Thursday Habs Headlines: One final meeting with Ivan Demidov

Montreal Canadiens news and notes

• Ivan Demidov has spoken with Canadiens personnel several times this season, and will do so again today in Las Vegas. [Journal de Montreal]
• The pieces Kent Hughes has available for what’s expected to be a busy trade weekend. [La Presse]
• Josh Anderson’s wedding took place on Wednesday in Italy. [Journal de Montreal]
• The Canadiens invited Ja’Marr Chase and Chase Brown of the Cincinnati Bengals to try out their hockey skills. [Canadiens.com]
• Filip Mesar won’t be attending development camp this year, waiting until rookie camp in September to join his fellow Habs prospects. [Journal de Montreal]
• Sergei Berezin has died at the age of 52. [NHL.com]

Around the league and elsewhere

• Mitch Marner and Martin Necas lead this summer’s trade bait board. [The Athletic]
• The Edmonton Oilers are expected to allow general manager Ken Holland’s contract to expire. [Sportsnet]
• Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl played through significant injuries in the playoffs. [TSN]
• The Vancouver Canucks cleared some cap space by dealing Ilya Mikheyev and Sam Lafferty to the Chicago Blackhawks. [TSN]
• Until the arena situation is resolved, Arizona won’t be an option for a return to the NHL, says Gary Bettman. [Sportsnet]
• Minor rule changes for the 2024-25 season include challenges for delay-of-game penalties, the inability for the defensive team to change if its goalie dislodges the net, warnings for the attacking centre for faceoff violations following an icing, and a potential bench minor for players sitting on the boards. [NHL.com]
• The NHL, the players’ association, equipment managers, and Fanatics staff have been scrutinizing the new NHL jerseys to make sure there isn’t a repeat of the debacle we saw with the new MLB uniforms this year. [The Athletic]
• Linus Ullmark wants to spend some time in the Ottawa Senators organization before any discussions about a contract extension. [Sportsnet]
• The Senators won’t be buying out any players this week. [TSN]
• An orange jersey with the Mighty Ducks logo heads the rebrand of the Anaheim Ducks starting next season. [Sportsnet]
• “When you get to a new team there’s opportunities to learn about yourself, not only on the ice but off the ice, too,” says Pierre-Luc Dubois following his trade to the Washington Capitals. [NHL.com]
• Glen Sather has retired from hockey. [Sportsnet]
• Which of Nikita Kucherov, Nathan MacKinnon, and Connor McDavid will be named the winner of the Hart Trophy tonight? [NHL.com]