Habs bring out Céline Dion in Las Vegas to announce Ivan Demidov as the No. 5 overall pick and add more offence with Michael Hage at No. 21.
The Canadiens stole the show during the first round of the NHL Draft Friday night in Las Vegas — even before they made the No. 5 overall pick.
“Bonsoir, Las Vegas,” Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes said after taking to the stage at the stunning Sphere, before thanking Montreal fans in French for their support.
Switching to English, Hughes then said: “To make our 2024 first selection, I’m pleased to invite on stage our No. 1 fan — the one and only Céline Dion!”
The singing superstar then walked toward the stage holding hands with the oldest of her three sons, René-Charles.
It was a smart pick by the Canadiens, who must get more offence from their forwards and Demidov can bring that.
It was a brilliant move to have Dion make the announcement.
Demidov posted 23-37-60 totals in 30 games last season with the St. Petersburg junior team in Russia. He was held pointless in four games with the St. Petersburg KHL team and has one year remaining on his contract with that club. That means the 18-year-old won’t be able to join the Canadiens before the 2025-26 season. Demidov doesn’t have a Canadian visa — only an American one — so he won’t be able to attend the Canadiens’ development camp, which opens next Tuesday in Brossard.
In an interview with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman after picking Hage, GM Kent Hughes said he was the player the Canadiens were targeting when they made the trade with Los Angeles, giving the Kings the 26th pick, the 57th pick (second round) and the 198th pick (seventh round) in exchange.
“Growing up as a kid, he did everything for me and I couldn’t be happier,” Hage said while holding back tears in an interview with Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek after getting drafted. “Honestly, grew up as Habs fans. Both my parents are from Montreal. My dad would be so happy right now. It’s a dream come true for me, honestly.”
Hage played his minor youth hockey with the Toronto Junior Canadiens and posted 46-70-116 totals in 57 games with the triple-A U16 team in 2021-22.
“This is a team I dreamed of playing for as a kid and I’m going to do everything I can to be as impactful as I possibly could be when I get there,” the Mississauga, Ont., native said about getting drafted by the Canadiens.
Hughes also told Friedman that Demidov was the player the Canadiens were hoping to get with the No. 5 pick.
“He was our pick,” Hughes said. “So we certainly explored everything that we could, but ultimately we got him at five and we’re thrilled.”
The Canadiens did their homework on Demidov with Nick Bobrov, the team’s co-director of amateur scouting, visiting with the player throughout last season in Russia. The Canadiens scouts were also high on Hage.
“The guys love his speed, his skill set, character, the fact that he’s going to get a couple of years in college to keep getting bigger and stronger and they think he’s going to be a really good player for us,” Hughes told Friedman about Hage.
Demidov considers himself to be more of a playmaker than a scorer. He shoots left and is listed as a right-winger, but he can also play left wing and centre. Six of his 23 goals last season in the Russian junior league were game-winners and he averaged 4.8 shots on goal per game in the regular season. He added 11-17-28 totals in 17 playoff games.
“It’s an unbelievable moment,” Demidov, who started learning English a year-and-a-half ago in school with his sights set on the NHL, told reporters in Las Vegas after getting drafted, “I think from childhood all players dream about it and now the dream comes true in an unbelievable city like Montreal. It’s crazy.”
Demidov said he’s “very happy to be with Habs” and isn’t concerned about the pressure of playing in the Montreal market.
“I think it’s good because (Montreal) fans really love hockey and I, too, love hockey,” he said. “That’s why it’s not a problem for me.”
The Canadiens need more forwards who can produce offence if this rebuild is going to work and Demidov and Hage definitely have the potential to do that. Céline was the icing on the cake on this night.
“It’s unbelievable,” Demidov said about Dion announcing his name. “It’s like a book, like a movie. It’s me! It’s cool.”
It sure was.