Ivan Demidov not taking part in this week’s NHL combine

Some cities are renowned for their gastronomy, others for the large-scale events – musical, sporting or cultural – that are held there.

Buffalo boasts the NHL combine every June. Better than nothing, say some residents of a city that hasn’t tasted the NHL playoffs in 13 years…

The 2024 combine opened yesterday and runs until Saturday inclusive. The top prospects for the amateur draft (June 28 and 29 in Vegas) will undergo medical examinations (tomorrow) and physical tests (Saturday), as well as a host of interviews (with teams, but also with the media).

Some 100 prospects are currently in Buffalo: 62 forwards, 35 defensemen and three goalkeepers. Macklin Celebrini, who will be drafted first overall by the Blackhawks, as well as Artyom Levshunov, Cayden Lindstrom, Konsta Helenius, Tij Iginla, Sam Dickinson, Berkly Catton, Sacha Boisvert, Cole Eiserman, Cole Hutson (already 5’10) and Beckett Sennecke are all present. For many of them, it’s their first taste of life in the NHL.

Ivan Demidov and Anton Silayev, who both played in Russia in 2023-24, are not currently in Buffalo. It’s a pity, because Demidov injured his knee last April, and a few medical examinations wouldn’t have gone amiss to reassure the teams…

Matvei Michkov also turned down the invitation last year. I’m starting to get fed up with the lack of cooperation between Russia and North America…

Behold. Here is the list of #2024NHLDraft prospects that have been invited to the Combine in Buffalo this week. pic.twitter.com/UsrEOIbwtN

– Mark Scheig (@mark_scheig) June 2, 2024

Who will convince the Habs staff to put their chips on him? Who will say the right things in the Habs’ (often weird) interviews? We’ll see.

Kent Hughes, Jeff Gorton, Martin Lapointe and Nick Bobrov are all currently in Buffalo. They’re probably accompanied by some of the organization’s scouts…

The 32 teams’ executives are all in the same place at the same time: it must be about more than just prospects. #Transactions

Remember that the Habs currently have 12 picks for June 28 and 29: 5th, 26th, 57th, 70th, 78th, 102nd, 130th, 134th, 166th, 198th and 210th.

Cayden Lindstrom, who has been linked to the Canadiens for several weeks, is recovering from a back injury. He will take part in some physical tests, but not all. He trains five times a week and his back should be 100% in a few weeks/months.

Will he be able to convince the Habs that he should be the fifth overall pick (if he’s still available)? A back injury is always worrisome, especially at such a young age…

Let’s also remember that we shouldn’t draw too many conclusions from Saturday’s physical tests: in 2014, Sam Bennett was unable to do a single pull-up… and he’s currently one of the most important players on a team that’s in the Stanley Cup Final.

In the end, if a prospect has managed to dominate his league while not being very strong physically, maybe that’s even a positive sign…

In brief

– Kent Hughes was able to sign Connor Hughes before the scheme really took off.

– Marc-Olivier Beaudoin has published his list of the top 32 prospects for the upcoming draft. Watch for his mock draft concocted with Tony Patoine in the coming days on the site…

So here, as promised, is my final top 32 for the 2024 NHL Draft. A few clarifications:

– I don’t claim to be an expert at all, let alone a scout. I’m compiling my list purely for fun and I’m sharing it here because I know it’s of interest to some… pic.twitter.com/xWsLGlBj2G

– Marc-Olivier Beaudoin (@MOBeaudoin1) June 3, 2024

– Vassili will play an important role in San Jose (and for MLS).

My guy @joshuakloke also got stuck in on the reporting here.

Would note that Cremanzidis is a co-chair on the league’s CSO committee. Very well-versed in league affairs/rules. https://t.co/ewVraYDVfT

– Paul Tenorio (@PaulTenorio) June 4, 2024