In the last few years, the Montreal Canadiens training complex in Brossard, the CN Sports Complex, has been quite busy in the summer. It used to be that players wouldn’t be in town until the season was nearly here, but for the last two seasons, Ivan Demidov has stayed in town training hard, and last week he was joined by many of his teammates before Habs fans even began suffering from hockey withdrawal.
This summer, the Russian sensation has been joined by prospect Alexander Zharavosky for a good long while, Lane Hutson dropped in during the Canadiens’ development camp, and goalie Jakub Dobes is already back in town getting ready to enter his first camp as the Canadiens’ top-choice goaltender. On Tuesday morning, though, Demidov had an unusual guest: Utah Mammoth centerman Logan Cooley, who was apparently invited by the Russian winger himself.
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No, that doesn’t mean the Canadiens are acquiring Cooley; other NHL players have always been welcomed to use the Habs’ training facility in the summer. Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang did it last season; Vegas Golden Knights’ Raphael Lavoie did it last week, and former Habs Brendan Gallagher and Joe Veleno still regularly use the training facility, but seeing Cooley on the ice with Demidov did get some fans dreaming of what could be.
Turns out the pivot is in town because he was attending the Omnium Banque Nationale on Tuesday night, and according to Patrick Guillet, he will be doing a photo shoot for an advertising campaign before heading home. It’s not the first time Cooley skates with a member of the Canadiens’ organization; after all, he is Habs prospect LJ Mooney’s cousin and they both train together in the summer.
Cooley’s view last night. Photo credit: Logan Cooley Instagram account
Cooley was drafted third overall at the 2022 draft, two spots after the Canadiens had claimed Juraj Slafkovsky first overall, and he has developed very well since. In his rookie season, he put up 44 points in 82 games; he followed that up with a 65-point season in his sophomore year, and he had 43 points in just 54 games last season, a 65-point pace over a full 82-game campaign. He’s exactly the kind of player the Canadiens would like to land to unlock Demidov’s full potential, but that’s not happening; Bill Armstrong signed him to an eight-year deal with a $10 million cap hit last October.
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