“If Demidov keeps playing like he did on Saturday, he’ll be practically unstoppable.”

Raphael Simard
“If Demidov keeps playing like he did on Saturday, he’ll be practically unstoppable.”
Credit: X

Among the players who stood out last night were David Reinbacher, Cole Caufield, Lane Hutson, and Luke Mittelstadt.

We shouldn't be too quick to forget Ivan Demidov, who scored a goal.

All summer long, we kept saying he'd gotten faster, and last night, it showed. He was one of the best players on the ice, and that's encouraging, because it was only the first preseason game and he was playing against the Leafs' B team.

When asked whether the work he put in during the offseason had already paid off in the season's first game, he told Eric Engels (Sportsnet):

“You tell me.” – Ivan Demidov

In any case, he's certainly not lacking in confidence.

In Engels' (SN) article, the reporter wrote that if the Russian continues to dominate like this, he'll go from hard to stop to practically unstoppable. Demidov has already racked up 62 points in his rookie season playing alongside Oliver Kapanen and Alex Newhook (and sometimes Juraj Slafkovsky)…

Now imagine an 84-game season, with all 84 games alongside Slaf, sprinkled with Michael Hage down the stretch.

Even though No. 93 is possibly the most talented player on the team, he's not perfect. But he's a quick learner, and whatever the coach tells him, he does it. If there's one downside to his game, it's that he isn't selfish enough. Martin St. Louis told Engels that he's learning to make the best play for the team instead of always going for the option he's most comfortable with: the pass.


In a nutshell

– What a save!

– Clearly not.

– Not ideal.

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