Ivan Demidov started his season in the KHL hoping to raise the Gagarin Cup by the end of it, but it wasn’t to be. On Wednesday night, however, when the KHL playoffs ended, two former Montreal Canadiens players got to raise the cup with Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, and one was awarded the playoff MVP trophy.

Byron Froese spent a season and a half in the Canadiens’ organization, playing 48 games with the Habs and 59 games with the Laval Rocket. He notched 11 points in the NHL and 41 in the AHL. In February 2019, he was packaged with David Schlemko and sent to the Philadelphia Flyers, which allowed Montreal to bring back Dale Weise and acquire Christian Folin.

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After his stay in Philadelphia, he spent time in the Calgary Flames and Vegas Golden Knights organizations before heading to the KHL last offseason. It turned out to be a good move, as he scored 33 points in 61 regular-season games and eight points in 19 playoff outings, before winning the championship.

Alexander Radulov was the second former Canadiens player to become a champion last night. In his first season with Lokomotiv, he scored 34 points in 60 games. It wasn’t an excellent output, but the 38-year-old saved his best for the postseason, gathering 16 points in 21 games to earn the title of playoff MVP.

While Radulov only played for one season in Montreal, he was an instant fan favourite, primarily because of his enthusiasm and passion for the game. Watching him celebrate, that hasn’t changed.

KHL (@khl_eng) on X About last night...

In his one season with the Canadiens in 2016-17, Radulov scored 54 points in 76 games. Then GM Marc Bergevin had given him a one-year deal worth $5,750,000, and the Russian player had made the most of it. He was looking for a raise as a UFA and ultimately agreed to terms with the Dallas Stars. A five-year deal with a $6.25 M cap hit. In the days before that signature, Bergevin had told the press he had the money to sign one of Radulov or Andrei Markov, but that he couldn’t afford to sign both, adding, “If you want loyalty, buy a dog”.

In Dallas, Radulov had two 72-point seasons before his production significantly dropped, registering 34, 12 (in 11 games), and 22 points in his last three campaigns in Texas. He then went back to Russia, and after two seasons with Kazan Ak-Bars, he joined Lokomotiv last offseason. This was a smart move since the team had lost in the KHL final. This year, they were able to finish the job, and Radulov led the charge.

Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

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