Habs ink rookie star Demidov to 8-year extension

The Montreal Canadiens have locked up winger Ivan Demidov, the best rookie forward in the NHL last season. Demidov, 20, has signed an 8-year contract extension with an average annual value of $9.125 million against the salary cap, his agent Dan Milstein announced Wednesday. Demidov has one more year left on his entry-level contract ($940,833 AAV), so this extension starts in the 2027-28 season. Demidov arrived from the KHL in 2025, playing two regular-season and five playoff games for Montreal. In 82 games last season, Demidov had 19 goals and 43 assists in 82 games, scoring seven times on the power play. He led all rookies in scoring (62 points) and finished second to New York Islanders phenom Matthew Schaefer for the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. The Canadiens now have its young core of Nick Suzuki ($7.875 million AAV), Cole Caufield ($7.85 million AAV), Juraj Slafkovsky ($7.6 million AAV), Lane Hutson ($8.85 million AAV) and Demidov all signed through 2030.