Since the Canadiens drafted the Russian forward fifth overall in June, highlight reels and hype videos have frequently popped up online

Ignoring recency bias, it’s fair to say that Ivan Demidov is currently the most hyped Montreal Canadiens prospect.

It’s not exclusively due to Demidov being considered the best 2024 draft pick not named Macklin Celebrini, nor the Nikita Kucherov comparisons, but the copious amounts of highlight reel videos circulating Habs fan accounts daily.

The offseason is a quieter time of the calendar year for hockey fans, and yet there has been continuous news developing involving the young Russian. For starters, when the KHL announced that it would run independently from the Russian Hockey Federation, fans rejoiced at the realization that Montreal could work out a transfer agreement with SKA St. Petersburg and acquire Demidov early instead of having to wait a full year. There has been no sign that the Canadiens intend to do so, however.

Next was when The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler ranked Demidov third in his 100 Top Prospects list, lending fuel to the fire of internet buzz. This is high praise from Wheeler, whose list comes out twice a year and is highly respected among hockey fans and media.

What’s even more impressive with the number of videos made comprising Demidov dekes is that the attacker has not appeared at either the Canadiens or the SKA St. Petersburg development camps thanks to a lingering ankle injury.

Until Demidov is back in action, you can be sure that compilations will be produced regularly to satiate excited hockey fans across the web.