\u201cI think this is one of my favourite goals,\u201d Demidov said during a long conversation last week, his first one-on-one interview since arriving in North America nearly a year ago.<\/p>\n
After hugging Hutson and celebrating with his teammates, Demidov pointed into the crowd \u2014 acknowledging two of the 20,962 in attendance, the two people most responsible for where he found himself in that moment: his parents Aleksei and Olga, experiencing their first NHL game.<\/p>\n
In fact, it was the first time Aleksei had ever been to North America and the first time the pair had seen their son realizing a dream that\u2019s not only his, but the family\u2019s, as well.<\/p>\n
The goal and the celebration were even more significant than they appeared. The edge work, the deception, the hockey IQ, the compete, the work ethic: Everything that makes Demidov a special hockey player comes as a result of a life-changing decision Aleksei and Olga made 13 years earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cI owe them everything,\u201d Demidov said.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2244077146-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Ivan Demidov acknowledges his parents by pointing into the crowd after scoring a game-tying goal on Nov. 1, 2025. (Vincent Ethier \/ Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Demidov was born in Sergiyev Posad, Russia, in 2005, which is easily verifiable on any hockey website.<\/p>\n
But that is not his hometown.<\/p>\n
He grew up in Dmitrov, about 50 kilometres to the west of Sergiyev Posad and roughly 90 minutes north of Moscow. When he was due to be born, there was a viral outbreak in Dmitrov and all the hospitals were closed, forcing his parents to make the trip to Sergiyev Posad.<\/p>\n
If you want an idea of how Demidov is wired, just ask him to describe his hometown.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a pretty small city, maybe 70,000 people,\u201d he began. \u201cI lived close to the outdoor rink, maybe 50 metres. And also, it\u2019s not that good of a hockey team, but all the stuff there is pretty good, the facilities. We have four ice rinks there.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was growing up, there was a lot of tournaments, 4 Nations, 5 Nations, under-18, so I used to see Jack Eichel when I think he was 17 years old. I didn\u2019t even know who was this guy, but it was pretty special to me that other countries played there. Maybe someone from our team even played there, I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
His only description of Dmitrov that doesn\u2019t pertain to hockey is the population \u2014\u00a0and that tells you just about everything you need to know about Demidov.<\/p>\n
His entire life, and that of his older brother, Semyon, has had hockey as the centrepiece.<\/p>\n
Demidov was in skates at age two, and though his father Aleksei never played at a high level, he quickly recognized the talent in his two sons.<\/p>\n
Aleksei drove a truck for a living, while Olga worked in retail sales. But when Demidov was about six years old and Semyon was nine, the family made an important decision to go all-in on hockey.<\/p>\n
Aleksei stopped working and devoted his full attention to his sons and their hockey development, leaving Olga to support the family.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was not an easy decision, but we believed it was the right one,\u201d Olga Demidova said, through Demidov\u2019s agent Dan Milstein. \u201cWe owned two small apartments at the time, and we chose to sell one so that Aleksei could focus entirely on the boys\u2019 hockey careers. Everything was done with a clear purpose and long-term belief in their path.\u201d<\/p>\n
This close contact with his father, and a near-constant focus on hockey, formed the Demidov we see today.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father is the type of guy where if you start doing something, he\u2019s not going to let you rest until the job is finished,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cMy mom also, she also was obsessed with me and my brother playing hockey. It was going well, so she tried to help us for all the stuff around hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n
The timing of Aleksei\u2019s decision to devote himself to his sons\u2019 hockey careers might not actually be all that surprising.<\/p>\n
Demidov\u2019s first hockey memory came a year earlier, and is telling.<\/p>\n
Remember, he was born Dec. 10, 2005.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know why, but I remember one practice. It was a practice with \u201902s,\u201d Demidov said, referring to the players\u2019 birth year. \u201cMy brother is \u201902, but he wasn\u2019t there because he was practicing with the 2000s, and I was practicing with the \u201902. This group, we did some drills, but I didn\u2019t even know those guys were much older than me.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce my age group started (hockey), the \u201905 group, and my dad was like, \u2018All right, we\u2019re going skating with your age.\u2019 I\u2019m like, \u2018What do you mean my age? I\u2019m not going to go with them, they\u2019re too young for me.\u2019 And I was the youngest guy in my age group! But I\u2019m like, \u2018I\u2019m not going to go there.\u2019 Because I didn\u2019t even know that I was the same age as those guys. I was skating with the \u201904, the \u201903 and the \u201902, and I was thinking they were all my age. Maybe the \u201902s, I knew they were older, but the \u201904 and \u201903, I thought they were my age.\u201d<\/p>\n
This was 2010. He was five years old. The kids he was skating with in the \u201902 group were eight. That is a massive developmental difference. But he didn\u2019t see much of a gap at all.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was normal if we talk about skills,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cObviously, they were more physically (developed). But for the skills it was, I think, the same.\u201d<\/p>\n
The coach of the \u201905 group was a friend of his father\u2019s, so Demidov eventually agreed to skate in his own age group. Again, he was five.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first skate, everyone is skating without sticks. They can\u2019t skate,\u201d Demidov said, still busting out laughing at the memory. \u201cAnd I\u2019m just going with my dad in some corner doing figure eights with pucks already.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0330_IvanDemidov_Downpage5.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Ivan Demidov, right, with father Aleksei and older brother Semyon in Dmitrov, Russia. (Courtesy of the Demidov family)<\/p>\n
The following year, Aleksei quit his job and became a full-time hockey dad.<\/p>\n
As Demidov got older, his days became increasingly geared toward hockey. His typical school day saw him going on the ice at least three times, whether it was at that outdoor rink 50 metres from the house or one of the four indoor rinks in Dmitrov.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy day was like, Tuesday and Thursday we had two practices at the outdoor rink,\u201d Demidov explained. \u201cBut on the other days I would skate in the morning with my team, and then school, five classes, then going back (home), eat, going for the second practice with the team, going back after practice, eat at home, do some homework for school, and then go back with my dad to this rink.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, how long would he go to the outdoor rink with his dad after that long day?<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, we would go at around 7 p.m., and the lights are off around 10. So \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
The implication was clear. They stayed until they turned the lights off.<\/p>\n
Rinse, repeat. Day after day.<\/p>\n
\u201cUsually if there was not a lot of people, we just worked on skills,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cBut if there was a lot of people, we would just play hockey, build confidence. It was pretty good, I feel.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is where the edge work comes from. This is where the compete comes from. This is where the work ethic comes from.<\/p>\n
Early in Demidov\u2019s life, it was Aleksei who pushed him to work. But at a young age, right around the time Semyon left to play in the national U16 hockey league, Demidov became self-motivated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe funny thing is for kids, when it\u2019s a lot, they can say, \u2018No, I don\u2019t want to do it,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cBut I was another type of kid. \u2026 It happened obviously sometimes, but maybe at age 13, I was like no, I can\u2019t. I didn\u2019t want to lie to myself because I didn\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI realized at 12 or 13 to just be honest with you and yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Demidov is still a rink junkie. He is on the ice all the time. At 20, he remains honest to him and himself.<\/p>\n
Milstein, Demidov\u2019s agent, has two other clients with a similarly special understanding of the game. They are legends, and he doesn\u2019t hesitate to put Demidov in the same group.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I put my clients Pavel Datsyuk, Nikita Kucherov and Demidov in the same room, I\u2019m not sure who would have a higher hockey IQ,\u201d Milstein said. \u201cThey\u2019re very similar in the way they think, the way they view opponents. They are the most intellectual players I\u2019ve come across.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eight years ago, when Milstein\u2019s scouts in Russia informed him there was a player he needed to see, he boarded a plane to see Demidov in person.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I met with the kid for the first time, I thought it was a very mature, 27-year-old hockey player who was very aware, watching a lot of video,\u201d Milstein said. \u201cHe was very smart.\u201d<\/p>\n
Demidov was 12.<\/p>\n
When Demidov was told last week of what his agent said about his hockey IQ, he immediately began laughing and shaking his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I\u2019ll tell Dan, but at this point maybe it\u2019s too early, because clearly Datsyuk and Kuch, they\u2019re on another level,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t say right now we have the same type of IQ because even this experience that they have, they have more of those situations than me and they will figure out (problems) much faster, much easier because of those situations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Demidov is living those situations right now, and his teammates and coach are already impressed with how he\u2019s been able to process the speed and the skill of the NHL game at such a young age.<\/p>\n
That goal against the Senators with his parents in the building was an example, but Demidov has demonstrated it consistently since.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis edges and compete really help him out in those situations,\u201d Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki said after a win against the Carolina Hurricanes last Tuesday in which Demidov scored the insurance goal on a breakaway in the third period. \u201cHe\u2019s probably been doing that his whole life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suzuki, of course, had little idea how true that is. Demidov\u2019s whole life has been spent preparing for what he is now experiencing, and he will go through the situations that will allow him to compare his hockey IQ to his heroes Datsyuk and Kucherov as time goes on.<\/p>\n
But for now, Demidov\u2019s first full season in the NHL has been a challenge. Even if he has spent his entire life playing hockey, the rhythm and pace of this NHL season haven\u2019t been easy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s pretty hard, because you\u2019re 19 years old and it\u2019s your first year playing that type of games in a row,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cFor example, last year I played around 78 games. But (at) that time when I played (in Russia), we start earlier (in the year), you have so many days off between games. \u2026 So you have a lot of days where you can go to sauna to rest and your body is feeling good. But here, it\u2019s like, you don\u2019t have those days. You\u2019re just playing, playing, playing, playing, and also your mind, you have to rest.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the difficulty of his first full NHL schedule does not even take into account the culture shock Demidov and girlfriend, Ekaterina Yakovleva, are attempting to adjust to. The two live downtown with their dog, C\u00e9line, named after superstar singer C\u00e9line Dion, who announced the Demidov draft pick for the Canadiens in Las Vegas in 2024.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes, yeah, you feel, I don\u2019t know, you miss your house, you miss your friends in Russia. I mean, miss everything in Russia,\u201d Demidov said. \u201cBut life is life. Just keep going and you have to, just don\u2019t lose your memories. I feel pretty good here, everyone lives hockey. Sometimes it\u2019s getting annoying, sometimes it\u2019s pretty funny.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0330_IvanDemidov_Downpage6.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Ivan Demidov and parents Olga and Aleksei in the Canadiens dressing room. (Courtesy of the Demidov family)<\/p>\n