is also off to an excellent start, and has been a key player in the team’s success so far this season.

In fact, he was the star performer for the Rocket last night, scoring two goals and scoring the only goal of the shootout – the winning goal.

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What’s even more interesting is that Davidson scored both of his powerplay goals with two good shots, one on net, the other from the wrist.

With his two goals yesterday, Davidson has six goals and two assists for a total of eight points in ten games.

It’s an excellent haul for the 22-year-old forward, who amassed 16 points, including 11 goals, in 38 games in his rookie season last year.

Davidson is now halfway to his point total from last season.

In short, even at 22 years of age, Davidson represents a real prospect for the Canadiens, given that his development has been on an upward curve from the start.

Slowly but surely, Davidson could end up being an excellent third- or fourth-line player for the Habs.

That would really be a great achievement for a 5ᵉ round pick (130ᵉ total) in 2022, and especially for an “overager”.

Overtime

– The Rocket will be back in action tonight.

– 23 candles today for Heineman!

– This could very well be a possibility.

– Of note.

– To listen to.

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Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight: Netflix had all kinds of difficulties

A highly anticipated event finally took place last night in Las Vegas, as Mike Tyson returned to the ring at the age of 58 to face Jake Paul.

Thousands of people (excluding me) were eagerly awaiting the fight, thinking it was going to be quite a spectacle.

In the end, logically, it was a horrible fight between a youtuber and a 58-year-old former boxer, who clearly doesn’t have the same cardio as he did during his career.

The fight (which I didn’t follow at all, I admit) was severely criticized by all the fans.

Indeed, the more I read and hear about it, the luckier I consider myself not to have paid attention to this event.

Not only did the fight put everyone to sleep, but many fans weren’t even able to properly witness this fiasco of a fight.

Why not?

Because Netflix, which presented the match free of charge, had all kinds of difficulties throughout the evening.

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Indeed, throughout the evening, fans of this event were confronted with countless bugs and problems preventing them from freely watching the fight without interruption.

Was Netflix trying to spare many people such a bad fight?

All joking aside, this is truly a league-wide fiasco, as Netflix completely failed to handle the situation, leaving a huge number of people facing horrible quality, a loading screen or a paused image.

In short, once again, two people picked up an absolutely ridiculous amount of money for a mediocre fight, which, for many, already had an arranged ending.

A real waste of time and money, this kind of fight.

It’s a pity, because the women’s fight just before Paul and Tyson put on a truly sensational show.

Overtime

– Here’s the only highlight of the fight.

– That’s a good one.

– These are great too.

– That’s exactly it.

– What about your side?

– Several files to follow in Calgary. [Responsible Gambler]

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Top-5: Cutter Gauthier finally scores his first NHL goal

Only five games were played yesterday in the National Hockey League, with many teams on vacation.

Even so, there were some fine highlights.

Here’s what caught our eye.

1. Cutter Gauthier finally scores his first career NHL goal

Here was a prospect whose first NHL goal was long overdue.

Since his big break with the Philadelphia Flyers, and his trade to the Anaheim Ducks, we’ve heard very little about Cutter Gauthier.

The 20-year-old forward was playing his 16ᵉ game of the season and 17ᵉ career NHL game last night, and he still hadn’t scored his first NHL goal.

Well, that’s now a thing of the past, as last night against the Detroit Red Wings, in a 6-4 win for the Anaheim Ducks, Gauthier scored his first NHL goal.

Of course, everywhere in the comments on social media about this goal, you can see Philadelphia Flyers fans making fun of Gauthier for the time it took to score his first goal, and that Matvei Michkov is so much better.

In short, Gauthier is only 20 years old, and still has plenty of time to develop.

Note that in defeat, Marco Kasper, the Red Wings’ Austrian center, also scored his first NHL goal.

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2. Tough loss for Avalanche despite return of three forwards

The Colorado Avalanche benefited last night from the return of three key forwards in their line-up, with Valeri Nichushkin, Jonathan Drouin and Miles Wood all back in action.

For the occasion, the Washington Capitals were visiting Denver, and unfortunately for Drouin and his teammates, the Caps ruined the Avalanche’s party.

Ovechkin’s team won 5-2 thanks to two goals from Connor McMichael, who now has 12 goals this season.

Here’s his magnificent winning goal.

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3. First career NHL shutout for Dustin Wolf

While Cutter Gauthier and Marco Kasper scored their first NHL goals, Calgary’s Dustin Wolf also scored his first career NHL shutout.

Wolf made 29 saves against the Nashville Predators to record his first NHL shutout at the age of 23.

The young American received the Flames’ vote of confidence to be the starting goaltender at the start of the season, and so far he’s responding with a 6-3-1 record in nine games, a 2.53 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage.

And as for the Preds, well, they continue their horrible start to the season with their 5-10-3 record.

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4. Golden Knights win again in front of their fathers

Since their arrival in the NHL, like all the other teams, the Golden Knights have made it a tradition to take a trip for a few games abroad with the players’ dads.

It’s always a great time for the players, and makes for some great moments.

Plus, you’d have to think it really motivates the Golden Knights more, given that they have an 11-0-1 record on overseas trips with the dads.

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It’s a really great statistic that continued yesterday with a 4-2 win over the Utah Hockey Club.

William Karlsson scored the winning goal with barely a minute left in regulation time.

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5. Blue Jackets dominate Penguins before heading to Montreal

The Columbus Blue Jackets will be in Montreal today, Saturday, November 16, when they take on the Canadiens at the Bell Centre tonight.

And before that trip, the Blue Jackets faced the Pittsburgh Penguins at home last night, and let’s just say it went well for the Blue Jackets.

They won 6-2 against Sidney Crosby’s team.

Nothing’s going right for the Penguins, and the Blue Jackets took advantage.

Columbus comes to Montreal full of confidence after a fine victory.

Overtime

– Wow magnifique.

– Here are yesterday’s results.

– Here are yesterday’s top scorers.

(Credit: NHL.com)

– Today’s NHL schedule: 12 games.

(Credit: Google/NHL)
(Credit: Google/NHL)

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Jacob Fowler loses it and gets sent off the pitch

Jacob Fowler is one of the Montreal Canadiens’ most-watched prospects this season.

With three shutouts in just eight starts, the Boston College Eagles goaltender faced the University of Connecticut Huskies.

UConn started the first period with a lion’s share of 23 shots.

Fowler showed he wasn’t there to be fooled, stopping all 23 shots.

However, the second period was much more difficult for Fowler.

UConn continued to bombard the goalkeeper and hit the target three times to make it 3-1.

The third goal was the final straw, as the marker slipped through Fowler’s pads.

Immediately, he stood up and delivered a blocker blow to the opponent’s face.

BC eventually lost by a score of 5-4.

We didn’t know Fowler like this, but we understand he’s got dog in a lot and isn’t afraid to get a message across.

He obviously crossed the line in this match, as a cookie hit to the face is not soft at all.

Fowler will have to learn to manage his emotions, as he’s thirsty for victory and wants to do everything he can to prove he’s the best.

He could even be suspended for this gesture.

Still, he’s on an excellent roll, and could possibly break Greg Gardner’s single-season shutout record.

Gardner had no fewer than 12 shutouts in 41 games, but he was 25 years old. Fowler is only 19.

With Boston College’s current wealthy club, all the odds are in his favor.

But he’ll have to pull himself together and manage his emotions better, because actions like this are unacceptable.

Overtime

– Another win for the Rocket.

– More.

– Once again, the Penguins goaltender is having a tough night.

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Mathias Brunet’s advice to Martin St-Louis: “Start coaching for real!

Most Canadiens fans are eagerly awaiting the day when Lane Hutson officially takes his place on the first wave of the powerplay.

But it seems crystal clear: Hutson would be much more useful on the first power play.

Plus, it would provide an effective veteran at the point of the second unit in Mike Matheson.

Martin St-Louis has quietly accustomed us to the fact that he’s not the coach who regularly changes his combinations.

But it’s time for him to make a move, to do something at this level.

Mathias Brunet also believes that Hutson deserves his place on the first wave.

He even has some very specific advice for the Habs head coach.

“Start coaching for real, there. You’re a good teacher. Here, take out your Michel Therrien, your Bob Hartley behind a bench.” – Mathias Brunet

He really has a point.

St-Louis has done a good job so far, but things need to change.

There’s too much room for improvement in the line-up not to shake things up.

We can definitely switch Matheson and Hutson on the powerplay.

Brunet also spoke of the principle that if there are no consequences, the players won’t improve.

Matheson may have had a very good season last year with 62 points, but MSL shouldn’t stop at this fact to justify his position on the first wave.

Take Bob Hartley, for example.

When he was at the helm of the Atlanta Trashers and a certain rookie by the name of Ilya Kovalchuk was making his NHL debut, he didn’t hesitate to make him understand things.

The Russian was cheating too much and not folding at all, or hardly at all.

Hartley took away his privilege of the powerplay, as long as he didn’t show willingness defensively.

However, Mathias Brunet pointed out that placing Hutson on the first power play was not a punishment for Matheson.

The young American defenseman is simply more offensive and creative than the veteran left-hander, and would be much more useful with the likes of Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki and company.

It’s a smart move for St-Louis.

Overtime

– The Québécois has scored a goal in his last three games.

– Bad news for the Ducks. Robby Fabbri will have to miss six to eight weeks of activity.

– Jordan Binnington reportedly on the trade market. [Responsible Gambler]

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Ivan Demidov “Liked” a video preparing his arrival in Montreal

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 28: Ivan Demidov puts on a jersey onstage after being selected fifth overall by the Montreal Canadiens during the first round of the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Sphere on June 28, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images)

When is Ivan Demidov’s famous first game in the colors of the Montreal Canadiens?

It seems to me that the blue, white and red would suit him very well on a regular basis, wouldn’t it?

As we know, his contract with SKA St. Petersburg binds him to the Russian club until the end of the current season.

According to SKA’s schedule for this season, his last regular-season game will be on March 22.

If recent trends are anything to go by, the end of the playoffs in the KHL often comes towards the end of May.

SKA has a very good chance of going all the way, with an excellent line-up.

Knowing that the Habs’ last game is on April 16, the chances of seeing Demidov in a Habs uniform at the end of this season are slim to none.

One thing’s for sure, Habs fans can’t wait to see him arrive in Montreal.

And according to a video of his arrival in the Québécois metropolis made by HFTV, the main interested party also seems to be excited about his arrival.

Demidov “liked” the video in question posted on HFTV‘s X/Twitter page.

Very nice editing on the part of HFTV.

Obviously, you have to keep in mind that a “like” doesn’t mean everything, but let’s just say he shouldn’t have nightmares about arriving in Montreal.

The situation with SKA and coach Roman Rotenberg regarding his usage time is raising more and more fans’ hackles.

But let’s not forget that next year, he’ll be in Montreal, electrifying the Bell Centre.

Let’s think of the great moments ahead.

Think of Lane Hutson and Ivan Demidov on the powerplay moving the puck like there’s no tomorrow.

Let’s think of every time he’ll get us out of our seats when he pulls out his Sunday hands, every day of the week.

The wait will be worth it.

Overtime

– Indeed.

– Dylan Strome seems to be a perfect fit in Washington.

– Crosby continues to prove he’s one of the best of all time.

– It would be quite a fight. Speaking of fights, for Netflix subscribers, don’t miss tonight’s famous Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight.

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