Should Slafkovsky Have Gone to the World Juniors? Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MTk1MTEzNjc1NjUxMDMyODAy/usatsi_19732081.jpg] Welcome back to Screen Shots. Regular readers know what to expect from this column: a few hockey topics are broken down and analyzed in short bursts. Let’s get right to it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Montreal Canadiens are approaching a crossroads of sorts with 2022 No. 1 overall draft pick Juraj Slafkovsky. The 18-year-old’s played 36 games for the Habs, and his four goals and 10 points is not what’s expected from a high-profile draft pick. There’s an argument for Montreal to keep him at the NHL level for the rest of the year. Canadiens coach Martin St-Louis has done well in developing young players such as forwards Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. But from this writer’s perspective, the better argument is to assign Slafkovsky to the AHL and allow him to hone his craft. Should Slafkovsky Have Gone to the World Juniors? Like most young players, Slafkovsky has slowly acclimated himself to the world’s best hockey league. He’s averaging only 12:06 of ice time, and he often looks like anything but a difference-maker. He’s not the first top pick to struggle in recent years. Look no further than New York Rangers forward and 2019 No. 1 pick Alexis Lafreniere, who hasn’t lived up to the promise he had as an amateur prospect as of yet – but that doesn’t mean Montreal needs to keep Slafkovsky in the NHL. Because it’s Montreal, Slafkovsky will be closely monitored whether he’s in the NHL or AHL. He’s got pressure to produce, no matter where he’s playing. Better to let him build confidence in the minor league and take another shot at full-time NHL employment next season. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As we approach the midway point of the NHL’s regular season, it’s clear that two teams with big expectations – the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers – are on course to disaster, by which, we mean missing the playoffs altogether. We’ve seen enough of both teams, and we’re calling it now – at least one of the Panthers or Oilers will come up short and miss the playoffs. Florida has too many teams to vault over to win a wild-card berth. Edmonton looks like a team with no identity outside of McDavid and Draisaitl. Fans in both cities are right to be frustrated with what they’re getting right now. If they do miss the post-season, there will be serious repercussions this summer in one of those two markets, even though one is a hockey fishbowl and the other is a hockey hiding place. We can see either Panthers GM Bill Zito or Oilers counterpart Ken Holland getting pink-slipped. It’s simply unacceptable to have two teams with this much talent not jelling. And that means, this summer, we’re likely to see major moves in south Florida and northern Alberta. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Tampa Bay Lightning got called out [https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets-tampa-bay-lightning-nhl-recap-jan-6-1.6706599] by coach Jon Cooper late last week after another dismal road performance in a 4-2 loss to Winnipeg. Cooper, typically one of the most calm and collected bench bosses in the league, tore into the Bolts’ lack of discipline. But it seems like Tampa’s biggest problem is their Jeykll-and-Hyde showings at home and on the road. Indeed, when you look at the Lightning’s season, you see they have an impressive home record of 16-4-1, but their road mark is just 9-9-0. That’s not going to cut it if they intend to overtake the Toronto Maple Leafs for second place and earn home-ice advantage in the Atlantic Division. If they do wind up in third or a wild-card position, their disappointing road performance could be the thing that does them in. Cooper is one of the best coaches in the game, but he must figure out why the Lightning are such an inconsistent road squad. This factor will haunt them at some point and prevent them from again enjoying a deep post-season run.
