Slaf needs to shoot more. He's still going to go through the up/down rollercoaster development ride but his shot totals are low and he's passing the puck in shooting areas. When you shoot a bit more, it keeps the goalie and D on their heels a bit. When you are pass happy, it's easy to defend. Shots and rebounds/puck retrievals creates havoc and that's how you generate offense and prolonged offensive zone pressure. The other teams D gets out of position chasing pucks due to confusion. If you continually passing and keeping the play to the outside, it's easy to defend.
This roster lacks shooters and also guys who can actually win puck battles. It's one thing to maintain puck possession but when the game gets rough and your are playing a team who has good team D, you got to comprehend how to change the style of play! Right now, we are more on the skilled side vs the physical strength side and we need better balance in that area.
Slaf was not drafted for his "vision" and play making skills as the important assets. We drafted him for his shot and physical strength as the important assets. He shouldn't be coached to be a gentle giant. I bet you he wasn't passes as much in his draft year when he was scoring goals in different leagues / international tournaments. Be the man Slaf... take control of the game more and start sniping corners. The rest of his game will open up!