The Montreal Canadiens have had great success with one of their latest Slovakian draft pick, Juraj Slafkovsky. Could they be tempted to select another Slovak this time around in Tomas Chrenko?
Ever since Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton took over at the helm of the Montreal Canadiens, the organization has bet on speed and skill. It was obvious that they would when they chose to make Martin St-Louis the team’s coach, despite his lack of coaching experience with a top-flight team, and he started to shape the team, teaching them the St-Louis brand of hockey.
If the Habs brass wants to keep going that way, they could target Slovak center Tomas Chrenko. The 5-foot-11, 172-pound athlete has a great hockey IQ and makes sound decisions with the puck. He has a knack for choosing the right play and the vision to evaluate which one it is.
After spending most of the 2024-25 season at the U20 level, he had a short stint in Slovakia’s top league, putting up nine points in 26 games with Nitra. This season, he got four points in seven games at the U20 level before heading back to the top-flight. This time, he scored 31 points in 44 games, a big improvement in just one season.
Despite his young age, he began spending time on the power-play unit this season, a testament to his hockey sense and skill. He’s very good at both exiting the defensive zone and entering the offensive zone in control of the puck. He’s committed on both sides of the puck and backchecks with intensity when he finds himself behind the play.
While he can dazzle against the competition of his own age, he tends to play a safer game when playing at the top of his game. He simplifies his play, betting on his positioning and wise passing play. There’s room for improvement in the faceoff department, where he had a 47% success rate, but his blend of skills and awareness on both sides of the puck may just put him on the Canadiens’ radar, even though he’s only ranked 24th on the Central Scouting Service final rankings of international skaters.
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