Cowan: Canadiens prospect Michael Hage displays potential at centre
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You could see right away why the Canadiens selected Hage in the first round (21st overall) of last year's NHL Entry Draft after taking Ivan Demidov with the fifth overall pick.
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Demidov, 19, made the jump to the NHL this year after completing his KHL season with 19-30-49 totals in 65 games with SKA St. Petersburg, setting a league record for most points by a player younger than 20 and winning the rookie-of-the-year award. Demidov had a goal and an assist in two regular-season games with the Canadiens and added two assists in five playoff games. He showed he's ready to play regularly in the NHL next season.
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Hage, also 19, is coming off an impressive freshman season at the University of Michigan, where he had 13-21-34 totals in 33 games and was named his team's top rookie. Hage still isn't ready for the NHL, but if all goes well, the Canadiens hope he can develop into the second-line centre they need behind Nick Suzuki.
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'Yeah, I do,' Rassey said during a phone interview on Thursday. 'I think he's got top-six potential at the NHL level. It's going to take him some time to get there — it's not going to be an overnight thing. But from a potential standpoint, his ceiling is extremely, extremely high.'
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Hage is listed at 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds and needs to add more muscle in order to compete in the NHL. He's continuing to work on that with the University of Michigan players going through their spring-term training sessions with the team's strength coach.
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'It's hard throughout the course of a hockey season to be able to grow and add (muscle),' Rassey said. 'But to see what he's done so far in the eight weeks in the post-season and still having eight weeks to go, I think he's going to be a different player next season from a physical standpoint. He looks really good in the gym.
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MICHAEL HAGE ALL BY HIMSELF ‼️ @umichhockey
It's all tied up in Ann Arbor, 2-2. #B1GHockey on BTN 📺 pic.twitter.com/DYELohl3yb
— Big Ten Hockey (@B1GHockey) February 16, 2025
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National Post
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Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Tarnasky, who played in the NHL between 2005 and 2010, pounded on and flung into a pond a fellow golfer at the Alberta Springs Golf Resort earlier this month when he and his pals got into a verbal altercation that turned physical. I n a video posted to Facebook and Instagram and shared on X, t he victim, Trevor Ogilvie, apologized for instigating the incident just outside of Red Deer, Alta., and blamed his drinking for the attack. 'Not my finest moment, I know,' said Ogilvie in a selfie-style video . 'Played 36 holes of golf, drank way too much and my mouth ran faster than my brain.' Read More This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In the viral beatdown that was shared on social media, a man who appears to be Tarnasky tells a group of golfers in front of him to either hurry up or let him and his friends play ahead. 'They've been sitting there for 23 f—ing minutes,' Tarnasky says at the beginning of the 2 1/2-minute exchange, which was first posted to Reddit by user YEGG35 . Ogilvie yells back: 'Well, cry about it! F—in' cry about it! F—in' cry about it!' In his apology video, Ogilvie said he was sorry to 'anyone who had to deal with me that day.' 🚨⛳️🥊 #SORRY — The golfer who got tossed into the pond during the slow play altercation has released an apology video.'Played 36 holes of golf, we drank way too much and my mouth ran faster than my brain.' (Via: — NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) July 12, 2025 Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Yup, that's me guys,' Ogilvie admits with a chuckle. 'The guy that got dropped like a bucket of balls in a pond. Not my finest moment, I know. Looks real bad.' Ogilvie then offered up an apology to Tarnasky for starting the fight. 'A ll jokes aside, guys, I'd like to apologize to all the folks on the course, anyone caught up in it and anyone who had to deal with me that day. I lost my cool and I learned from it. Just one of those days where you should have kept the cart on the path,' he said. Ogilvie concluded his 49-second message by telling viewers, 'Stay hydrated, keep your stick on the ice, maybe stick to 18.' Hockey fans praised Ogilvie for owning up to his mistake of being the aggressor. 'Taking it on the chin is a lost art these days. Respect,' one person wrote on X, with another adding, 'This is the most manned up thing I've seen in a long time. Props for standing tall and admitting your mistake.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A third suggested the two hit the links for a game of golf. ' Would be the ultimate redemption story if these guys played 18 together,' they wrote. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The thrashing racked up millions of views after eagle-eyed NHL fans identified Ogilvie's opponent as likely being Tarnasky. When Tarnasky warns him, 'You're not scaring anybody,' Ogilvie becomes more agitated, hurling his sunglasses on the ground, ripping off his gloves and yelling, 'Let's f—in' go, man. Ho, ho, ho,' before charging the former enforcer. Tarnasky immediately sends him flying into a nearby pond, which should have been the end of it. 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'Just a tiny lil black eye,' the man wrote over the pic with his tongue sticking out, 'thats it thats (stet) all boys.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Red Deer Minor Hockey is conducting an investigation into the video, but police confirmed Tarnasky is not a subject of a police investigation. 'It appears to be a consensual fight,' RCMP Const. Cory Riggs told the Red Deer Advocate . We'll hear more from Tarnasky when he appears on Paul Bissonnette's Spittin' Chiclets podcast this week. mdaniell@ NHL Toronto & GTA World Editorial Cartoons Toronto & GTA
