Ivanovo Means: why Demidov is the main contender for the Calder Trophy in the NHL

Even before the first match of the regular season, Ivan Demidov was considered the main contender for the Calder Trophy, the prize for the best rookie of the season in the NHL. And at the start of the season, the Russian only confirms the advances given to him: in 15 matches, the forward scored 13 (4+9) points and leads the list of scorers among the league's debutants. About Demidov's performance in the strongest league and his competitors - in the Izvestia article.

Competitors

Demidov played his first match for Montreal last season. Then the playoffs for SKA, for which the striker played, ended too early. The management of the St. Petersburg club released him from the remainder of his contract (about two months), and the player left to help Montreal: he played seven matches and scored four points.

But despite this, Demidov is still considered an NHL rookie. Just like any other player who hasn't played another 25 matches and hasn't reached the age of 26. Who else is applying for the "Calder" along with the Russian?

Now everything is moving towards a unique event: for the first time in 48 years, representatives of the same team can take the prize for the best newcomer twice in a row. Last year, it was Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson. This is Ivan Demidov from the same team. But more interesting is the fact that another Montreal player is competing for Calder. This is 22-year-old Finn Oliver Kapanen, who plays with Demidov in the same team. He has 10 (6+4) effective actions to his credit.

Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaeffer has a much better chance than Finn. He is the second contender for Calder after Demidov. This summer, the Canadian was selected in the draft under the overall first number. As it turned out, it was absolutely deserved. Despite his young age, Schaeffer already spends 22 minutes on the ice. The defender's performance is also surprising: he has 12 (5+7) points in 16 matches.

Anaheim forward Beckett Senneke is the third contender for Calder. Another "dark horse": before the start of the season, he was not even considered a 100% NHL player. Yes, Senneke was considered extremely promising, but in September he broke his ankle and was out for a month and a half. He actually started this season with the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Youth League. However, Senneck was lucky: before the first match of the season in the NHL, Ryan Strome broke down, and the young player took his place. He scored so well that he scored 11 (6+5) points in the first 15 matches of the season and is the third favorite for the best rookie award.

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How does a Russian play

The statistics are sorted out: Demidov is the best among the newcomers. What about the game itself? So far, Russians are not trusted much. While Schaeffer confidently gets 22 minutes on the court, Demidov's average playing time barely exceeds 13 minutes.

The Montreal coaches do not force the development of the Russian. They are especially careful about everything related to the defensive game. For example, Demidov starts only 6.3% of shifts in his zone. Of the attackers, only Zach Bolduc is less trusted (5.8%). This is not to say that it is completely bad. For example, Alexander Ovechkin has never started a shift in his zone this season.

But most people trust Demidov. The Russian goes out in the first special team and literally conducts the team's game, sometimes finding completely unexpected programs. Everything about playing in equal squads is also in perfect order: the player takes responsibility and avoids unnecessary losses.

—Demidov is the future of the Canadiens," Olympic champion and Stanley Cup winner Valery Kamensky said in a conversation with Izvestia. — The club, understandably, has high hopes for him. Now Ivan is at a great age for progress. The player's growth is helped by the coaching staff, which already trusts him with time in the first special team of the majority. The Russian pays back the club in full, steadily gaining points and helping to win. There is still a lot of work to do for Demidov to fully mature and grow into a true NHL star, but Ivan is gradually moving towards this.

It should be noted that Demidov showed the best result in 40 years for the Montreal newcomers in terms of points scored. The last player with such an achievement was Sweden's Kjell Dahlin, who scored 15 (8+7) points in 15 regular season games in 1985/86.