Prospect Info: [2022 - 1st] Juraj Slafkovsky

[HomaridII]

 

[Tonneau]

Gen Z are renowned for being soft and mentally weak

As were Millenials before them, Xers before Millenials, Baby Boomers before Xers...

 

[HomaridII]

 

[Junohockeyfan]

Its a bit stupid situation.
Usually, somewhat mature prospects know its smart to say" Everything can happen comes draftday". Not Shane. Maybe he felt pressure to be No1 and felt pressure to live up to that confident, big time player, that has competelevel up the roof?

Ok, habs didnt feel connection, chemistry, but its also a bit on them, they created the situation, and Im very confident Habs will regret hard on passing on Wrihht, nothing on Slafkovsky.

But as Wright fell, no one here knows what word on him did go around.

But passing on a potential 1C, wow, Habs will truly regret this. Now Slafkovsky has to be 40 goalscorer to overcome that.

Why did the Coyotes pass on Wright? There was unanimous consent among the top3 teams that Wright was not he BPA.

 

[salbutera]

Why did the Coyotes pass on Wright? There was unanimous consent among the top3 teams that Wright was not he BPA.

That indeed is the ultimate question

 

[Habs]

Other fan also chiming in here.

Very unsual, of not the first time, someone goes no1 pure on potential. The body is there, the shot, some hands, but the rest to fill in.
Not a safe pick, a wild pick.
They just went for the possible best player, then a safe todays BPA.

I feel a bit bad for the fans here.

Most of his goals came against low tier countries, and as I saw in a scouting video, Slaf doesnt make himself go to the net, and having not elite playing sense - the biggest redflag of them all.
He really reminds a bit of Puljujärvi, but better goalscoring and a bit better head.
Im suŕe he will score 20-25 goals. But then, is that what you wish from a 1st overall.

What are they doing...

oh whatever, you probably wanted Yakupov

 

[tooji]

his personality is perfect for this city, gotta admit

 

[JoelWarlord]

This is a prime example of why interviews are an awful way to judge a character. You tell a player you don't like his play. What do you expect his reaction is going to be? Is Wright supposed to grovel to the seemingly inept management team and explain his bad play?

Grovel, no. Have a good explanation for what he's doing to address his weaknesses and demonstrate that he isn't scared of the pressure and scrutiny, yes. The thing being conflated here is that it's not like you're gauging if a guy is good with the ladies or if he can make conversation at a bar and drafting based on that. It's fine to be shy or not the most outgoing person, and lots of shy people can respond well to tough questions even if they aren't the most assertive people in general.

He's being asked directly about on-ice, active flaws in his game. If he is unable to respond to some questions going over his own game tape, is he going to put in the work to fix those elements of his game? Will he shy away when a coach starts breaking those elements down and trying to fix them? It's not just about Wright being shy or frazzled by a weird interview question, it's about him being frazzled when directly confronted with the exact issues that caused him to drop to 4th overall, and not having a good answer for those shortcomings.

Imagine you are arguably the best in your field. You get invited to an interview and the management team insults your work. IMO getting a bit rattled may be an appropriate response. You are their to field questions, not take insults from strangers.

Well that's the thing, he wasn't arguably the best in his field. He was among the best for sure but he was certainly not in a position to be above reproach. He is there to field questions, and one of the questions they asked was about how he plans to improve flaws in his game. If he doesn't have a good answer for that it's a concern, and that's not the same thing as writing a guy off for looking at his shoes or being a bit awkward as a teenager. He didn't play last year, he didn't pop this year, and he got frazzled being asked about shortcomings in a way we can assume other players didn't. That's a concern.

1) Interviewing a student is different than interviewing someone who is objectively is one of the world's best in their field.

It goes both ways. Outside of very high managerial/executive roles, getting a job at even a very prestigious normal company is different than being drafted at the top of the NHL draft. The Montreal Canadiens and any NHL franchise are one of 32 organizations that can put players in a position to be rich and famous beyond their wildest dreams and to experience the pinnacle of success in their sport.

Shane Wright was one of the best in his field going into this draft, but so were Simon Nemec, Logan Cooley, David Jiricek, and Juraj Slafkovsky, and for a variety of reasons Montreal, New Jersey, and Arizona all agreed that Wright was not the best in his cohort. The Canadiens and the other teams with high picks were the ones doing the choosing at the draft, not the players. If a player doesn't have a good answer for the team holding the #1 pick as to what they plan to do about their flaws, that team is going to be concerned, particularly if the player doesn't have an overwhelming on-ice advantage.

 

[Nico Cauzuki]

Why did the Coyotes pass on Wright? There was unanimous consent among the top3 teams that Wright was not he BPA.

I think Yotes went with the flashy american kid for the fans,Wright is more on the boring Suzuki side but thats just my opinion

 

[salbutera]

his personality is perfect for this city, gotta admit

Hopefully it’s doesn’t get to his head..

 

[Et le But]

 

[The Last Red]

Then why do you think that Wright does not have potential to be a Bergeron if he is better than Bergeron at the same age?

I never said that he doesn't have the potential but that it's highly unlikely that he becomes an all timer like PB just because at 18 they have been compared. It is in fact highly unlikely, and development across players is not linear. I'm sorry if you can't understand these two concepts, which appears to be the case. Doesn't mean that Wright won't be a good player in the NHL but to say that we passed on the next PB is just objectively incorrect.

 

[Rapala]

To all Habs fans who are not happy about this, look at the bright side. You will have a lot of new fans in Slovakia.

Do we have a regular Slovak on HFHabs?

 

[durojean]

boo hoo Wright... I wanted you to. but man up and prove to the other teams that pass you by

He showed is might be a sore loser

He’s 17 years old and he really wanted to play here… he’s sad. He would have given his all for our team.

I hope Slaf is good. I don’t see it right now. It’s not like Gorton has got a good history on drafting and now I understand why…

 

[Shocker]

He was the best player on the ice against Finland in all of those games.

The Olympic semis being the one where he was easily the best, even with no points.

 

[WeThreeKings]

When the margins are small and you don't hold up to scrutiny of your play during an interview, when you're vying to be the #1 overall pick for the Canadiens.. its a flag. Then you match it with his play in the play-offs where he didn't want the puck on his stick, that could tip the scales.

The Habs wanted a difference maker at 1 who can handle high pressure and they felt based on the information they collected, and what they saw on the ice, that Slafkovsky is better equipped to thrive in that.

We won't know for awhile but even if I had Wright ahead of Slafkovsky, I pointed out that Wright's lack of desire to be a difference maker was a red flag.

 

[jaffy27]

He’s 17 years old and he really wanted to play here… he’s sad. He would have given his all for our team.

I hope Slaf is good. I don’t see it right now. It’s not like Gorton has got a good history on drafting and now I understand why…

Now tou know why because he drafted the #1 rated player??



How do you know?….the kid has yet to lace skates for this team and Slaf is already a bust lol

 

[durojean]

What is frustrating me more with the pick is those Hughes interview… he said everything well. He told us about things that can be learnet and thing that can’t.

Guess what, hockey IQ is the harder thing to learn as a skill and that is exactly what Slaf is lacking… maybe they found a way to brain transplant….

Ok I’m going too far, it’s my last negative comment on the pick… I really had to vent somewhere…

Let’s be patient with him and give him time… he’s a project. If he looks like a flop at 21, keep in mind that he is still young. Nishushkin took 9 years to get good… so let’s be patient. We’ll probably need that.

 

[Hannibal]

When the margins are small and you don't hold up to scrutiny of your play during an interview, when you're vying to be the #1 overall pick for the Canadiens.. its a flag. Then you match it with his play in the play-offs where he didn't want the puck on his stick, that could tip the scales.

The Habs wanted a difference maker at 1 who can handle high pressure and they felt based on the information they collected, and what they saw on the ice, that Slafkovsky is better equipped to thrive in that.

We won't know for awhile but even if I had Wright ahead of Slafkovsky, I pointed out that Wright's lack of desire to be a difference maker was a red flag.

Agree 100%.

Wright is a very passive player. In fact, his death stare was the most emotion he showed in the past year.

Slaf want to be a difference maker. I don’t want us to rush him, but at the same time, i think St-Louis could do wonders with him. More than JF Houle i think. We’ll see. But i’m so happy.

 

[durojean]

Now tou know why because he drafted the #1 rated player??



How do you know?….the kid has yet to lace skates for this team and Slaf is already a bust lol

I do not know. I hope Slaf’s succeed. I really hope he does because Habs are my team.

I stated my opinion on him and on Wright already…

 

[vlady]

Do we have a regular Slovak on HFHabs?

I can't promise that. I might pop-in from time to time. I will keep an eye on Slaf and Filip for sure.

Last time I was this invested in the Habs was when Halak had that playoff run.

 

[Deebs]

Slaffy is going back to Europe this year right?

 

[JoelWarlord]

Slaffy is going back to Europe this year right?

No.

 

[Karma Police]

Slaffy is going back to Europe this year right?

He's playing in Montreal or Laval

 

[Tetragrammaton]

When the margins are small and you don't hold up to scrutiny of your play during an interview, when you're vying to be the #1 overall pick for the Canadiens.. its a flag. Then you match it with his play in the play-offs where he didn't want the puck on his stick, that could tip the scales.

The Habs wanted a difference maker at 1 who can handle high pressure and they felt based on the information they collected, and what they saw on the ice, that Slafkovsky is better equipped to thrive in that.

We won't know for awhile but even if I had Wright ahead of Slafkovsky, I pointed out that Wright's lack of desire to be a difference maker was a red flag.

I guess Bob Mackenzie and his scouts were right and I was wrong. There was no Leafs love conspiracy. But I’m actually very happy right now and excited for Slaf!