Plot Thickens For Canadiens Prospect in KHL
SKA St. Petersburg's head coach, Roman Rotenberg, is not holding back from voicing his opinion about how North Americans view his deployment of 2024 fifth-overall pick Ivan Demidov in the KHL.
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On October 10, Demidov, a top prospect for the Montreal Canadiens, skated a season-low 3:17, leaving fans across the pond who follow the 18-year-old's KHL career a little speechless.
It was perplexing to see the league's Rookie of the Month from September (eight points in 10 games) see less and less ice time with each passing game after scoring six points in five contests from September 19 to 29.
Related: Canadiens Prospect Named Rookie of the Month in KHL
Considering Demidov is a regular on SKA St. Petersburg's third line, he's recently been shifted down to the fourth line and now sees less than seven, sometimes even five, minutes of ice time despite ranking eighth in team scoring.
During his most recent post-game media session, Rotenberg had this to say about the brewing Demidov situation:
I know that in Canada they write all sorts of articles at the instigation of American agents. It happens when agents in the US and even Russia pay journalists, and they write articles that some hockey player should play. It can be worse: agents call clubs where they have "their own" coaches, the agent tells them to put the player on the roster under threat of dismissal. It is important that agents do not pay journalists for articles, and that there be an objective analysis of the the game.
Obviously, the pressure is mounting in St. Petersburg since North American fans believe that a gifted talent like Demidov is being wasted in the KHL and would be better off coming over to play in the AHL or even get a crack at the NHL.
Related: Where Is The Ice Time For Canadiens Prospect In The KHL?
Rotenberg has earned the right to run his team as he sees fit, and there's been no open dialogue about why one of the game's top prospects is underutilized.
However, it appears someone's been keeping tabs on what outsiders think about Demidov when he should be focused on getting his team some victories since they are only 9-6 through 15 games.
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