“Don’t be surprised if Ivan Demidov scores 40 goals this season.”

Félix Forget
“Don’t be surprised if Ivan Demidov scores 40 goals this season.”
Credit: NHL.com

Ivan Demidov is about to begin his second full season in the NHL. Coming off a season in which he scored 19 goals and tallied 62 points, he'll aim to take his game to the next level in 2026–27.

He certainly has the talent to do it… even though he isn't surrounded by any better teammates than he was in 2025–26.

The question now is just how much the kid will be able to improve. And according to Michael Traikos (The Hockey News), that improvement could be quite significant.

He names Demidov among his top five candidates to take their game to the next level in the NHL this season… and he even goes so far as to say this:

Don't be surprised if Ivan Demidov scores 40 goals this season. – Michael Traikos

We know that last year, Demidov showed he was more of a passer than a shooter. He often seemed a bit hesitant to shoot… but we also know that the young player is training hard this summer (he's even the one organizing the team's summer workouts) and that he's determined to be the best version of himself.

It's a safe bet that he's been working on his shot over the past few weeks… and that the experience he gained last year will help him be less afraid to shoot.

But the reality is, he doesn't need to reach the 40-goal mark for his 2026–27 season to be considered a success. If he can rack up points by the bucketful and make his flashes of dominance more consistent, the team is in for a treat.

Although if he manages to score 40 goals as early as this season, the Habs certainly won't complain, hehe.


In a Nutshell

– Julien Gauthier is heading to Sweden.

– Great story.

– Oh, really?

facebook icon Share twitter icon Tweet linkedin icon Share
Copied!