Slafkovsky heating up

[HabbyGuy]

His ceiling is unfathomable.

His physical and defensive game are already impressive for a teenager, and he's starting to score at almost a PPG clip.

Plus he seems extremely coachable.

Impossible to predict what he'll become, but you don't see that kind of profile very often.

His ceiling is indeed hard to peg. We haven't even begun to see what a finished product will look like in Slaf. Even as hab fans we're not exactly entirely sure what we have here, but he has the potential to be special.

He should become a handful to deal with when he becomes a man. (if he isn't already) He's big and quick and protects the puck very well, good on both sides of the biscuit, has soft hands, and is a fine playmaker. He is also dedicated to getting better. He's literally a sponge in taking direction from the coaching staff, and it's clearly paying off.

Slaf with man strength and game maturity could be scary.

The only thing we do know, is he won't be a bust, and he'll be a factor one way or another, even with the inevitable bumps in the road, we're fortunate to have him.

His ceiling is unknown, but his floor is uniquely high.

 

[CanadienShark]

Habs fans giving ammo to everyone else when Slaf eventually slumps.

I prefer the under promise and overdeliver perspective.

I also hate seeing other people happy.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

His floor his high. Ceiling is unknown. Progression has been incredibly rapid since Nov.

What makes him special is he can create something out of nothing. And he still hasn’t come close to reaching his physical peak for strength and speed. Coachable and determined player that is built for Montreal.

Didn’t like the selection at the time of the draft but he has won me over.

Inevitably he will undergo a slump - as will the top line. But thats normal. Cole Caufield was mired in a terrible scoring slump but found a way to break out of it. So will Slaf. Because is what impact players do.

 

[Dirtyf1ghter]

There are points and a lot of activity on the ice.

As much as the choice of Reinbacher to the detriment of Michkov, I find it difficult to validate, the choice of taking Slafkovsky in 1 and obtaining Dach and giving in to Romanov is genius.

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

From bust to star in a couple of months. Funny how that works.

 

[HabbyGuy]

From bust to star in a couple of months. Funny how that works.

He's not a star yet, but he could be.

Here's hoping.

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

He's not a star yet, but he could be.

Sabres fan here. Enjoy the ride. Laugh at the doubters.

 

[Raspewtin]

thought he was the best player on the Habs against the Rangers tonight

 

[JustAHabFan]

Against the Ducks, Slaf got one goal and two primary assists. Next game, it's against the Rangers with Quick (Habs nemesis) as a goalie and I thought Slaf scoring streak will stop at 6 games. He scored one goal and 1 assist (he could get more if his teammates didn't miss so many scoring chances) to establish a new record of game scoring streak as a teenager. Slaf is a real deal.

 

[Lshap]

Habs fans have been hurt so many times that they are in shock at having a high pick perform up to expectations.

How dare you!

Wait... okay, that's totally me.

 

[Michoulicious]

Was disappointed yesterday there was no Slafkovsky thread on the mainboards after he scored.

Relief.

 

[tmlmatus]

mod's should just leave this open; I got a feeling that these types of threads will just keep popping up.

Very happy for Slaf. As a Slovak I'm so used to seeing our prospects underperform. Seeing Slaf and Nemec performing up to expectations is a good feeling.

 

[HabbyGuy]

mod's should just leave this open; I got a feeling that these types of threads will just keep popping up.

Very happy for Slaf. As a Slovak I'm so used to seeing our prospects underperform. Seeing Slaf and Nemec performing up to expectations is a good feeling.

Slovaks and habs fans, two peas in a pod, who knew? Thanks to Slaf we're all honorary Slovaks, hoping for the best. Looking forward to Mesar as well.

 

[Jee]

Dude was getting garbage goals like he was Tomas Holmstrom, all of sudden he started sniping. Not sure what happened, but I'm liking this.

 

[Lshap]

The story with Slafkovsky is his extreme swing from very slow start to very strong play. Most #1OA picks are NHL-ready – we expect them to start showing flashes of their potential from the start. Except this #1OA was NOT ready for the NHL; the player we saw at the beginning looked lost. What the hell was he doing in the NHL? Did the Habs totally blow a #1 pick?

What we couldn't see from our TVs was this kid's mindset. Montreal picked him because they saw a rare determination and inner drive to succeed. The talent was there. Habs determined it just needed time. Slafkovsky is starting to deliver on that investment. He's becoming an example of rolling the dice on elite attitude as much as talent.

He's also an example why fans shouldn't post hot-take evaluations of 18/19-year old kids.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

Total bust!

i TOTALLY agree

 

[Ezpz]

Dude was getting garbage goals like he was Tomas Holmstrom, all of sudden he started sniping. Not sure what happened, but I'm liking this.

This is exactly why I wasn't impressed early in the season. Everything he did get seemed to be luck instead of created. Now he just suddenly does everything right. He was a lost puppy in the offensive and defensive zone all of October and half of November. Then he suddenly got defensive awareness and offensive zone positioning. Then he randomly became physical. Then after that he suddenly added elite passing to that. Now he's been sniping it the past few weeks after having a muffin shot the past year and a half.

Improving this much in one season gives a lot of room for optimism.

 

[JustAHabFan]

This is exactly why I wasn't impressed early in the season. Everything he did get seemed to be luck instead of created. Now he just suddenly does everything right. He was a lost puppy in the offensive and defensive zone all of October and half of November. Then he suddenly got defensive awareness and offensive zone positioning. Then he randomly became physical. Then after that he suddenly added elite passing to that. Now he's been sniping it the past few weeks after having a muffin shot the past year and a half.

Improving this much in one season gives a lot of room for optimism.

I have been watching Habs for 40 years and I didn't think I saw a Habs young players made such an improvement in such a short time.

 

[Seb]

Habs fans have been hurt so many times that they are in shock at having a high pick perform up to expectations.

He's performing muuuuch better than expected.

I was thinking we'd have to wait a few years before seeing him blossom, like Lafrenière.

He does it at 19 years old in such a drastic fashion it's amazing.

 

[Breakfast of Champs]

I was expecting this type of play in 2-3 years but certainly not this soon.

Obviously it's still a pretty small sample size, but if he can be 90 percent this player for a whole season next year I'll be more than satisfied. 60 pts at age 20 is nothing to scoff at

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Habs fans giving ammo to everyone else when Slaf eventually slumps.

I prefer the under promise and overdeliver perspective.

Of course he’ll slump. Nobody is predicting a 100 point season next year. But he’s taken a lot of bullets and it’s nice to see some progression. It’s certainly not meant as a bragging thread, I mean his point production is only fairly recent.

He is notable because he was number one in a weird draft. Even from that perspective he’s an interesting player to track.

As far as giving ammo to people- suck it up bud. It’s a message board.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Habs fans have been hurt so many times that they are in shock at having a high pick perform up to expectations.

This is… very true.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Habs fans have been hurt so many times that they are in shock at having a high pick perform up to expectations.

Yeah nobody knows how to feel about it lmao

 

[PhysicalGraffiti]

I love to see it.

Definitely a decent amount on here eating crow with the monthly threads, is he the worst #1 overall pick ever?

Obviously just like claiming him a bust then is just as shortsighted as calling him a star now, but at least he's showing off his skill and hope he keeps it up.

 

[Pandaman11]

Is Slafkovsky the worst #1 pick ever ?

Seems to have no particular talent, no skill, no speed, big with no big man qualities, doesn’t produce points, his shot is bad, his passing is average… Is he the worst first pick ever ?

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