The good news keeps coming for the Montreal Canadiens. Habs rookie Ivan Demidov has been named a finalist for the Calder Trophy, awarded annually to the best first-year player in the league, after winning a tightly contested series against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the NHL playoffs.
The 29-year-old Demidov finished the year as the highest-scoring rookie in the NHL with 19 goals and 43 assists in 82 games. He will be matched up against Matthew Schaefer (New York Islanders) and Beckett Seneca (Anaheim Ducks), two very solid rookies in their own right.
This is the second consecutive season a Canadian player has been a finalist for the coveted trophy, with phenom Lane Hutson taking it home after a tremendous campaign in 2024-25 in which he scored 66 points on Montreal's blue line.
This is the second consecutive season in which Demidov will be in contention for the Rookie of the Year award in any professional hockey league. He was awarded the KHL Alexei Cherepanov Trophy, the Russian equivalent of the Calder Trophy, in the KHL last year.
Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks
Schaefer is considered the favorite to take home the trophy because he is an 18-year-old defenseman who somehow scored 23 goals, which is a ridiculous feat. He played a big role for the Islanders and was even considered for a role with Team Canada at the Olympics.
As for Seneca, he also enjoyed a 23-goal campaign while playing a second-line role for the rising Anaheim Ducks. The 20-year-old winger finished fourth in Ducks scoring with 60 points.
Demidov was the most productive player of the first year, but according to many analysts this would not be enough to capture the trophy. Regardless, the fact that he was one of four rookies in the Canadiens' lineup this season shows the team's dedication to a rebuilding mantra, favoring youth enthusiasm over experience.
