To say that Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky has been on a journey in the NHL might be a bit rich. He was drafted in 2022 and is only entering his third season, one of which – his first – was cut short due to a knee injury. But signing an eight-year extension with a $7.6 million per season average value changes things. Fresh off the contract, what has his role been so far in 2024-25? How has he helped or not? Let’s discuss.
Slafkovsky: How it Started
How did we get here? Wasn’t the Slovak’s rookie campaign – pre-injury – a disappointment? Didn’t he score only four goals in the first three months of 2023-24? That was less than a year ago! Now the 20-year-old is one of the wealthiest Canadiens and fans are excited.
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The back end of last season helped tremendously, as Slafkovsky netted six times in February and another five times in April. His hat trick in a late-season game at home versus the Philadelphia Flyers demonstrated what he looks like when he’s in the zone. Essentially 50 percent of his goal productivity was tallied in two months as the forward found his groove as the campaign wore on. That was tremendous news, so much so that general manager Kent Hughes came calling with the aforementioned deal in July.
Viewed from a different angle, an admittedly sour one, given Patrik Laine’s long-term injury predicament, fans probably will hold on to Slafkovsky’s impressive final months of 2023-24 and trust that he gets even better. Montreal paid him, then acquired another offensive weapon via trade, but now the relative pressure to perform is back on his shoulders.
Slafkovsky: How it’s Going
There is no sense in drawing dramatic conclusions after four games played. Even so, the data reveals how efficient he has been. Some of the figures are a little bit surprising. Others reaffirm some of the unsung qualities he can bring to the ice on a nightly basis.
Thanks to the considerable number crunching the people at MoneyPuck do, we have a nice window into what Slafkovsky is doing through almost two weeks of hockey this season. This feels like a good time to remind fans that the man is only 20 years old and hasn’t even played two full seasons of top-flight hockey yet. Perspective and context often help when assessing these matters. We’re also writing this before the Oct. 17 match against the Los Angeles Kings.
He’s certainly been involved in the action so far this season, tallying four points through the same number of matches, albeit with a trio of assists and only one goal. His plus/minus sits at plus-1, which is okay given that the club is minus-1.
Now, that he only scored once is not a reason to press the panic buttons. It’s only four games, and when a linemate like Cole Caufield is going ballistic (four goals), let the man cook.
It’s the expected goals figure that stands out, among others. Slafkovsky is only at 0.9. Even in his rookie campaign, he was 4.4. The expected goals per 60 minutes have also dipped slightly, dropping from 0.9 to 0.78. Where things get even more intriguing is that his shot attempts per 60 minutes is currently 11.63, well behind Caufield (18.33), burgeoning forward Emil Heinemen (21.58), and Alex Newhook (13.81). The most eye-opening stat in that category is Brendan Gallagher’s “spray and pray” 20.48.
Slafkovsky’s Toughness Is Key
Having seen the kind of goals the left-winger can hit and his wicked wrist shot, it would be nice if he took more attempts on net. That’s a fair argument. That said, the third-year pro is contributing in ways that sometimes do and sometimes don’t show up on the stats sheet.
It starts with the good old-fashioned NHL hit. Habs supporters may love Arber Xhekaj’s toughness, but Salfkovsky presently leads the hit parade with a dozen to his name. Justin Barron comes in second with eight.
Furthermore, anyone who has tuned into some Canadiens games since last season has surely noticed that the 6-foot-3 forward doesn’t take kindly to those who try to shove him around. In 2023-24, he finished eighth on the team in penalty minutes with 55. That’s not to suggest that he needs to be taking penalties or committing more transgressions this season, but there is a fire in him.
Comparing him with the Ottawa Senators’ Brady Tkachuk might be a stretch, but there is a kinship. The shapes are different but they’re cut from the same cloth. They’ll score goals, create assists for others, and happily engage in a post-whistle scrum along the boards should one spark. He’s not the perfect gentleman. If anything, it might be best not to mess with him because he typically seems quite open to messing with the opposition in return.
For a team that desperately needs to demonstrate toughness in order to be taken more seriously, having an offensive talent that isn’t afraid to get their hands a little dirty is a huge asset. To be clear, there is an important distinction to make between toughness and carelessness. Montreal doesn’t need to be a bottom-10 team in penalty minutes again. But sending some messages in scrums and good, clean hits can make all the difference.
As the season evolves, Slafkovsky may end up being vastly more important to the Canadiens’ success than most would have anticipated. Not by scoring a ton more goals than anticipated or tallying more assists (although those always help) but by standing up for himself and his teammates as often as he does. His multifaceted qualities as a hockey player are a luxury. Considering that Montreal would love to be in the postseason for the first time in four seasons, it’s a luxury they surely relish.
