Ivan Demidov Is Before Kucherov, Panarin, and Kaprizov Were – Hockey Writers – Montreal Canadiens

Nikita Kucherov has won three Art Ross Trophies, two Hart Trophies and two Ted Lindsay Awards. Artemi Panarin has 954 points in 830 career games. Kirill Kaprizov recorded 108 points in his second NHL season. Both he and Panarin won the Calder Trophy in their respective NHL seasons.

All three came from the Continental Hockey League (KHL) to become NHL stars. Ivan Demidov, one season into his NHL career, is trailing alongside them and before any of them were the same age. Examining how each player progressed from the KHL to the NHL helps establish a framework for what Demidov could be in his prime.

The foundation of the KHL

All four players spent time in the KHL before coming to North America, although the comparison is uneven. Kaprizov and Panarin played multiple KHL seasons before leaving. Kucherov appeared in just 18 games in two and a half seasons as a junior. Their first year in the KHL is the closest thing to justice.

Panarin had 11 goals and 18 points in 40 games for Vityaz Chekhov as an 18-year-old in 2010-11. Kaprizov scored four goals and had eight points in 31 games for Metallurg Novokuznetsk at the age of 17, the youngest of the four. Kucherov recorded five points in 18 games for CSKA Moscow before the Tampa Bay Lightning moved him to North American junior hockey.

Demidov’s first KHL season with SKA Saint Petersburg in 2024-25 was special. He recorded 19 goals and 49 points in 65 games, breaking the KHL scoring record for any player under the age of 20. He was 18 at the start of the season, turning 19 in December. The record he broke is Kaprizov’s, and he did it while ranking 11th among his team’s leading players in ice time, averaging just 13:45 per game.

Context Changes Everything

The NHL rookie seasons of these four players look very different on paper, and the circumstances behind each story fit the numbers. This context makes the comparison useful.

Panarin joined the Chicago Blackhawks a few months before his 24th birthday, with seven KHL seasons behind him, skating alongside Patrick Kane, who won the Hart Trophy that year. Panarin posted 30 goals and 77 points in 80 games, won the Calder Trophy, and led all rookies in all major offensive categories. The numbers were outstanding, and the atmosphere around him was about as good as any rookie could ask for.

Kaprizov entered the NHL at age 23 after six full KHL seasons and an Olympic gold medal. He skated with Mats Zuccarello and Victor Rask while getting some early power play time. He responded with 27 goals and 51 points in a COVID-shortened 55-game season, captured the Calder Trophy, and produced 0.93 points per game.

Kucherov started 20 on a line with defensive linemen Nate Thompson and JT Brown, with little power play time, finishing with nine goals and 18 points. Tampa apparently didn’t know what they had in Kucherov at the time. The following season, playing with Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat, he jumped to 29 goals and 65 points, and at that point, they began to understand how high his ceiling could be.

Demidov played his rookie season at age 19, turning 20 during the year—three to four years younger than Kaprizov and Panarin in their NHL primes. His main center was rookie Oliver Kapanen, but Juraj Slafkovsky’s temporary move to the second line certainly helped Demidov get things started. He finished with 19 goals and 62 points in 82 games, leading all NHL rookies in scoring, and he accomplished it despite only averaging ninth in ice time among first-year players.

Output Versus Opportunity

Adjusted for age, shipping, and supporting cast, Demidov’s output has been more positive than raw. He has always performed at the top of his peer group, even when circumstances went against him.

His profile is very similar to the original Kucherov, whose modest rookie numbers reflected dispatch, not skill. Tampa Bay needed time to figure out how to use Kucherov. Montreal has a slightly different conundrum: finding him the right teammates who can take advantage of his incredible passing and overall offensive prowess.

The comparison of Panarin is also similar in style. Both are smart, puck-moving players who create offense with vision and deception, lifting players around them. The difference is Panarin had Kane and a loaded Blackhawks roster from day one. Demidov produced on par with a rookie center.

Dan Milstein, who has represented Kucherov and Pavel Datsyuk throughout their careers, spoke to Arpon Basu of The Athletic in March 2026 and did not shy away from the comparison. “If I put my clients Pavel Datsyuk, Nikita Kucherov, and Demidov in the same room, I don’t know which one would have the highest hockey IQ,” Milstein said.

Datsyuk has won four Selke medals and three Lady Byng medals and is widely regarded as one of the smartest players the game has produced. Milstein placing Demidov next to him and Kucherov is not something the agent said casually if he represents all three.

Demidov Is Already War Tested

Demidov’s playing experience is an underrated part of his development. He entered his first full NHL season with a playoff series already under his belt, recording two assists against the Washington Capitals last spring. He followed that up with three goals and six assists for nine points in 19 playoff games last season, helping Montreal reach the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes.

That gives Demidov 24 playoff games before the start of his second NHL season, compared to 13 for Kaprizov and 11 for Panarin at the same stage of their careers. Kucherov is the closest comparison in that regard. He reached the Stanley Cup Finals in his second season and had accumulated 28 games of playoff experience.

The Ceiling Question

There is always uncertainty in the production of young players, but the evidence points consistently in one direction. At every level, Demidov produced at or near the top of his peer group, even when the conditions were against him. The takeaway is not that he still has to be something. He has already shown star-level production in limited minutes.

Without significant roster changes, a full second season produces 75-85 points realistically. Growth in coaching credibility and improved power play chemistry with Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Lane Hutson should fuel that improvement. If Montreal finds him a more reliable center and his five-for-five time increases, the speculation increases.

Kucherov’s jump from 18 to 65 points in his second year came entirely from Tampa Bay, which put him in a position that matched his ability. Demidov doesn’t need to be a better player to produce more. You need better conditions.

The numbers support a player who, at his peak, can compete for titles. Kucherov has won three Art Ross awards. Panarin averaged close to a point per game in 11 seasons and 830 games. Kaprizov had a 108-point season as a sophomore. Demidov reaches that conversation faster and under more difficult circumstances than any of them.