A journalist from The Athletic doesn’t believe Demidov will be available at No. 5

For weeks, everyone around the Canadiens has been wondering whether Kent Hughes would consider selecting Russian forward Ivan Demidov in the fifth round of the upcoming draft. His talent could easily put him in the top-3, but his nationality could also be an inconvenience and push him down a few spots.

One has to wonder whether Kent Hughes would want to take a chance on a Russian player if Demidov is still available when the Canadiens announce their first pick.

For Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, Hughes wouldn’t have to worry about making such a decision because he thinks Demidov simply won’t be available at the fifth pick of the draft.

That’s what he explained in a Q&A post on the Reddit platform.

AMA (Ask Me Anything) Announcement

We’re very pleased to announce an AMA with @scottcwheeler, a staff writer at @TheAthletic who covers the NHL draft & prospects.

Join us today at 3:00pm ET to ask your questions https://t.co/vXET5cLntX

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) May 24, 2024

According to Wheeler, the Blackhawks are the favourites to select Demidov, who has the second overall pick of the auction. It’s possible, but we reported on Thursday that the Blackhawks seem to be leaning towards a defenseman rather than a forward.

Assuming Chicago selects a defenseman, Wheeler believes the next team to draft Demidov would be the Blue Jackets. Columbus holds the fourth pick of the auction.

As for Anaheim, the organization will certainly be looking for a defenseman, having gotten rid of Jamie Drysdale last season to acquire Cutter Gauthier.

The funny thing about all this is that The Athletic recently published a mock draft in which the Canadiens ended up with Demidov in the fifth round.

Understandably, not everyone at The Athletic shares the same opinion, but it’s still pretty funny.

In addition to the mock draft, some scouts have also expressed the possibility that Demidov may still be available at No. 5.

Once again, no one seems to agree on this.