Montreal, QC – In a night of mixed fortunes, the Montreal Canadiens witnessed a historic NHL debut from their prized prospect Ivan Demidov, but ultimately fell to the Chicago Blackhawks in a shootout, further complicating their playoff aspirations.
With the Stanley Cup Playoffs looming, the race for the final Eastern Conference Wild Card spot remains tight, pitting the Canadiens against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Montreal, who once seemed poised for postseason contention, has now suffered three consecutive losses (0-1-2), opening the door for Columbus.
Despite controlling their own destiny with one game remaining against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Canadiens failed to capitalize on a crucial home game against the already-eliminated Blackhawks. The 4-3 shootout loss prevented them from securing their first playoff berth since 2021.
However, the night wasn’t without its highlights. The highly anticipated debut of Ivan Demidov lived up to the hype. The 2024 fifth overall draft pick made an immediate impact, registering an assist within the first six minutes of the game, setting up Alex Newhook for the opening goal. He then added to his impressive debut with a goal of his own in the first period, becoming the third teenager in Canadiens history to score in their NHL debut.
«It was elite execution, a little reverse deception,» said Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis of Demidov’s goal. «It was really pretty.»
Demidov’s two-point debut placed him in elite company, joining Petr Svoboda as the only other teenager in Canadiens history to achieve multiple points in their first NHL game.
«It’s crazy,» Demidov said of the experience. «I feel the fans love me and it’s great. Yeah, it’s unbelievable.»
Despite Demidov’s brilliance and an early 2-0 lead, the Blackhawks battled back, with goals from Tyler Bertuzzi, Frank Nazar, and Lukas Reichel. The Canadiens managed to force overtime with a late power-play goal from Juraj Slafkovsky, but ultimately fell in the shootout.
«They [Blackhawks] come in, they want to stop us from clinching, and they bring their best game,» said Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki. «I thought we played decent overall. We could have won the game, but we move on now.»
With the single point earned from the overtime/shootout loss, Montreal (39-31-11) now holds 89 points, four points ahead of Columbus (38-33-9, 85). The Canadiens can clinch a playoff spot with one more point against Carolina or if Columbus loses either of their remaining games.
The pressure remains on Montreal as they head into their final regular-season game, knowing they had an opportunity to secure their playoff position at home but failed to capitalize.