Canadiens: Sergei Plotnikov’s Resurgence an Example of Demidov’s Potential and the Benefit of a Winning Environment

It may be shocking to hear, but it doesn't exactly help a prospects development much when your team is constantly losing, and while some NHL teams are simply stuck with the roster they have (*ahem* the Blackhawks) the same can't be said for the AHL, or even the ECHL for that matter. For years, the Canadiens farm system functioned more akin to well, an actual farm, only there was just animals and no actual farmers. The Laval Rocket lost 12-straight games to end their inaugural season in 2017-18, Sylvain Lefebvre was retained as head coach for six straight seasons despite making the playoffs just once with the St. John's IceCaps (on the last day of the AHL regular season might I add), the ECHL's Brampton Beast jumped ship to the Senators due to a lack of support from the Canadiens (before folding altogether) and at times the go-to-guy on these teams was the likes of Yannick Veilleux, George "Bud" Holloway, and Vince Dunn (no, not that Vince Dunn).

Examples like the Toronto Maple Leafs relationship with the Marlies and even the former Newfoundland Growlers have led to sustained, consistent success and a good environment for prospects to grow. With players like William Nylander emerging early as a star over two solid seasons with the Marlies from 2014-15 to 2015-16, the Canadiens have largely followed that same pattern to similar success in recent years. 10 of the Laval Rocket's 12 leading scorers this season were drafted by Montreal, with forward Alex Barre-Boulet and former Canadiens regular Laurent Dauphin (remember him?) serving a similar role to Plotnikov in SKA. While it is extremely if not entirely unlikely that Demidov will ever play in the AHL, Plotnikov's resurgence and the established enviroment of SKA as a team have boh served to tremendously benefit his potential for the future.

Similarly, that's something Kent Hughes and company are learning now, and they are reaping all the benefits with the success of both the Rocket, and Trois-Rivieres Lions. From the days of Pierre Turgeon to the days of well, Shayne Corson and Murray Baron (eesh), to the Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki's of today, the Montreal Canadiens have seen their fair share of ups and downs to say the least, but with the offensive resurgence of a KHL veteran like Sergei Plotnikov, and the potential and ability Ivan Demidov has shown, there's a lot of hope that this 5th overall pick can bring back an offensive spark that Montreal fans haven't seen, for a long, long time.