In collaboration with Upper Deck, The Hockey News will be covering the best active homegrown player for each NHL team. For the Montreal Canadiens, it is Juraj Slafkovsky.
In a draft year with no consensus number one pick, the Montreal surprised their fans, particularly those seated at the Bell Centre on July 7th, by selecting Juraj Slafkovsky with the first selection of the 2022 NHL Draft.
While the Habs faithful slowly warmed to the 6-foot-3 forward from Slovakia, his struggles in his rookie season did little to calm their fears. Slafkovsky managed just four goals and six assists for 10 points in 39 games averaging 12:13 of ice time per game before suffering a season-ending injury.
The concern for the first overall pick in 2022 went well beyond his production. The rookie struggled to establish himself as an NHL player, and despite being a big body, left himself vulnerable to crushing hits. In a blog written for LNH.com in February 2024, Slafkovsky admitted "Last year, I was sometimes lost on the ice."
Despite making a full recovery from his knee injury and having a strong summer training program, Slafkovsky's sophomore season began slowly. Through nine games in October, he recorded just one assist.
The turning point seemed to come in November when Nick Suzuki requested that the big winger be added to his line along with Cole Caufield. Slafkovsky scored his first goal of the season on November 4th on the road against the St. Louis Blues on a line with Suzuki and Caufield.
Playing with better players, Slafkovsky's production increased and his confidence bloomed. He had learned how to use his size in the NHL and become engaged at both ends of the ice. In the 2023-24 regular season, the line of Suzuki, Slafkovsky and Caufield were fifth in goals scored at five-on-five.
Slafkovsky played all 82 games of the season finishing with 20 goals, and 30 assists for 50 points. The 20-year-old then went on to register eight assists in eight games for Slovakia at the IIHF World Championship in May.
Canadiens fans now eagerly await news about a multi-year contract extension for the first-overall pick from the 2022 NHL Draft.
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