Canadiens Fans Were In A Flight-Trackin' Mood For Star Prospect Ivan Demidov's Arrival

The Montreal Canadiens are in a position I promise you they were not expecting to be in at the start of the season: on the cusp of sealing a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

And, as if that wasn't exciting enough, the Habs were able to call in some reinforcements, and their prized first-round pick from the 2024 NHL Draft was signed to an entry-level deal earlier this week and arrived in Canada with the throngs of fans ready to greet him.

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Demidov was the fifth-overall pick in last year's draft and, like his countryman, Philadelphia Flyers forward Matvei Michkov who went seventh-overall the year before, he was considered a steal. That likely had to do with the fact that he was still under contract with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL.

The 19-year-old had a great season, posting 49 points (19G, 30A) in 65 games, but surprisingly, news broke that SKA planned on benching him through the postseason. That was a clue that a jump to the NHL looked to be incoming.

Now it's official, and Habs fans were so pumped that they made Demidov's flight from Istanbul to Toronto Pearson International Airport (that's "YYZ" to all you Rush fans out there) the most-tracked flight in the world on Thursday night.

Fortunately, the folks in the Great White North did a better job tracking this flight than they did when they thought Shohei Ohtani was about to become a Blue Jay.

This time they got it right, and even though Demidov arrived in Toronto where the Habs will play their arch-rival Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, there was plenty of bleu, blanc et rouge to welcome him.

Demidov is expected to make his NHL debut on Monday night back in Montreal when the Canadiens host the Chicago Blackhawks at the Bell Centre.