Celine Dion surprises crowd, announces Demidov selection at 2024 NHL Draft

LAS VEGAS – The stars were out in Vegas on Friday for the NHL Draft, and none were bigger than the Canadiens’ surprise guest announcer onstage at Sphere.

Five-time Grammy winner and Quebec native Celine Dion was handed the mic—a tool she’s of course no stranger to—to help make the team’s fifth-overall selection at the event.

The singer clearly knew how to work a stage after nearly two decades of Vegas residencies, adding dramatic pause for effect before calling out Ivan Demidov’s name as the newest member of the Canadiens organization.

The 18-year-old forward was speechless following the famous name drop.

"It's unbelievable. It's like a book. Like a movie. It's… me," laughed Demidov during his post-selection press conference at the event which also saw the likes of boxing announcer Michael Buffer and former Sharks legend Joe Thornton lend their voices to the pageantry.

The pop queen was born outside Montreal but has called Nevada home since 2003, when she debuted her first Vegas residency, A New Day—raising questions at the time where her allegiances may lie after the Golden Knights joined the NHL in 2017.

Following Friday’s high-profile cameo, and a behind-the-scenes meeting last October, it looks like the answer is clear.