Ivan Demidov is expected back on the ice today for the Canadiens, and the plan is for him to play Saturday in Ottawa.
Arpon Basu reported that the winger is nursing a bruise after blocking a shot in Trois-Rivières on Monday.
That's why he's been off the ice for two straight days. Count Tuesday's day off and it's three.
The Canadiens beat the Senators 3-2 on Monday, their third straight win this preseason.
Saturday brings a second look at Ottawa inside a week. The Senators are still chasing their first preseason win after a 4-2 loss to Toronto on Wednesday.
Nobody in Montreal wants to gamble with this one. Demidov put up 62 points over 82 games last season.
He then added nine points in 19 playoff games, which is the kind of spring that raises expectations fast.
Ivan Demidov is nursing a bruise after blocking a shot in Trois-Rivières on Monday, which is why he's been off the ice the last two days (three if you include the day off Tuesday). I'm told he's expected to skate tomorrow and play Saturday.
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Huge Ivan Demidov development changes everything for Montreal
The real date on the calendar is Tuesday. The Canadiens open the regular season in Toronto against Jim Hiller's Maple Leafs.
The Maple Leafs carry a two-game preseason winning streak into that one, and they'll have plenty of tape on Montreal's young winger.
So why push him into a preseason game at all?
Because a 20-year-old who hasn't been on the ice since Monday needs at least one game at full speed before the Leafs get a look at him.
A bruise from a blocked shot is the hockey version of a paper cut on a pianist's finger. Nothing's broken, but every touch reminds you it's there.
Playing him Saturday is the right call. Sitting him out of caution would only push the rust into Toronto.
Montreal took him fifth overall in 2024, and he hasn't looked like a project since.
Career-wise, he's up to 64 points through 84 NHL regular-season games.
That's the production Martin St-Louis needs in his lineup Tuesday night.
It's also why a bruise from Monday is still a story on Friday.
If today's skate doesn't go the way the Canadiens want, the conversation shifts from Saturday to Tuesday in a hurry.
Should the Canadiens sit Ivan Demidov on Saturday to protect him for the Maple Leafs opener?
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