Juraj Slafkovsky - Year Two

[nhlfan9191]

What is encourging is that if we take a step back.....

Slafkovsky has done well in basically every game he has played with either Suzuki, Dach or Monahan at center. Saturday night and in the first game of the year with Dach, he created more offence than RHP and Anderson did with those same opportunities, by far. Slaf belongs on this team.

Give him time playing with Suzuki, and if the lines need to be juggled at any point, play him with Monahan if Suzy is not possible. Regardless of exact point production, if he follows the play with top-6 linemates, and contributes to offence while being reasonably responsible, the year of development will be worth it.

So your solution is to play him with some talent? 99.9% of the fans have been saying this since last October. This is where the majority of the fanbase was getting frustrated that he wasn’t in another league. If he’s going to get opportunity with our limited talent and he produces, then there’s no problem with him being up. If he ends up back in the bottom 6, then he shouldn’t. It’s worrisome that it took the coaching staff watching him put up 1A in 25 games dating back to last year to change something.

 

[Captain Mountain]

So your solution is to play him with some talent? 99.9% of the fans have been saying this since last October. This is where the majority of the fanbase was getting frustrated that he wasn’t in another league. If he’s going to get opportunity with our limited talent and he produces, then there’s no problem with him being up. If he ends up back in the bottom 6, then he shouldn’t. It’s worrisome that it took the coaching staff watching him put up 1A in 25 games dating back to last year to change something.

The plan was VERY clearly to play him with talent this season from game one. He started on the 2nd line with Dach and Newhook. It looked really good for one game, then Dach was lost for the year and they never figured out a mix that worked since then. He was still getting a lot of opportunities and played well until the last few games prior to this one. And Anderson was the bigger issue there. Even before last game, Slaf was 6th among forwards in TOI/GP (5th among forwards in 5v5 TOI/GP).

 

[nhlfan9191]

The plan was VERY clearly to play him with talent this season from game one. He started on the 2nd line with Dach and Newhook. It looked really good for one game, then Dach was lost for the year and they never figured out a mix that worked since then. He was still getting a lot of opportunities and played well until the last few games prior to this one. And Anderson was the bigger issue there. Even before last game, Slaf was 6th among forwards in TOI/GP (5th among forwards in 5v5 TOI/GP).

I didn’t think he played all that well outside of the first couple of games. He was gradually declining like he did the year before. He should’ve been next to Monahan immediately when Dach went down. Playing him next to Anderson and Newhook who isn’t a natural center is just wreckless.

 

[BaseballCoach]

I didn’t think he played all that well outside of the first couple of games. He was gradually declining like he did the year before. He should’ve been next to Monahan immediately when Dach went down. Playing him next to Anderson and Newhook who isn’t a natural center is just wreckless.

Many of us kept saying that.

 

[Naslundforever]

Rumors are he's in the NHL before the end of his current KHL contract.

Well I hope we get to see him play and he puts on a show, we would all win. But for now rumours don’t pay my cable bill lol

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

If Slaf works on the first and Dach comes back healthy, we just might have a pretty strong top six going forward. I’m really hopeful for Roy. We’ll see how that goes.

Roy has 1 point in his last 5 games. Hope he picks it up.

 

[Scriptor]

Roy has 1 point in his last 5 games. Hope he picks it up.

Bust.

Or he loves Laval so much, he doesn't want to give Montreal any thought of calling him up to the show.

 

[morhilane]

I don't fully agree. I think the reason he looks better than Anderson and even RHP with top players is Slaf has better IQ. What is still developing is his play driving, which is not the same as IQ. At 19 he is not a play driver like McDavid or Jack Hughes or other mostly centremen.

Joshua Roy is not a big time play driver, but has high IQ which is why he does so much better with a guy like Bedard than other Juniors did.

In his first game with CC/Suzuki, you could see Slaf going to open ice, finding his linemates and following the play much better than with Anderson/Newhook. And the new line had zero practice/video time before the game (not even at the morning skate).

CC and Suzuki were making use of Slaf a lot more than they did Anderson/RHP too. That opened the ice for them.

I can't wait to see what they looks like after a few games/practices.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Roy has 1 point in his last 5 games. Hope he picks it up.

Not worried.

At least not yet.

 

[le_sean]

Not convinced that Marty is a good coach but he’s always full of analogies that the media eat up.

 

[ReHabs]

View attachment 763885

Not convinced that Marty is a good coach but he’s always full of analogies that the media eat up.

This isn’t the first or second time somebody has intoned that Slafkovsky‘s attitude needs helping. It could be that he really, really wants to succeed. Hopefully he channels that passion (which, MSL has stated he is afraid of losing) into his game and not into frustrating himself.

I really think him kicking ass and making plays against appropriate opponents would be the best thing for him and his growth. I don’t understand how he can improve his playmaking if he doesn’t find opportunities to make plays.

It must be very frustrating for him!

 

[Svart]

View attachment 763885

Not convinced that Marty is a good coach but he’s always full of analogies that the media eat up.

Because the media (and a % of our fanbase) needs to be explained like if they were a child...

 

[ReHabs]

Roy has 1 point in his last 5 games. Hope he picks it up.

Finding consistency as a player is probably the hardest and final step of developing a pro game. So many cases of very good young players just misfiring in spurts. I’ve never played pro sports but have watched enough to know it’s exceedingly rare to find a consistently performing young player in a pro league.

He’s a rookie, I think this is all good. He’s not lacking in skills.

Because the media (and a % of our fanbase) needs to be explained like if they were a child...

Everybody is well aware that young players need to develop. The furor is about whether it’s a good idea to stick Slaf into a manual transmission car when he’s never learned to drive stick and expect him to find his way to the destination.

 

[Habssince89]

MSL's quote today about slaf was fantastic. It really shows you why they insist on having him play under MSL when the AHL would be an excellent move for Slaf. Guys like Galchenyuk and KK were rushed because we were trying to compete, and never had a coach like MSL. But the expectations now have been properly set for the fanbase, and we don't have the mentality of past regimes. So while I think it would be a good idea to send him down, I'm finding the context of why he's starting the NHL and how they have different goals set for him is reassuring me that this isn't the same thing as rushing those other players.

There's something I really like about Slaf's personality. He has a lot of humility, and he seems to understand that he needs to work hard and not just coast on athletic ability. I think he will be an impactful player because he'll be a guy who can do everything at a very high level (even if no one skill is elite itself) while having elite physical traits, which to me is one form of an elite player.

He's going to get to 'cheat' with his size in ways that an average size player couldn't do, and its going to result in him making plays others cannot complete (whether due to his reach, ability to delay, ability to power through someone etc). A player like that though takes longer to put together, so the end product doesn't look like itself until its fully complete. That's of course why Slaf is a weaker 1OA than other years, but he has the ceiling to be an elite player.

The full sum of his parts will end up making him a very good player for us IMO, elite or not.

 

[BaseballCoach]

MSL's quote today about slaf was fantastic. It really shows you why they insist on having him play under MSL when the AHL would be an excellent move for Slaf.

Not sure why it would be an excellent move to take a player who is contributing at the NHL level, without being a big defensive liability, and send him down, when he is getting fair minutes and is better than several others on the team.

To say nothing of the 92% salary cut he would be getting.

The full sum of his parts will end up making him a very good player for us IMO, elite or not.

Looks like it. It may be 2-3 years before he is a 60+ point player, though.

 

[Whitesnake]

If you are excited because of what St-Louis says.....this is something that should be said by EVERY SINGLE AHL coach anyway 'cause it's their job.

And if they don't have confidence that Houle could say it, change the coach.

 

[Whitesnake]

Yes, it's a journey. And yes, we use Waze. But Waze isn't the vehicle. Waze is the aid to yourself in the vehicle. Waze actually should be St-Louis. Or any coach or assistant coach that could help kids. A development coach is Waze too.

My kid is 16 year old. She's not going to buy a Ferrari right now. Not going in F1 either. She's going to first try a scooter. Then, she might try a motorcycle....or a smaller car. Then, she'll upgrade.....in due time....with experience. Which is what Slaf should have been doing. Start on a lesser vehicle. And then finish in due time in the toughest and hardest vehicle there is.

But at every step.....he should still be supported with somebody who would play the Waze role.

 

[HabsWhiteKnightLOL]

He is excellent and he just oozes massive potential. He don't have an elite skill, he has an elite package.

Y'all are getting fooled by his slow debut season. He is a monster in the making.

Right now, they are teaching and focusing him to play a pro games and develop pro reflex. When and how to change efficiently, how to protect himself, how an effective defense translate into a dangerous offense, the importance of proper positioning in different circumstances. Etc. These thing are better taught in the NHL. And its way better for him to learn those than to dominate lesser league in his current stage.

At this point in his career, what we saw in training camp, in the 1st game and against St. Louis are way more telling than game 2-10. You all are acting like he will not improve or barely improve when actually he should improve in an exponential fashion.

As he is professionalising his game and once he is a little bit more quick, a little bit stronger and a little bit more consistent. We should have his power, speed burst, shifty hands, heavy shot, puck protection and playmaking on full display. A two way power forward in the making with PPG upside.

Im doubling down on Slafkovsky. At your own risk to dismiss a 1st overall with this talent. Too bad if you can't appreciate the skills. One day you won't be able to deny it anymore.

Any other clips?
Ill deny his talent anytime. He has nothing special. Not because he scores 1 goal in 10 games that opinions should be changed.

If you are sold by what you've seen since his arrival and think he can keep playing in the top 6 then the expectation are an all time low.

Just shows how much talentless this team hace been in the years

 

[Jaynki]

Finding consistency as a player is probably the hardest and final step of developing a pro game. So many cases of very good young players just misfiring in spurts. I’ve never played pro sports but have watched enough to know it’s exceedingly rare to find a consistently performing young player in a pro league.

I could only imagine such a measured answer if Slafkovsky had 1 points in his last 5 AHL games in his D+3

Any other clips?
Ill deny his talent anytime. He has nothing special. Not because he scores 1 goal in 10 games that opinions should be changed.

If you are sold by what you've seen since his arrival and think he can keep playing in the top 6 then the expectation are an all time low.

Just shows how much talentless this team hace been in the years

I will counter argue :

Not because he struggled in his first 50 games that opinion should be changed.

 

[cave troll]

TBH, on the video I saw the kid aimlesly skating around without any clue what to do.

 

[Habssince89]

Not sure why it would be an excellent move to take a player who is contributing at the NHL level, without being a big defensive liability, and send him down, when he is getting fair minutes and is better than several others on the team.

To say nothing of the 92% salary cut he would be getting.

I don't think I really need to get into the benefits of him developing at AHL-level and letting him dominate before bringing him into the pressure cooker. And boo-hoo about his paycut haha.

 

[LesCanadiens]

He is excellent and he just oozes massive potential. He don't have an elite skill, he has an elite package.

Y'all are getting fooled by his slow debut season. He is a monster in the making.

Right now, they are teaching and focusing him to play a pro games and develop pro reflex. When and how to change efficiently, how to protect himself, how an effective defense translate into a dangerous offense, the importance of proper positioning in different circumstances. Etc. These thing are better taught in the NHL. And its way better for him to learn those than to dominate lesser league in his current stage.

At this point in his career, what we saw in training camp, in the 1st game and against St. Louis are way more telling than game 2-10. You all are acting like he will not improve or barely improve when actually he should improve in an exponential fashion.

As he is professionalising his game and once he is a little bit more quick, a little bit stronger and a little bit more consistent. We should have his power, speed burst, shifty hands, heavy shot, puck protection and playmaking on full display. A two way power forward in the making with PPG upside.

Im doubling down on Slafkovsky. At your own risk to dismiss a 1st overall with this talent. Too bad if you can't appreciate the skills. One day you won't be able to deny it anymore.

He sure is. Awesome display of what some of us have seen all along, of course at varying degrees of consistency. Which is to be expected for a 19yr old big euro kid who only JUST played his 50th NHL game.

Anyone who watches that video and still questions his IQ must be on a different planet. He has excellent IQ. Excellent vision and knows where open teammates are and generally makes good passes and safe decisions. Also always comes back to help out in the D zone. He's an excellent skater for any size, but especially for HIS size.

And I love that he started challenging defenders with moves after the confidence from his earlier goal. Also, he disrupted several plays both on the forecheck and defensively.

I truly believe he's going to show that he was THE right pick for 1st in 2022. People need to chill and trust in the process being engineered by MSL.

 

[LesCanadiens]

TBH, on the video I saw the kid aimlesly skating around without any clue what to do.

You're living up to your handle...lol. That's a ridiculous remark.

 

[BaseballCoach]

I don't think I really need to get into the benefits of him developing at AHL-level and letting him dominate before bringing him into the pressure cooker. And boo-hoo about his paycut haha.

The benefits are oversold on these boards. Dominating a lower level does not guarantee results at the next level. If it did, every Junior, AHL and Euro star would make the NHL on his first try.

 

[Kennerback]

Slaf needs to work on his shot release. It needs a lot of work.…If they plan to keep him up they need to have some kind of training schedule.

For some reason there’s been zero progress on using his body to take the slot while shielding the puck. Is that because he doesn’t want to shoot? Can this be improved in the NHL?