Celine Dion, 2nd from left, postures with Ivan Demidov, center, after he was picked 5th total by the Montreal Canadiens throughout the preliminary of the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Sphere on June 28, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jeff Vinnick/ NHLI using Getty Images
Being picked in the preliminary of the NHL Draft is an unbelievable minute. Being introduced by among one of the most skilled vocalists of perpetuity is one in a million.
At the 2024 NHL Draft on Friday evening (June 28), the Canadiens invited Celine Dion to the phase– explained by Montreal basic supervisor Kent Hughes as “our No. 1 fan”– to introduce the evening’s 5th total draft choice.
Dion was gone along with to the phase inside Las Vegas’ Sphere by her 23-year-old boy Ren é-Charles Dion Ang élil, that is likewise a vocalist and passes RC Ang élil. After a multilingual welcoming toggling in between French and English, Dion came down to company. “With the fifth overall selection in the 2024 NHL Draft, the Montreal Canadiens are proud to select Ivan Demidov.”
Thanks to Dion’s stressful time out in advance of stating the 18-year-old Russian hockey gamer’s name, the NHL commentators called it “the most dramatic draft announcement of all time.” (The commentators likewise recommended that “Montreal is saying ‘merci’ to the Anaheim Ducks for not picking him,” after the California club had actually revealed passion in picking Demidov 3rd total.).
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In his post-draft interview. press reporters asked Demidov what it resembled to have Dion introduce his name. “It’s unbelievable. It’s like a book. Like a movie. It’s… me,” he giggled.
The press reporters recommended he may be also young to recognize Dion’s songs, however the Russian teenager ensured them, “No, I know. I watched the Titanic.” Dion, obviously, executed “My Heart Will Go On,” the signature tune from the 1997 James Cameron impressive Titanic, which invested 2 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100.
Dion was birthed concerning 15 miles outside Montreal in Charlemagne, Quebec, and has actually been a singing follower of the Canadiens for several years. She has actually likewise called Las Vegas home for the previous 20 years, installing a set of residencies at Caesars Palace covering 16 years.
The NHL Draft look comes simply a couple of days after Prime Video launched the brand-new docudrama I Am: Celine Dion, which narrates Dion’s health and wellness fight with Stiff Person Syndrome, an unusual autoimmune neurological problem.
Watch Dion’s NHL Draft news and Demidov’s post-draft interview listed below.
