Kent Hughes praised the maturity of Demidov and Slafkovsky

There are many reasons why the Habs chose Juraj Slafkovsky over Shane Wright, David Reinbacher over Matvei Michkov and Ivan Demidov over… just about everyone else.

Talent has something to do with it, but we have to assume that maturity has something to do with it too.

In the case of Demidov and Slaf, Kent Hughes confirmed in an interview that, yes, seeing that both guys had a great deal of maturity when they were drafted played into their hands.

The subject didn’t come up with Reinbacher during the interview, but he must be thinking along the same lines.

All this to say that, in an interview with TSN last night, the Canadiens’ GM confirmed that the two best forwards drafted by the new administration share this point.

Canadiens GM Hughes on Demidov: ‘I was blown away by his maturity ‘ https://t.co/AOXeWwXCJF

– TSN 690 Montreal (@TSN690) August 7, 2024

Hughes mentioned – in the Russian’s case – that to arrive at 18 in front of men who have the power to control his destiny, and to display such maturity (in an interview in English, which is not his mother tongue) in an interview, was quite something.

In fact, her maturity and confidence helped her.

We were blown away by his maturity. He’s confident without being arrogant. – Kent Hughes on Ivan Demidov

The same goes for Slaf. Two years ago, Flanelle management sensed that the Slovakian was a mature lad (going off to live on your own at 14 to play hockey is intense), but it’s all been confirmed since then.

This undoubtedly helped convince the Habs to give him a big contract.

We felt (his maturity) when we interviewed him in Buffalo, and we still feel it, two years later. – Kent Hughes on Juraj Slafkovsky

Because the Habs rely on a young group, having mature guys is important. So, even though the captain is young, he leads by example (along with the veterans, of course) and it shows in the room.

Ivan Demidov, who saw a lot of guys texting him after the draft, is surely realizing this.