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Prospect Info: 2022 - 1st OA] Juraj Slafkovsky (LW) Part 4

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This problem he has has been obvious since rookie development camp. The guy is just lacking some fundamental hockey instinct in this regard. He legit will not be able to play in the NHL until he fixes this, it's a safety concern at this point.

I don't know why he's still in the NHL. It's a really obvious problem. Even f***ing Tomas Tatar was warning him about it during preseason.
 
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waffledave said:
This problem he has has been obvious since rookie development camp. The guy is just lacking some fundamental hockey instinct in this regard. He legit will not be able to play in the NHL until he fixes this, it's a safety concern at this point.

I don't know why he's still in the NHL. It's a really obvious problem. Even f***ing Tomas Tatar was warning him about it during preseason.
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The thing is, even tho the NHL is leagues above anywhere else speed wise, this probably won’t change regardless of where he goes unless it’s on European ice. He’s putting himself into vulnerable positions. It doesn’t matter what level, he’ll get hit doing that. I don’t know if he was able to get away with that in Finland because he had more space to work with but it will be a very short career if he doesn’t fix it.
 
Wats said:
Really hate how much he gets destroyed for a big guy.
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It only happens when he is in a vulnerable position, thats the NHL, its going fast and he will adjust, but you hate to see that for sure. Kid doesnt get destroyed when fighting for pucks or possession, thats quite the opposite, he overpowers guys all time, just needs to be more aware of the danger, keep his head up and watch his blind spots.
 
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He's got a lot of tools, size and athleticism, but I still have significant question marks about his hockey sense in my books. He's been progressing since the start of the season, but man these hits are starting to scare me.
 
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He needed to play in the OHL this year to get familiar with the smaller ice, style of play and to dominate a league. But Hughes still thinks like an agent and did not want to offend Slaf's agent by not burning his first ELC year.
 
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It really starts to be concerning. Not sure how to fix this. Maybe just send him to juniors.
 
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Keeping your head up is the number one rule in hockey, not sure why he hasn't learned that yet. It's happening way too often. Suzuki and CC never put themselves in that position and a behemoth like Slaf shouldn't be getting lit up this much. At least he's been able to come back not long after but at some point if this keeps up it will get ugly.
 
That long neck of his saves him again but god damn son! Gotta work on that peripheral vision and just stop watching your amazing passes!

chicken-head-chicken.gif
 
Goldenhands said:
It only happens when he is in a vulnerable position, thats the NHL, its going fast and he will adjust, but you hate to see that for sure. Kid doesnt get destroyed when fighting for pucks or possession, thats quite the opposite, he overpowers guys all time, just needs to be more aware of the danger, keep his head up and watch his blind spots.
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Maybe you're too young to remember Eric Lindros but he was more skilled, more tenacious, more understanding of physical hockey than Slafkovsky and his career was derailed due to his inability to be "more aware of the danger, keep his head up and watch his blind spots".

Lindros had incredible stats and in the dead-puck era and was a physical specimen, so it isn't a fair comparison to Slaf who will likely never be as productive or as physical but it's worth noting the downside comparables of rushing someone to the NHL who is not capable of keeping up with the physical threats around him.

Slaf was behind the play against Vancouver, as usual, because he's not NHL ready. I think I was wrong to say that he needs more minutes -- it's clear MSL is trying to protect him and bring him along slowly for his own good. Maybe it'll work but I don't see the point of rushing a skill player to the NHL to play garbage time next to scrubs and struggle when he plays in a scoring role. He wasn't too good for Liiga just six months ago so it's not like it's a surprise he's not keeping up with the NHL.

jfm133 said:
He needed to play in the OHL this year to get familiar with the smaller ice, style of play and to dominate a league. But Hughes still thinks like an agent and did not want to offend Slaf's agent by not burning his first ELC year.
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I doubt this was the concern. I think they thought he was too good for the OHL and the AHL option was no better than the NHL option (+MSL effect) so they ignored the fourth option: Europe. In any case, we'll only know by the end of the season if Slaf has really developed his NHL-game or not.
 
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I'm glad he's okay, but man that's what happens when you're 18 and you're in the NHL. We have to watch out for this literal kid. I don't want to see him become a lindros-like tragedy.

That stuff aside, I went to the Habs-Canucks game and Slaf just looks so imposing out there. He wasn't amazing in the game but it was so apparent how much space he takes up and how quickly he covers ground. If the Habs end up drafting a C he's going to have an excellent batch of linemates. I think as long as he can keep his head up and guard against getting caught by guys I have no doubts about his trajectory into an impact player. Very excited for Slaf V Wright too.
 
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Ppl are hard on him. He is 18 and still a bit goofy in his movement. He will grow. He is a big boy but yeah its hard to see a kid gets railed like that
 
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Wats said:
Really hate how much he gets destroyed for a big guy.
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He gets hurt a lot. Not sure if it’s just his head being down or not paying attention but it’s happening so often it can’t just be bad luck. Fortunately nothing serious yet but he’s going to have to make some adjustments.
 
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