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With the potential arrival of Kuznetsov with SKA, Demidov could stay in Russia

 Emily Smith
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With the potential arrival of Kuznetsov with SKA, Demidov could stay in Russia
Credit: Getty Images
The rumor mill has been churning since the beginning of the week, but we got confirmation earlier today.

Evgeny Kuznetsov has been placed on unconditional waivers by the Hurricanes, in order to terminate his contract.

What’s next? Kuznetsov, as I wrote in a text on Monday, would agree to the terms of a four-year contract with SKA St. Petersburg.

If confirmed, this will have an impact on the Montreal Canadiens.

Why?

Because it would add one more (talented) player to the SKA roster, and it could limit the playing time of a guy like Ivan Demidov.

After all, SKA already has 16 forwards lined up for next season, and that doesn’t include Evgeny Kuznetsov.

Add to all this the fact that Demidov is (clearly) the youngest player in the group… And that can be worrying on the face of it, because we know how unfavorable the treatment of youngsters is in the KHL for their respective development :

(Credit: Elite Prospects)

Demidov is part of the SKA organization, but SKA isn’t obliged to do him a favor by allowing him to play in Russia’s big league in the 24-25 season.

And the reason is simple: Demidov’s contract runs out at the end of next season, and he should (technically) make the jump to North America afterwards.

Why would SKA insist on indulging him and prioritizing his development, especially when the team will have the tools to win the KHL championship with the veterans already in place?

Kent Hughes and his group in Montreal will have to find a way for Demidov to get as much playing time as possible to progress, and it looks like that could be very difficult in St. Petersburg.

Could it be that the Habs will have to come to an agreement with SKA to terminate Demidov’s contract, much as they did with Matvei Michkov in Philadelphia in recent weeks?

It would be a turnaround, but we know it’s possible with what happened with Michkov… And we know the Habs have good contacts in Russia because of Nick Bobrov.

Maybe that’s where things could move forward.


Overtime

– My choice is… The two Kostitsyn brothers!

– He’s emotional.

– Nice contract for the Hurricanes.

– I hope they can play on the same line.

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