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Post by HTL on Oct 29, 2023 17:59:57 GMT
Seems to be a lot of discussion among the fans about sending Slaf down to Laval. Not his best showing vs the Jets, but IMO his whole line just stunk it up. I wasn't surprised with MSL keeping them on the ice after that brutal giveaway as it fits with the development moto of let the kids learn through their mistakes. I was surprised he was pretty much benched in the 3rd and OT, as that contradicts the above. IMO if benching is now the new plan, send him down. How long before the fans start losing patience with the kid and start booing him?? That would be a travesty for a 19 year old.
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regis
Le Gros Bill
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Post by regis on Oct 29, 2023 18:20:21 GMT
Out of curiosity, is anyone aware if any player from his draft year is currently playing in the NHL . I I know wright is in the AHL . Seems like , for now, i think it was a weak draft 🤦🏻♂️
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Post by ChiLla on Oct 29, 2023 19:02:46 GMT
Out of curiosity, is anyone aware if any player from his draft year is currently playing in the NHL . I I know wright is in the AHL . Seems like , for now, i think it was a weak draft 🤦🏻♂️ Didn’t see him play but Cooley seems to be doing ok stats-wise with 5 assists in 7 games.
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Post by ramcharger440 on Oct 29, 2023 19:42:16 GMT
Personally I think Slaf has been doing ok this season, he is a kid who does not even have a full season in yet, there are going to be mistakes. What will playing in the AHL do for him Laval is not doing great right now anyways and most nights up here he is doing fine and playing against the best players in hockey.
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Post by BigTed3 on Oct 29, 2023 20:12:57 GMT
Out of curiosity, is anyone aware if any player from his draft year is currently playing in the NHL . I I know wright is in the AHL . Seems like , for now, i think it was a weak draft 🤦🏻♂️ Cooley in Ariz. Minten in Tor. Mintyukov in Ana. Poitras in Bos. Jiricek in Clb. Korchinski in Chi.
Not sure if I missed anyone else... some of those guys weren't in the top 10 mix, but of the guys who were, would say Cooley, Mintyukov, and Jiricek are all having better seasons than Slafkovsky thus far.
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Post by maasart on Oct 29, 2023 20:44:55 GMT
Id much rather see him in a position to succeed in montreal vs. Laval, but if they are going to keep playing him with mis-matched linemates, id rather he went to the minors.
I would either try him with Suzuki and CC for a few games (whats the harm?) or i would staple him to Monanahan's side. I like newhook & think he was a good addition but he's a supplemental player. He cant drive a line & Slaf needs a guy who can support him at this stage of his career. He's already showing he can open up a lot of space (very very often he gets double-teamed by the opposition) but he needs to be able to pass that puck off to someone & to play with someone who can handle traffic. I said when Dach went down this was a blow, not only to Kirby but also to Slaf (and Newhook who i think would have been great on the wing on that line).
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Post by claremont on Oct 29, 2023 21:12:06 GMT
Id much rather see him in a position to succeed in montreal vs. Laval, but if they are going to keep playing him with mis-matched linemates, id rather he went to the minors. I would either try him with Suzuki and CC for a few games (whats the harm?) or i would staple him to Monanahan's side. I like newhook & think he was a good addition but he's a supplemental player. He cant drive a line & Slaf needs a guy who can support him at this stage of his career. He's already showing he can open up a lot of space (very very often he gets double-teamed by the opposition) but he needs to be able to pass that puck off to someone & to play with someone who can handle traffic. I said when Dach went down this was a blow, not only to Kirby but also to Slaf (and Newhook who i think would have been great on the wing on that line). I’ve been disappointed with Slaf so far. He looks lost on some nights, standing still, looking around, one hand on his stick and feet not moving. Drives me nuts that he’s not more engaged and he gets knocked around. Putting him with Monahan, or even the top line isn’t a bad suggestion before dropping him to Laval.
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RCAF48
Captain Kirk
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Post by RCAF48 on Oct 29, 2023 21:15:31 GMT
I would add Korchinski, #7 in the draft, to the list of guys having a good season. Also Poitras, pick # 54, with 3G/2A/ +5 in 8 games is having a nice start to his career.
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Post by HTL on Oct 29, 2023 21:39:42 GMT
I have zero problem keeping him in Montreal if they're going to give him the TOI, even if it involves living with his mistakes as he matures. I thought they were comitted to doing just that until last night. If that plan has changed, than do the right thing for the kid and send him down. If last nights soft benching was because he was having a bad night, that's not the right message to send IMO
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Post by jenniferrocket on Nov 3, 2023 12:21:42 GMT
I haven't been watching many of the games, but maybe he should be sent down to Laval. He was drafted to score points. He's not scoring points in the NHL. So... Maybe he can score points in the AHL as he develops.
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regis
Le Gros Bill
Posts: 1,095
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Post by regis on Nov 3, 2023 12:26:32 GMT
Take Josh Anderson with him 😂
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RCAF48
Captain Kirk
Posts: 359
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Post by RCAF48 on Nov 3, 2023 14:02:03 GMT
This young man is an anchor playing with Newhook and Anderson. He looks completely lost in the defensive zone drifting about in ever increasing circles watching Anderson and Newhook trying to defend. He is also overly tentative in the offensive zone. He doesn't use his size effectively and loses board battles and puck possession to other youngsters two thirds his size and spends way too much time getting up off the ice.
It is time for HUGO to step up and change course in whatever plan they thought they had for him. They have to man up and accept the inevitable criticism they will receive from the armchair critics for misjudging his progression path. They drafted him and have to accept responsibility and accountability for turning him into a capable NHL player. The sky is not falling but it is definitely clouding over with major storms just over the horizon.
Slaf can do his part by putting his best effort forward in whatever situation management place him in................right now his best is not sufficient and that is not solely his fault.
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Post by maasart on Nov 3, 2023 16:06:01 GMT
This young man is an anchor playing with Newhook and Anderson. He looks completely lost in the defensive zone drifting about in ever increasing circles watching Anderson and Newhook trying to defend. He is also overly tentative in the offensive zone. He doesn't use his size effectively and loses board battles and puck possession to other youngsters two thirds his size and spends way too much time getting up off the ice. It is time for HUGO to step up and change course in whatever plan they thought they had for him. They have to man up and accept the inevitable criticism they will receive from the armchair critics for misjudging his progression path. They drafted him and have to accept responsibility and accountability for turning him into a capable NHL player. The sky is not falling but it is definitely clouding over with major storms just over the horizon. Slaf can do his part by putting his best effort forward in whatever situation management place him in................right now his best is not sufficient and that is not solely his fault. Yeah, i dont get the sense he's not trying its just a totally messed up line. Anderson flying all over the place but not creating any cohesion, Newhook trying to make things happen but not at all what Slaf needs. Slaf's best shift last night, frankly, was when he ended up with Evans for a minute & they had some nice passing and offensive zone movement. I hope with Dvo coming back we will see: Caufield - Suzuki - Newhook Slafkovsky - Monahan - Gallagher/Ylonen Pearson - Dvo - Anderson/Gallagher I think those are 3 balanced lines. Im not positive which RW will work best on each line but Id be looking at duos of CC-Suzuki. Slaf-Monahan and Pearson-Dvo.
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Post by claremont on Nov 3, 2023 16:07:08 GMT
This young man is an anchor playing with Newhook and Anderson. He looks completely lost in the defensive zone drifting about in ever increasing circles watching Anderson and Newhook trying to defend. He is also overly tentative in the offensive zone. He doesn't use his size effectively and loses board battles and puck possession to other youngsters two thirds his size and spends way too much time getting up off the ice. It is time for HUGO to step up and change course in whatever plan they thought they had for him. They have to man up and accept the inevitable criticism they will receive from the armchair critics for misjudging his progression path. They drafted him and have to accept responsibility and accountability for turning him into a capable NHL player. The sky is not falling but it is definitely clouding over with major storms just over the horizon. Slaf can do his part by putting his best effort forward in whatever situation management place him in................right now his best is not sufficient and that is not solely his fault. Very fair points and generally I try to be optimistic and not take the easy route by being overly critical especially on a young player and fragile confidence. He has to own up to his own weaknesses, and management needs a real dialogue with him. He isn't adding to this team. Bring up Lias Andersson or take a chance on Joshua Roy especially since it looks like RHP is hurting. I did forget abut DVO coming which will be another factor.
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Post by graeme on Nov 4, 2023 6:39:34 GMT
For Athletic subscribers, good article by Arpon: theathletic.com/5027430/2023/11/03/montreal-canadiens-juraj-slafkovsky-decision/I know he wasn't expected to be an impact player right away, and there is something to the idea that bigger players may need more of an adjustment, but it's hard not to look at 1 point in 25 games or whatever as something gone horribly wrong. He's shown glimpses of the player he can be, but at this point, he's just not an NHLer and it sure doesn't look like his development is on track. It's Hard to know if the AHL can fix these problems, but I can't see how spending a month or two playing on the top line of Laval and hopefully putting up lots of points would be a bad thing.
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Post by ChiLla on Nov 4, 2023 9:01:57 GMT
For Athletic subscribers, good article by Arpon: theathletic.com/5027430/2023/11/03/montreal-canadiens-juraj-slafkovsky-decision/I know he wasn't expected to be an impact player right away, and there is something to the idea that bigger players may need more of an adjustment, but it's hard not to look at 1 point in 25 games or whatever as something gone horribly wrong. He's shown glimpses of the player he can be, but at this point, he's just not an NHLer and it sure doesn't look like his development is on track. It's Hard to know if the AHL can fix these problems, but I can't see how spending a month or two playing on the top line of Laval and hopefully putting up lots of points would be a bad thing. Yep, I'm leaning towards giving it a shot as well. I'm not ready to call Slafkovsky a bust, I think his rookie season was okay and it's only been 10 games this season (on a completely ineffective/borderline dysfunctional line to boot), but based on what I've seen he's not helping the team right now. It's a bit of a conundrum though, playing at NHL speed seems to be the biggest issue (as Basu mentions in the article) and the AHL probably won't help a whole lot in that regard. On the other hand, finally getting some points will certainly be a confidence boost for him, which can go a long way towards becoming the player we need him to be.
Looks like he'll be staying for the time being though, according to MSL sending him down is not an option right now.
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Post by electron58 on Nov 4, 2023 10:19:42 GMT
For Athletic subscribers, good article by Arpon: theathletic.com/5027430/2023/11/03/montreal-canadiens-juraj-slafkovsky-decision/I know he wasn't expected to be an impact player right away, and there is something to the idea that bigger players may need more of an adjustment, but it's hard not to look at 1 point in 25 games or whatever as something gone horribly wrong. He's shown glimpses of the player he can be, but at this point, he's just not an NHLer and it sure doesn't look like his development is on track. It's Hard to know if the AHL can fix these problems, but I can't see how spending a month or two playing on the top line of Laval and hopefully putting up lots of points would be a bad thing. Kent Johnson the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft is being sent to the AHL's Cleveland Monsters, it was announced Friday. Johnson has one goal and two assists in eight games so far this season. He tallied 16 goals and 24 assists for 40 points in 79 games last year. So the Blue Jackets are not afraid to make the unpopular decisions.
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Post by graeme on Nov 4, 2023 18:46:47 GMT
I'm not ready to call Slafkovsky a bust,
Ya it's way too early, but there's a chance this could be a historically bad first overall pick: just based on points he seems to be trailing both Stefan and Yakupov. The optimistic argument is Joe Thornton who had 7 points in first 55 games and later went on to win a Hart.
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Post by ChiLla on Nov 4, 2023 21:20:57 GMT
I'm not ready to call Slafkovsky a bust,
Ya it's way too early, but there's a chance this could be a historically bad first overall pick: just based on points he seems to be trailing both Stefan and Yakupov. The optimistic argument is Joe Thornton who had 7 points in first 55 games and later went on to win a Hart.
No doubt there's a chance! But there's also a chance it's going to be a historically bad draft class altogether, with the pandemic and everyone's development being affected by it and whatnot.
Looking back at Stefan's draft class, it looks pretty bad as well. Completely different circumstances of course but aside from the Sedins at #2 and #3 and a few really surprising sleeper picks in the 7th round like Vrbata, Zetterberg, and Erat, there really weren't a whole lot of good players available. Yakupov was a little different, there definitely were some better players to be had, but if we did a re-draft now there's a good chance Filip Forsberg or maybe Morgan Reilly go 1st overall and it's not like they're superstars either (don't get me wrong, I'd take them both on my team). Still though, subpar draft years happen, it just really sucks that it might happen in a year where it's us who end up with the 1st overall pick
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Post by graeme on Nov 4, 2023 23:05:22 GMT
Ya it's way too early, but there's a chance this could be a historically bad first overall pick: just based on points he seems to be trailing both Stefan and Yakupov. The optimistic argument is Joe Thornton who had 7 points in first 55 games and later went on to win a Hart.
No doubt there's a chance! But there's also a chance it's going to be a historically bad draft class altogether, with the pandemic and everyone's development being affected by it and whatnot.
Looking back at Stefan's draft class, it looks pretty bad as well. Completely different circumstances of course but aside from the Sedins at #2 and #3 and a few really surprising sleeper picks in the 7th round like Vrbata, Zetterberg, and Erat, there really weren't a whole lot of good players available. Yakupov was a little different, there definitely were some better players to be had, but if we did a re-draft now there's a good chance Filip Forsberg or maybe Morgan Reilly go 1st overall and it's not like they're superstars either (don't get me wrong, I'd take them both on my team). Still though, subpar draft years happen, it just really sucks that it might happen in a year where it's us who end up with the 1st overall pick It's possible, although Cooley is already tearing it up as a rookie (actually has more points than Bedard) and most of them haven't made the league, so little data either way. The pandemic definitely complicated scouting, less clear to what extent it impacted development.
Stefan's draft class was definitely weak (and for a few years, Sedins were looking like busts as well - perhaps another argument on optimistic side).
The "weak draft" would at least be less of a gut punch than our management just making a bad pick. I'm less concerned with later picks who "surprise" (realistically, no front office would have taken the 10th overall pick first overall), but if Cooley, Wright, and/or Nemec are top players and Slaf is a bust, that will be harder to accept.
Hopefully he follows Thornton's path and this discussion looks moot / ridiculous a year from now though
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