September 11, 2024 | 6:40pm ET
By David Calabretta, TheFourthPeriod.com
SLAFKOVSKY POISED FOR BREAKOUT SEASON
Juraj Slafkovsky, forward
MONTREAL, QC — Over a year ago, the Montreal Canadiens’ fanbase lost all confidence in first-overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky.
After putting up just 10 points in his first 38 NHL career regular-season games, the mainstream media was prepared to write him off and the Habs faithful jumped on board.
Slafkovsky missed the remainder of his rookie season due to injury and returned healthy for the 2023-24 campaign. The fans, still aggravated, wanted to see him start the year in the AHL.
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis remained patient with his rising star and insisted management keep him in the NHL despite having just six points in his first 20 games to last season.
On November 20, 2023, St. Louis responded to a media member who recommended Slafkovsky to be sent to the Laval Rocket.
“I feel like he’s playing really well and to me, the production is just going to be a side-effect of what he’s doing on the ice,” St. Louis said in defence of his young star. “I’m happy with his play right now.”
St. Louis’ comments seemed to light a fire inside of Slafkovsky, with his coach having his back publicly. The Slovakian’s next 60 games produced 18 goals and 26 assists for 44 points, an impressive pace for the then 19-year-old.
He finished the year with 20 goals, 30 assists and 50 points, and it’s no coincidence the forward earned the opportunity to remain alongside captain Nick Suzuki and sniper Cole Caufield on the club’s top line. He also found himself on the Canadiens’ top powerplay unit and regained the trust of the fans, who are now expecting a breakout season from him this year.
Last season’s impressive run also generated a massive contract extension signed on July 1. Slafkovsky inked an eight-year extension worth $60.8 million.
Off ice, Slafkovsky has kept his head down, continuing to work on his strength. In an interview with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Slovakian winger how he went dropped 20 pounds and added muscle mass to his upper body. At 6-foot-4 and now 230 pounds, Slafkovsky is one of the biggest power forwards in the NHL and will be a monster for the coming years.
This season, barring any unfortunate setbacks, as mentioned by Canadiens GM Kent Hughes, the expectation is for Slafkovsky to continue playing on the team’s top line with Suzuki and Caufield.
Shades of Mikko Rantanen
Over the course of his short career, Slafkovsky has been compared many times to fellow European winger Mikko Rantanen, as the two athletes boast a similar frame.
In Rantanen’s first full NHL season, the Finnish forward had 38 points, with 20 of them being goals. The following season, Rantanen broke out with 84 points while playing on a line with 2013 first-overall pick Nathan Mackinnon.
Rantanen has gone on to dominate at the NHL level, scoring 55 goals in 2022-23 and is coming off back-to-back 100+ point seasons, but his growth and the comparisons to Slafkovsky should excite fans in Montreal.
Slafkovsky, now 20, skates into this new season filled with confidence – and rightfully so, the second half of last season was a whole different game for the power forward. He demonstrated flashes of creativity and was not scared to get into puck battles, something that he struggled with his shortened rookie year.
It is an exciting time to be a Canadiens’ fan with the influx of youth coming in and already established, and if I was a betting man, my bet for the 2024-25 season would be to witness a breakout year for Montreal Canadiens left winger Juraj Slafkovsky.