Newly signed Montreal Canadiens defencemen Michal Moravcik and David Sklenicka have European Assignment clauses on their deals.
As the days since the initial signing by the Montreal Canadiens goes by, more information comes out on the nature of the deal. Michal Moravcik and David Sklenicka are the new faces in the organization after receiving two-year entry-level contracts. Both stood out on Czech Republic’s national team at the World Hockey Championships, and they chose Montreal as their ticket to the NHL.
What many question was whether either defenceman had a European Assignment clause on their deal or not. This would require Moravcik and Sklenicka to be in the NHL by some date. Otherwise, both have the option to return to their respective Europe team to finish the season.
Capfriendly confirmed yesterday that the two Czech players indeed have these on their contracts.
Contract update: both of the #Habs ELC signings yesterday, Sklenicka and Moravcik, include a European Assignment clause in their contracts https://t.co/fv1rcPK1u5
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) May 30, 2018
The Montreal Canadiens had the same clause for Jakub Jerabek this past season. However, he started the year with the Laval Rocket and was called up mid-November. His clause deadline date was December 15th. If Moravcik and Sklenicka have a similar time stamp, then that would give them a good chunk of time to get equated with the North American style of play.
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However, this presents Marc Bergevin with a bit of a stumbling block. If nothing changes and the Habs go into next season with their current outlook of eight defencemen on the books, there would be no way of either joining the team. Brett Lernout faces that same issue who looks to be an option to make the opening night roster out of camp.
Bergevin may be hard-pressed to do away with Jordie Benn, David Schlemko, or both to avoid this problem. Those moves would free up at least one spot if Lernout makes the team. If not a trade, waivers could be a last resort.
That, of course, is a problem if one of Moravcik and Sklenicka prove to be too good for the AHL. But seeing their age, they may welcome the development from Jöel Bouchard and remain in North America past the due date.
At the same time, having them return to Europe wouldn’t be the worst case scenario either. It was an issue with Jerabek as he was only on a one-year deal. Time wasn’t on the Habs’ side to decide whether or not they should invest long-term. Moravcik and Skelnicka’s age grants management that luxury.
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Moravcik and Skelnicka will be two of the most tracked players on Laval next season because of this. It’ll be interesting to see how they progress at training camp. Bergevin may have to make those hard decisions earlier if the two stand out there as well.