The Montreal Canadiens signed Ivan Demidov to his first NHL contract just in time for the playoffs. After taking him fifth overall in 2024, the Russian spent this season in the KHL. Now, he makes the jump to the Habs for their first playoff series since 2021. Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported after the signing that his availability at five nixed a huge trade. The Canadiens almost traded for Trevor Zegras from the Anaheim Ducks at the 2024 NHL Draft, but didn't partly because of Demidov.

“It’s believed there were two aborted trades at last year’s draft that could have changed history. First was Chicago’s offer to trade their 2026 first-rounder (unprotected) for the fourth pick, which the Blue Jackets turned down,” Friedman wrote. On his podcast, he expanded by saying it was believed the Blackhawks were trading up for Demidov.

“Second was the Canadiens’ own attempt to acquire Trevor Zegras,” he continued. “I’ve never received complete clarity on why that deal didn’t happen, but I suspect it's because the Canadiens changed their minds when they realized Demidov would fall to five — although they were not offering that particular pick in the Zegras deal.”

Back to the podcast, Friedman said the Canadiens felt that Zegras and Demidov were similar players. Having them both would not make them a better team.

How will history look back on this abandoned Canadiens deal?

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The Canadiens were going to trade a “young defenseman” and the 21st overall pick for Zegras, per Friedman. Instead of doing that, they made the playoffs and added two young forwards to their prospect pipeline. That is a win for the Habs, even if Zegras turns into the best player of the three. With the 21st pick they were going to send to Anaheim, they picked center Michael Hage.

Zegras was coming off his worst season of his career at the 2024 draft. He had only 15 points in 31 games, and the Ducks finished near the bottom of the standings. His numbers have rebounded slightly this year, 31 points in 54 games, but that would have been a high price. It obviously depends on which young defenseman the Canadiens were going to trade, but even the first-rounder is a steep price.

The Canadiens made the right decision by holding off on the Zegras trade. Demidov is a winger and Zegras is a center, but their games are similar and the latter could play wing on a better team. The Habs are going to the playoffs and the Ducks aren't making this one an easy decision.