Juraj Slafkovsky - Year Two

[Jaynki]

Ontop of that he said AHL development is over hyped.

How is it possible to believe that

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

To be fair I'm also disappointed in him but this was his first egregiously bad game let's see how he reacts next game but I don't have my hopes up

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

I think generally speaking confidence is a hard thing to judge when watching the game on TV. So there's the assumption that Slaf's has lost his confidence because he's not producing and not producing leads to a loss of confidence but it's rarely that straightforward. It's certainly possible he's lost or is losing confidence and it's certainly something management has to keep a close eye on, but it's equally possible that it's just the normal growing pains of learning to play in the NHL.

I think you have it partly wrong. He hesitates a lot. Much hesitation means doubt and too much doubt leads to a lack of confidence. I don't think it's the lack of production in particular, but mistakes he might've commited and asked to work on. This is all too familiar as KK had a lot of the same telltale signs. When young players learn to memorize the do's and don't's, they often go through a long period of adaptation where they have to consciously learn/adapt to the specifics they've been asked to work on, which causes more overthinking while playing, which leads to moments of hesitation.

It's one of the main reasons I believe a long stint in the A would help him to adapt/learn those specifics at a lower pace of play.

 

[le_sean]

The confidence isn’t there. He has to learn to keep it simple when going through a slump. Just get pucks on net. Last night when he got that pass directly in the slot with his back to the goal, he passed it away instantly (and didn’t connect with the pass). Just take it and fire a backhand.

 

[Mrb1p]

To be fair I'm also disappointed in him but this was his first egregiously bad game let's see how he reacts next game but I don't have my hopes up

This may be the worst game Ive seen a NHL player play in a lifetime. He's had other bad games, this one was just painful.

 

[habdynasty]

That line is snakebitten big time , it’s like Anderson has had 12 breakaways in the last few games and just can’t put one in. Slaf aint looking good out there.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

This may be the worst game Ive seen a NHL player play in a lifetime. He's had other bad games, this one was just painful.

You don't remember Craig Darby

 

[cave troll]

What I saw so far in these games is that his strong side is transitional hockey when he can setup his teammate from time to time and is capable of rushing quick to the net.
On the other hand, in the off zone he's invisible, I don't even wanna talk about that PP when he didn't even realize where he's standing.
In out defensive zone he's a liability and the probability of him losing the puck is really big.

 

[Kennerback]

The confidence isn’t there. He has to learn to keep it simple when going through a slump. Just get pucks on net. Last night when he got that pass directly in the slot with his back to the goal, he passed it away instantly (and didn’t connect with the pass). Just take it and fire a backhand.

To get out of a slump they say « just shoot » or « just put the puck on net ». But what happens if the reason you‘re in that slump in the first place is that you refuse to « just shoot » or « just put the puck on net »?

 

[Sorinth]

I think you have it partly wrong. He hesitates a lot. Much hesitation means doubt and too much doubt leads to a lack of confidence. I don't think it's the lack of production in particular, but mistakes he might've commited and asked to work on. This is all too familiar as KK had a lot of the same telltale signs. When young players learn to memorize the do's and don't's, they often go through a long period of adaptation where they have to consciously learn/adapt to the specifics they've been asked to work on, which causes more overthinking while playing, which leads to moments of hesitation.

It's one of the main reasons I believe a long stint in the A would help him to adapt/learn those specifics at a lower pace of play.

Well that's just it, hesitation because he's working on changing his game style is both normal and perfectly fine. Moments of hesitation in and of themselves aren't real issues if they are coming from that adaption process.

But regardless you can't draw any meaningful insights on a player's confidence levels from lack of production or moments of hesitation. So we as fans will almost always be in the dark when it comes to a player's confidence level.

 

[Don D]

From the 2022 draft stats (on hockeydb) from first round picks, only 7 of 32 picks have any NHL appearnces so far.
Not sure if that is a NHL record low for a full year after a draft.

 

[morhilane]

From the 2022 draft stats (on hockeydb) from first round picks, only 7 of 32 picks have any NHL appearnces so far.
Not sure if that is a NHL record low for a full year after a draft.

The 2021 Draft is at 18-19 players who played in the NHL and only 7 of them have played over 82 games (i.e. fully played in the NHL in their D+2 at least). (if I counted things properly).

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Well that's just it, hesitation because he's working on changing his game style is both normal and perfectly fine. Moments of hesitation in and of themselves aren't real issues if they are coming from that adaption process.

But regardless you can't draw any meaningful insights on a player's confidence levels from lack of production or moments of hesitation. So we as fans will almost always be in the dark when it comes to a player's confidence level.

I can assure you he's far from confident in his present means. He is still a confident person in general, from what we know.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Delete

 

[Mrb1p]

You don't remember Craig Darby

Ya I was too young, Im sure he wasnt far off.

 

[LesCanadiens]

Max Lappiere had a great comment as to why Slaf is not in the AHL, along with it being over rated to require kids to play through it. During his last interview on the sick podcast.

Basically saying, Slaf would of just defaulted to his size in the AHL and wouldn't of been forced to work on his weaknesses. However in the NHL he is forced to work on his game outside muscling people around. Ontop of that he said AHL development is over hyped.

I think Max is right (and he should know better than any of us). Way too much hyperbole around every move he makes on the ice. Young, huge kid, not even 20. New continent. Missed huge last part of season due to injuries. Sure, he had a rough game last game. But even then he still showed some good things. If only teammates would convert some of his nice passes, he'd have some more points on the board which would quell some of the harsh criticisms.

At this point, he's had more good games than bad. If that ratio changes dramatically, maybe a game or 2 in the press-box to watch and reset himself, and see how he reacts first game(s) back. If he's still going in the wrong direction, nothing wrong with sending him down at that point. But I agree with Lapierre in general terms.

He's still eons better than Shane "man-child" Wright. I think MSL has the final word. So if he thinks he should be up, I'd trust him over any armchair coach.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Ya I was too young, Im sure he wasnt far off.

Slaf has a lot of competition from guys in the 97-02 period, not just Darby.

 

[Don D]

The 2021 Draft is at 18-19 players who played in the NHL and only 7 of them have played over 82 games (i.e. fully played in the NHL in their D+2 at least). (if I counted things properly).

The 2021 draft looks like there are more polished players like, among others, Power, Benier, Mctavish.
That class has 14 players having played at least one game in the NHL. Agreed that it is still too early to predict.

 

[OnTheRun]

The 2021 draft looks like there are more polished players like, among others, Power, Benier, Mctavish.
That class has 14 players having played at least one game in the NHL. Agreed that it is still too early to predict.

It's kind of funny because when I was looking at the preliminary ranking earlier I came across this:

"Let’s make one thing clear from the get-go: The 2022 NHL Draft is the Shane Wright Draft.

The Kingston Frontenacs’ centre is the unanimous No. 1 on TSN’s Pre-Season 2022 NHL Draft Rankings. Ten out of 10 scouts surveyed by TSN identified the 6-foot, 185-pound Burlington, Ont., native as the clear-cut choice.

And, until further notice, they say it’s not even close.

“No. 1 this year is his to lose,” said an NHL team head scout. “It would take him having an unusually poor year and someone else having a surprisingly good season for him to not be No. 1 [next July].”

This should come as no surprise for a prospect who was awarded “exceptional” status by Hockey Canada in 2019, which allowed him to enter the Ontario Hockey League as a 15-year-old, a year earlier than usual, and who was Canadian Hockey League rookie of the year in 2020 after his first OHL season in Kingston.

In fact, not only is it highly likely he’ll be No. 1 at the 2022 NHL draft on July 7-8 in Montreal, but he also quite probably would have been No. 1 overall in last summer’s 2021 NHL draft had he been eligible.

Blue-chip prospect University of Michigan defenceman Owen Power went No. 1 overall to the Buffalo Sabres last July. Power will play for the Wolverines this season. He and Wright are quite likely to be teammates on Canada’s national junior team at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship in Edmonton.

Most of the 10 scouts who ranked Wright No. 1 to start this season said, in a hypothetical world, he would have been ahead of Power last year.

“No doubt about that,” said another NHL team head scout."

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

This may be the worst game Ive seen a NHL player play in a lifetime. He's had other bad games, this one was just painful.

This is a terrible post. Worst game by an NHL player? Come on man…

 

[Fatbiggie]

Slaf has a lot of competition from guys in the 97-02 period, not just Darby.

I really hated those years, awful, awful times

 

[DAChampion]

I really hated those years, awful, awful times

But the Habs got Ron Hainsey, Mike Komisarek, Marcel Hossa, and Chris Higgins, out of that tank.

 

[The Real Timo]

well... at least someone thinks Slaf is doing well... lol

https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/10/29/martin-st-louis-comprend-juraj-slafkovsky-on-sassure-de-laider

 

[Ezpz]

Man I hate getting Andrei kostitsyn minus the physical play first overall. I know he's 19 but he's not going to improve playing garbage minutes and garbage hockey constantly. He's not dominated a level since he was 14 and doesn't play like a guy with high skill at all. Let him cook in the ECHL if that's what's going to let him see what he's actually capable of.

 

[Destopcorner]

Solid stride and forecheck. Good instinct passer but never adapts once his mind is made up even if play isn't there anymore. He needs to understand that split second at lower levels to execute better and learn the game. Not a goalscorer by any means except that one time on international level againat shitty teams.

And man how can he be that heavy and looks as frail as KK at 19 ??

Roy needs to replace him asap based on merit.