Acquisition of Ivan Demidov: Kent Hughes made a big phone call

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Elias Edmonson
May 7, 2024 (8:57)

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Just hours before the Macklin Celebrini lottery, it has just been learned that Kent Hughes made a big phone call for Ivan Demidov.

The CH will finally know its official selection rank this evening, but already, Kent Hughes is doing his homework to see if he can get his hands on the best player of the 2024 draft who is not named Celebrini.

Obviously, the dream scenario would be to acquire the 1st overall pick to select Macklin Celebrini, but acquiring the 2nd overall pick and Ivan Demidov would also be extraordinary.

In short, the one who is sometimes compared to Nikita Kucherov and Kirill Kaprizov has definitely caught the attention of Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton.

Kent Hughes just made a phone call for Ivan Demidov, before the 2024 lottery

Demidov's agent refuses to believe that his young client is less talented than Celebrini and thinks that if he had played in North America, there would be a real debate for the first overall pick.

"I'm going to sum it up like this and I don't really know how to say it without upsetting people, but if Ivan was playing in the CHL right now and had the same visibility as all the other prospects in North America, he would be seen as the logical first overall pick. And I'm really not afraid to assert that."

- Dan Milstein

That's big!

Demidov scored 23 goals and 37 assists (60 points) in just 30 games in his native country, while Nikita Kucherov recorded 58, but in 41 games.

Returning to Kent Hughes and the phone call mentioned above, in an interview with Anthony Martineau of TVA Sports, Ivan Demidov's agent, Dan Milstein, confirmed that the Habs were very interested in Demidov.

Hughes even contacted Demidov personally several times this season, to learn more about him. He made a few phone calls that speak volumes.

Let's remember that, unlike Matvei Michkov last year, Demidov does not have a contract that requires him to stay in the KHL. He could arrive as early as next season and there are no real red flags in his case.

"Ivan has demonstrated in recent years that he is going to be a huge player and several teams have contacted us in recent months. Yes, Montreal was one of them." - Dan Milstein

A name to keep in mind! It promises!

Credit : Marqueur.com - Scoop énorme sur le Canadien et l'espoir russe Ivan Demidov

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Would you trade the 5th overall pick, the 24th overall pick, Justin Barron, and a 2025 2nd round pick, for Ivan Demidov?
Yes	343	45.7 %
No	408	54.3 %
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