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Ivan Demidov wowed the crowd in his first game of the season
Credit: Capture d'écran / Screenshot

Ivan Demidov’s first match of the season was… expected. Let’s put it that way.

Because so many things happened in the game, we’ll break it down into several points. What made Ivan Demidov such an eye-catcher in his first game of the season?

Here we go.

1. Despite losing 5-4 (in OT) to Metallurg, Demidov still managed to attract attention. Whether it was because he wasn’t overwhelmed and took control of the game, he lived up to expectations.

And he allowed himself a bit of fantasy… without his team holding him back.

Seeing him use the boards like this is a good thing. He set up the whole rink, and even if the shot wasn’t perfect, it’s still a nice sequence.

In recent weeks, we’ve often seen him go after sequences like that. I’d like to see him work on the weight of his shot.

2. In the first period of the game, the Russian found a way to get on the score sheet. He made a pass and then positioned himself well for the play to develop.

Well done.

3. After two periods, Demidov had just 7:11 of playing time. He was one of his coach’s least-used forwards – which is possible when you play on a bottom-6 – along the way.

He still finished with 14 minutes and two seconds of playing time, which means he’s almost doubled his playing time after 40 minutes. He’s gaining confidence, the youngster.

4. In terms of speed, Demidov was interesting. After all, you could feel his involvement over 200 feet and he wasn’t too slow getting from point A to point B either.

He covered 0.26 KM with the puck and was, on average, the fastest player on the ice.

5. The way he’s playing, you’d think his coach would allow him to spend more time on the ice as time goes on. We can also assume that he’ll get more playing time.

Will he be able to buy himself time on the top-6? To be seen.

Overtime

– Jeremy Swayman nears a contract?

– Kyle Bukauskas will now be alongside Elliotte Friedman for the 32 Thoughts Podcast.

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