These days, any Russian player who is interviewed is asked about Montreal Canadiens rookie Ivan Demidov, and Ilya Kovalchuk is no exception. The 13-campaign former NHLer was recently asked what he thought about the youngster’s decision to spend the Summer in Montreal, and he gave an interesting answer.
Kovalchuk started by explaining that he wasn’t sure if he would have been able to spend the whole Summer in Atlanta the first time he went there. He added that coming back home to get ready for the season and train certainly didn’t hurt him, but he concluded, “To each his own.”
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The former Atlanta Thrashers’ first-overall pick praised the fact that at such a young age, Demidov can think long-term about his career rather than about what will happen tomorrow. For him, it’s clear that to take that decision, the youngster must have felt he needed to get used to something, like learning the language. The 42-year-old calls the winger’s approach fundamental.
For Kovalchuk, it’s clear that the Montreal management and fans will appreciate Demidov for a long time, because he’s a very charismatic guy. He explained that he had met him not long ago when SKA St. Petersburg played against the Moscow Dynamo. The now-retired player stopped by to see Evgeny Kuznetsov after the game and met Demidov then. The rookie made a great first impression, feeling he was glowing, and lives for hockey.
He’s convinced that Demidov will succeed in Montreal, especially since the market loves bright characters who are not afraid to put themselves forward and give interviews showing themselves in a way some more traditional Russian players would feel immodest. He adds there’s no need to be shy in that market.
Kovalchuk knows what he’s talking about since he got a taste of the Montreal market back in 2019-20 when the Los Angeles Kings terminated his contract after he could only put up three goals and nine points in 17 games. The skilled forward had then signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Sainte-Flanelle worth $700,000 in the NHL and $70,000 in the AHL.
That was a pretty good move by Marc Bergevin; he was rolling the dice on a skilled forward who had failed to impress in California after six seasons away from the NHL. In 22 games with the Canadiens, he put up 13 points and an excellent show. His presence gave Habs fans something to cheer about in an otherwise lackluster and dull season. Back in 2012-13, after just 37 games played in the season, he had decided to retire from the league, saying he missed home too much. The decision came after a good start to the season in which he had gathered 31 points. His retirement left the New Jersey Devils in a tough spot, as they had signed him to a massive contract. Notably, he only finally came off their books when the calendar turned to July. This will be the first year since 2009-10 that Kovalchuk won’t have an impact on their cap.
The Devils must wish they had never signed him; they were also hit with significant sanctions after their initial 17-year contract offer to the Russian was considered cap circumvention. They had to forfeit three million dollars, a third-round draft pick in the 2011 draft, and a first-round selection in the 2014 draft. That year, they would have had the 10th overall pick in a deep draft; they could have had players like Kevin Fiala, Dylan Larkin, Travis Sandheim, Alex Tuch, David Pastrnak, and Adrian Kempe.
Instead, they had to wait until the 41st pick overall to take to the stage, and they selected Josh Jacobs, a defenseman who has only played three games so far in the NHL. Funnily enough, the 29-year-old tight-shot defenseman spent the last season in the AHL with the Laval Rocket, where he put up five points in 26 games. He has an AHL one-way contract with the Canadiens’ farm team, which is set to expire at the end of the 2025-26 season.
Back to Kovalchuk, Marc Bergevin flipped him to the Washington Capitals at the trade deadline for a third-round pick, granting him his wish to be sent to a contender and to play with Alexander Ovechkin. The former GM had asked him where he wanted to be traded. It wasn’t that Kovalchuk didn’t like playing in Montreal, but he had come back to the NHL to chase a Stanley Cup, which he wasn’t going to do with the Habs.
Mind you, he would have made the first round of the playoffs since 24 teams ended up taking part in the special playoff tournament prompted by the Covid pandemic and the Canadiens beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, earning the right to face the Philadelphia Flyers in the first-round, losing the series 4-2 while the Caps lost their first round match-up with the New York Islanders 4-1. You never know what can happen in the playoffs, especially when you have Carey Price in the net.
Photo credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images
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