Ivan Demidov’s incredible rookie season with the Montreal Canadiens keeps getting better, but he’s got some serious competition for the NHL’s top rookie award.
The 20-year-old Russian forward just picked up December’s Rookie of the Month honors after putting up some impressive numbers. He’s leading all first-year players with 35 points, including 10 goals, in his first 40 NHL games.
What makes those stats even more remarkable? He’s doing it all in just 15 minutes of ice time per game.
Demidov showed off his playmaking skills again Thursday night, setting up two goals in Montreal’s wild 7-5 win over Carolina. Those assists helped teammates Oliver Kapanen and Juraj Slafkovsky find the back of the net.
He’s been on fire lately, stringing together three straight games with two points each in late December.
But there’s a catch.
Despite all that success, Demidov isn’t actually the favorite for the Calder Trophy right now. That honor belongs to New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer, last year’s top draft pick who’s taking the league by storm at just 18 years old.
Schaefer’s put up 26 points in 41 games, but it’s how he’s doing it that’s turning heads. The young defenseman is logging nearly 24 minutes per game – that’s about 9 minutes more than Demidov gets each night.
The numbers tell the story:
* Schaefer leads rookies with 111 shots on goal (Demidov has 55)
* Schaefer’s completed 758 passes in the offensive zone (Demidov: 499)
* Even in slot passes, Schaefer edges out Demidov 78 to 66
Before Schaefer burst onto the scene, many thought Demidov might follow in teammate Lane Hutson’s footsteps as Rookie of the Year. That would’ve been pretty special – the last time teammates won it back-to-back was way back in 1967-68 with the Boston Bruins’ Bobby Orr and Derek Sanderson.
If Schaefer does take home the trophy, he’ll make some history of his own. It would mark only the second time two defensemen have won the award in consecutive seasons, matching a feat last seen in the mid-1960s.
The race isn’t over yet, but Demidov’s got his work cut out for him in the second half of the season.
