Head Coach SKA Romain Rotenberg In an interview with , said the 18-year-old striker Ivan Demidov should only go to play in the NHL when he is completely ready.
Demidov was selected fifth overall by Montreal in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. His KHL contract with SKA runs through June 2025.
— SKA forward Ivan Demidov plays for the Russian Olympic team [на турнире имени Пучкова]and comes out as captain. Was this decision justified? Demidov scored twice and in extra time.
— We all know that Ivan suffered a serious injury that he received during the playoffs. Our SKA-1946 team finished the MHL final series without him, but won the Kharlamov Cup. And now Demidov is returning to hockey. He played against Sochi when we played a game in the mountains in Krasnaya Polyana. It looked very good. We understand that Ivan now needs to gain playing time and get back in shape. The Russian national team is the right place for that.
Demidov now plays the same role that he will have at SKA. We follow Vanya and are very happy that he plays like that. Thanks to Demidov, we have very serious competition, which is the engine of progress. He can win a place on any line. Ivan added a lot physically. He trains a lot. As you remember, we watched the MHL final together, standing next to each other. All these points were discussed with Demidov. And he is great. I listened to everything and came back from injury as a completely different player. But this is professionalism.
I discussed Demidov’s development with the Montreal Canadiens management and the club president. Only head coach Martin San-Louis was not available on Zoom. We discussed how we could work together to make Ivan one of the best players in the world. There is no point in Demidov going to the NHL until he is ready to play on the first line. He has to take it step by step. We will make Ivan a leader. When he proves it on the field and plays on the first lines of SKA, scoring goals, as he is currently doing in the Russian youth team, it will be a huge plus for everyone. And then Ivan himself will decide what suits him best. But from what I understand, there is no point in going to the fourth line in Montreal or even to the AHL, where they can break their arms and legs. It is a tough league. Hockey players travel there by bus, over long distances. You know yourself what the AHL is: many guys are broken in this league. First of all, from a psychological point of view.
Therefore, it is better to play in the KHL – for us, at SKA, to be the leader of the team. And when Ivan is ready to play in the first line of the Montreal Canadiens, we will always support him.
— SKA released Matvey Michkov to the Philadelphia Flyers. Will he go to the first link?
– The ice will appear. The game will show all this,” Rotenberg told .
The new season of the FONBET KHL Championship starts on September 3.
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Source : MatchTV
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
