Prospect Info: [2022 - 1st OA] Juraj Slafkovsky (LW) Part 2

[Non Player Canadiens]

My thoughts as well. Habs fan base are going to dwell on this a lot. Let him develop in piece.

threads like this make me realize i care way less about prospects than other posters do especially brand new ones with zero NHL games under their belt ...

 

[Kennerback]

Beniers gained 11 pounds about the same as Slaf. Perfectly normal from 1 year to the next at 17, 18, 19...

 

[BenchBrawl]

Beniers gained about 10 pounds same as Slaf. Perfectly normal from 1 year to the next at 17, 18, 19...

Gives me Phil Esposito vibes.

 

[Paddy17]

Where’s that quote from Hughes where they’re not looking for the best draftee player now but 2-3 years from now?

Perfectly OK with seeing Slaf making rookie mistakes while gaining experience. I’m more interested in him realizing his potential in due course.

The best thing they can do is to tell him to not read anything about himself in the media and especially on social media. That should shield him from a certain amount of toxicity from a portion of the fanbase.

People...

 

[admiralcadillac]

The best thing they can do is to tell him to not read anything about himself in the media and especially on social media. That should shield him from a certain amount of toxicity from a portion of the fanbase.

People...

Are people that negative about him?

 

[Xirik]

Gives me Phil Esposito vibes.

more Severus Snape vibes to me.

 

[BenchBrawl]

If Beniers had been available, I would have strongly considered him at 1st overall. Looks like a real heart-and-soul franchise center type, in a way that Shane Wright with his lackluster style of play in 2022 failed to project as.

As for Slafkovsky, not worried. He was a gamble, rough around the edge, a collection of tools with a good heart, that hopefully the coaching staff can put inside a toolbox in the next few years. If not, he's still gonna be an NHLer, probably an inconsistent one showing flashes, a Kostitsyn of sort. That would be disappointing, but the 2022 draft was ultimately a crapshoot, so can't let regrets cloud our judgement. We may still end up picking up solid players from that class, especially Mesar and Beck who I feel have a great shot at making the NHL. It would be ironic if Mesar ended up being the best Slovak on our team, but not as far-fetched as it seems. Dude is an animal.

 

[Sagikev]

4

Hes a first overall pick. Hes not a bust, but hes 100% disapponting.

A first overall pick shouldnt need "time".

Jack Hughes needed time, Owen Power needed time, Laf still needs time, so does Hiscier, even Mackinnon needed time (not to the same extent, but you get my message), Ekblad, etc. The reality is almost every 1st OA needs time to some extent. Not all of them are McJesus Crosby and Ovi, scoring PPG in their rookie year.

 

[Mrb1p]

4

Jack Hughes needed time, Owen Power needed time, Laf still needs time, so does Hiscier, even Mackinnon needed time (not to the same extent, but you get my message), Ekblad, etc. The reality is almost every 1st OA needs time to some extent. Not all of them are McJesus Crosby and Ovi, scoring PPG in their rookie year.

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.

@Mrb1p are you just gonna take that? Get him!

My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

 

[BenchBrawl]

A "1st overall" is a meaningless entity. A 2022 1st overall is not a 2007 1st overall is not a 1984 1st overall.

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.


My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

All these guys were higher profile prospects than Slaf too, so how is that surprising? It's Shane Wright's fault for destroying his pedigree in his draft year. No prospect this year had the profile of the guys you talked about.

 

[Non Player Canadiens]

Beniers gained 11 pounds about the same as Slaf. Perfectly normal from 1 year to the next at 17, 18, 19...

ooofffff that Starbucks logo is hideous on the jersey

so gross

 

[BlackEye from Xhekaj]

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.


My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

So what is it specifically that isn't "impressing" you about Slaf in his 2 meaningless rookie camp games or the whole week's worth of footage (highlights?) that you've watched? You're so high on what seems to be ANY other 1oa except Slafkovsky.

 

[Sagikev]

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.


My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

Idk his puck protection and play along the boards showed me he'll be elite in that category. He can also skate so he shouldn't end up as an Armia kind of guy. He showed some stuff, opening a lot of space for Mesar and co, giving them good passes and keeping the play alive. No one could take the puck off of him along the boards, I'd say that's a pretty great tool to have.

 

[David Suzuki]

this is a bit disappointing but it also mean jack

How can it be meaningless and also disappointing lol

 

[le_sean]

4

Jack Hughes needed time, Owen Power needed time, Laf still needs time, so does Hiscier, even Mackinnon needed time (not to the same extent, but you get my message), Ekblad, etc. The reality is almost every 1st OA needs time to some extent. Not all of them are McJesus Crosby and Ovi, scoring PPG in their rookie year.

People forget MacKinnon needed quite a bit of time for someone that was so highly touted. He didn’t reach star level until his 5th season. Heck even Dahlin is just scratching the surface for a supposed generational defenceman.

Like you said, not everyone to pick is McDavid or Matthews.

 

[Tyson]

Patience and experience is all he needs.
I think his potential will be reached if he is allowed to develop properly.

He is going to be a good player....you can just see it.

 

[Kennerback]

Not my first, but in Slaf's cases, his detractors seems to not have been wowed by his Olympics performances either...

And I don't expect him to change that much, his puck protection skill is his main strength and from where everything else happens. His game away from the puck will get polished over time and he might take more shots and play a different position on the pp thought.

Having seen a lot of him before, I think the 2 games gave a good idea what type of player he is. He played more intense and scored more goals at the Olympics, but it’s basically a fair glimpse of how he plays. There’s no big surprise upcoming at Camp. It’s quite unfortunate for those that don’t like him.

 

[WeThreeKings]

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.


My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

Are you gonna play fair and put your own Brady Tkasuck quotes in there too, cause you were just as guilty of sending that meme train off the tracks as I was.

So what is it specifically that isn't "impressing" you about Slaf in his 2 meaningless rookie camp games or the whole week's worth of footage (highlights?) that you've watched? You're so high on what seems to be ANY other 1oa except Slafkovsky.

He was unable to meaningfully challenge the criticisms of Wright (who was the guy he wanted at 1) even when confronted with video evidence.. so I don't know if you're going to get anything clear or direct.

 

[417]

People forget MacKinnon needed quite a bit of time for someone that was so highly touted. He didn’t reach star level until his 5th season. Heck even Dahlin is just scratching the surface for a supposed generational defenceman.

Like you said, not everyone to pick is McDavid or Matthews.

Nathan MacKinnon would have been ran out of town by year 3 or 4.

We’re the market that screams development but we want immediate results.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Nathan MacKinnon would have been ran out of town by year 3 or 4.

We’re the market that screams development but we want immediate results.

Imagine if we had HF during Lafleur's first few years.

 

[yianik]

s

Are you Michel Therrien? You want a #1 pick to start grinding away instead of trying to make “finesse” plays? This is why we can’t have nice things. Only once did he try to dangle an entire team and it almost worked. The rest, he set up glorious scoring chances. What he was doing worked.

Lol. Can you imagine if Therrien had his hands on Slaf ? A 6 foot 4 235 pound 18 year old with balance ?

" Juraj, you being fancy and that's not your game or the team game. We grind you grind. We all grind because that's who we are and that's who you are. You are a grinder. Grind like the 1st overall pick you are."

 

[Kennerback]

Nathan MacKinnon would have been ran out of town by year 3 or 4.

We’re the market that screams development but we want immediate results.

I felt Wright was a disaster waiting to happen in Montreal. I totally understood people liking him a lot but for those that expected him to shine from the get-go, things would go off the track fast. Same goes with Nemec, Resch which is in close contact with Devils brass said this week (I paraphrase), Slafkovsky is way closer to the NHL than Nemec, and that Devils fans needed to be very patient.

 

[OnTheRun]

How can it be meaningless and also disappointing lol

Geez, I don't know...

Plenty of things are disappointing in the moment but meaningless for the future.
Surely one can understand that his career path wasn't in the balance, but still be a bit disappointed by the performance.

 

[Captain Mountain]

Imagine if we had HF during Lafleur's first few years.

It wouldn't just be the first few years. Lafleur's whole thing was that most people thought he could have had a more successful/longer career if he bothered to take care of his body and didn't drink and smoke as much as he did.

People would have been livid when his game (relatively) fell off in the 80s.

 

[Habs]

All these guys have impressed me in ways Slaf has never impressed me.

Im not asking for Slaf to dominate the NHL on day one, I want him to show me he can be an elite player, the best of his draft class.

Slaf will play hockey and hell most likely have a higher value than his actual point production, but Im not sure hes the one with the best chance of being the best player or even the most valuable player of his class.


My gun is loaded with plenty of Brady Tkasuck quotes but service is coming up and I have a staff meeting to lead.

i remember the Brady haters, and the same ones that said we would regret not taking Bustniemi lol. The Brady hate was everywhere here.

Imagine if we had HF during Lafleur's first few years.

Bro I was here complaining about his smoking between periods!