Player Discussion Juraj Slafkovsky Discussion

[Kennerback]

You do know that heights and weights are very often fudged right. There is no reason for him at his height to become 250 unless he's putting on a boatload of muscle that he doesn't need for the game today and that at that weight it most likely will hinder his skating ability and he needs to work on that and other things

Peak bone mass happens at 25. He'll carry more muscles. His metabolism is different at 25 than 18. That's why boxers go up weight classes. It becomes physically impossible to cut the weight.

 

[Captain Mountain]

I see Slaf's strength right away. Plus he's huge, you can't teach 250 pounds. But I can't tell you how many time I've seen this type of player suddenly just killing it from one day to the next. I've come to have a bit of a feel for it. One day the player is average. The next day, he's the one player in the NHL I want on my team.

It's happened a bunch of times. For example, Bertuzzi, Johan Franzen, Lucic... I remember in all these cases, I was WTF just happened to this player... It's very different from a pure skill player.

I get the actual argument and mostly agree, but I loled at "you can't teach 250 pounds", because gaining weight is so easy there's a multi-billion dollar weight loss industry.

 

[Kennerback]

I get the actual argument and mostly agree, but I loled at "you can't teach 250 pounds", because gaining weight is so easy there's a multi-billion dollar weight loss industry.

An athlete that hits 237 at 18 without being overweight will not stay 237 his whole career. You might cut him once to 221 at 20. But it's a fruitless endeavor, no matter what efforts the trainers will put in and superhuman efforts Slaff will do to cut the weight, that no one else on the team needs to go through.

 

[habbubba]

Peak bone mass happens at 25. He'll carry more muscles. His metabolism is different at 25 than 18. That's why boxers go up weight classes. It becomes physically impossible to cut the weight.

He's not 18 he's not 250 lbs,he's a work in progress and as Montreal property the goal is for him to become the player that deserved to go first overall and signed those contracts,only time will tell.

 

[LaP]

He's too lean atm imo. He'll have to gain some weight which he will naturally do by aging. He wont stay at 220 and neither should he. He'll probably settle at around 230-235.

 

[Kennerback]

He's too lean atm imo. He'll have to gain some weight which he will naturally do by aging. He wont stay at 220 and neither should he. He'll probably settle at around 230-235.

I think if he's at 230-235 at 26, it's that he's spending his whole time cutting weight, while his teammates are training for peak performance instead. We'll see.

 

[LaP]

I think if he's at 230-235 at 26, it's that he's spending his whole time cutting weight, while his teammates are training for peak performance instead. We'll see.

I don't think even Lindros was at 250 and Lindros was bigger.

 

[Kennerback]

I don't think even Lindros was at 250 and Lindros was bigger.

I heard Lindros played at some points of his career at 250+ but here's an ESPN article where he's 245 pounds at 9% body fat.

ESPN.com - NHL - Messier's New York style could rub off on Lindros

 

[JadedRandom]

I think if he's at 230-235 at 26, it's that he's spending his whole time cutting weight, while his teammates are training for peak performance instead. We'll see.

I think Slafkovsky is one of those guys that matures quickly, but he definitely still has quite a bit of untapped potential physically,

And I don't mean weight-wise. But I think Slafkovsky will eventually reach a balance of strength, size, quickness, and fitness that he hasn't yet reached as things currently stand.

But the more important thing for Slaf isn't growing stronger, or even fitness. It's learning how to best utilize his physical tools in the NHL.

That last part is exactly why bigger players tend to take longer to fully develop.

Even if Slafkovsky tops-out as a 50-60 points guy for this team, and that would be close to the worst-case scenario as things currently stand, his improved defense and ability to be a physical presence every year will make him a very important player for the Habs.

Whether he ends up weighing 230 or 240 pounds in his prime is ultimately immaterial (the irony of tangible weight being immaterial isn't lost on me) in the optic of Slafkovsky's development as a hockey player in my opinion.

 

[LaP]

I heard Lindros played at some points of his career at 250+ but here's an ESPN article where he's 245 pounds at 9% body fat.

ESPN.com - NHL - Messier's New York style could rub off on Lindros

Maybe at the end after the concussions but during his best years he was mostlty at 240-245 from what i can remember. But the guy had a neck the size of a sequoia. He looked 37 when he was 18.

 

[Dagistitsyn]

Slafkovsky seems to turn it up and get points everytime I criticize him a bunch so I’ll get back to it.

5 million dollar player tops. Overpaid based on hopeful potential. Doubt he even gets 40 points a season without playing with Suzuki and Caufield. Needs to be better, more engaged, use his body, use his shot.

 

[DemidovSZN]

Slafkovsky seems to turn it up and get points everytime I criticize him a bunch so I’ll get back to it.

5 million dollar player tops. Overpaid based on hopeful potential. Doubt he even gets 40 points a season without playing with Suzuki and Caufield. Needs to be better, more engaged, use his body, use his shot.

This ''he wouldn't be this and that if he wasn't playing with Suzuki and Caufield'' argument is kinda dumb.

Who would've thought that players playing with lesser players wouldn't be as successful? His skillset is better exploited with more talented players who can finish his plays or can take advantage of his forecheck or play in the neutral zone, it's not a surprise. Caufield wouldn't have 25 something goals at 5 on 5 if he played with Evans and Newhook either.

 

[Kojo]

Suzuki isn't a true 1C and Caufield is an undersized PP specialist. I don't know if that line would have that much success 5v5 without Slafkovsky.

 

[HuGo Burner Acc]

Suzuki isn't a true 1C and Caufield is an undersized PP specialist. I don't know if that line would have that much success 5v5 without Slafkovsky.

I wish Caufield was a PP specialist, then we wouldn't have to deal with Laine

 

[CzarDemidov]

2 SoG in his last three games.

Given his contract is secured and all, I don’t really concern about his picking up points here and there (obviously it’s good that he does) but the overall performance and impact and how he helps our team achieve its goals.

He swings himself around like a bully every so often but then retreats for games at a time. One could call him mercurial but I think that’s better used to describe introverted players, he’s just inconsistent.

Development isn’t linear blah blah blah.

His TOI/g went down from last year. All those appeals to MacKinnon were clearly faulty but especially when TOI and SoG are taken into account. In their third season MacK had 245 SoG and Slaf has 126 (which is 26 fewer SoG than he had last season). MacK played 19min/g and Slaf is at 17min/g and likely to lose his spot on the PP. MacK wasn’t putting up big points but he was present and central.

Does Slaf want to be the third guy on the line? He has to work hard and successfully do the tough stuff in the trenches and against the boards. Otherwise he has to take charge and shoot the effin puck. He’s a bit of both and a bit of neither right now. Development isn’t linear blah blah blah.

 

[Justin11]

I’m a big supporter but Slaf needs to show more. Period.

 

[Kojo]

2 SoG in his last three games.

54 SoG in his last 22 games, along with 66 hits... 9 goals, he's a playmaker, btw.

 

[Kojo]

I’m a big supporter but Slaf needs to show more. Period.

We haven't seen the real Slaf yet, be patient.

 

[CzarDemidov]

54 SoG in his last 22 games, along with 66 hits... 9 goals, he's a playmaker, btw.

We haven't seen the real Slaf yet, be patient.

On one hand you demand patience any time anyone observes that he’s had a bad showing and on the other hand you aggressively insist that he’s actually playing great.

Only a moron would fall for this.

 

[Kojo]

On one hand you demand patience any time anyone observes that he’s had a bad showing and on the other hand you aggressively insist that he’s actually playing great.

Only a moron would fall for this.

I don't post that often here, maybe you're mistaking me for someone else.

I've been consistent with my evaluation of Slafkovsky since day one.

 

[CzarDemidov]

I don't post that often here, maybe you're mistaking me for someone else.

I've been consistent with my evaluation of Slafkovsky since day one.

I believe that you’re consistent. I simply don’t agree with your evaluation because it is incoherent to me — if you’re demanding patience you can’t also insist that he’s playing well. If he was playing well you wouldn’t need to demand patience from every person who makes a critical observation.

If he was playing well there wouldn’t be so many critical observations. Everybody knows when a player plays well and when he doesn’t — his age or potential has nothing to do with whether he played well or not on a given night.

 

[Shabs]

I've played hockey with/against a lot of big guys who had all the tools - but never reached their potential because they lacked meanness. Slaf reminds me of that.

 

[salbutera]

I've played hockey with/against a lot of big guys who had all the tools - but never reached their potential because they lacked meanness. Slaf reminds me of that.

Jason Robertson is a big guy & has zero meanness ditto John LeClair - that’s not & never will be Slaf’s game.

I will keep repeating Slaf’s game should be modeled after LeClair - use big body for puck possession, win puck battles & drive to the net. Simple game

 

[CzarDemidov]

I've played hockey with/against a lot of big guys who had all the tools - but never reached their potential because they lacked meanness. Slaf reminds me of that.

Playmaker in a Power Forward’s body. Danius Zubrus.

Jason Robertson is a big guy & has zero meanness ditto John LeClair - that’s not & never will be Slaf’s game.

I will keep repeating Slaf’s game should be modeled after LeClair - use big body for puck possession, win puck battles & drive to the net. Simple game

Easy to say, harder to do when that’s clearly not his game. I like Bully Dickhead Slaf too but it seems hard for him to play that way.

 

[Naslundforever]

We haven't seen the real Slaf yet, be patient.

Hopefully he turns into a Tage Thompson in his mid 20’s.