Montreal Canadiens: Jeff Gorton Preaches Patience With Juraj Slafkovsky

The Montreal Canadiens surprised a lot of people when they chose Juraj Slafkovsky with the first overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.

It was not that he came out of nowhere, he was ranked quite high by everyone, but the consensus pick at the time seemed to be center Shane Wright. The two-way center turned heads in the OHL as an exceptional player at the age of 15 and for years looked to be the top choice in his draft year.

Slafkovsky was more of an unknown to hockey fans as he played pro in Europe leading up to his draft year but looked great at the Olympics and World Championships for Slovakia. The huge left winger has the tools to become a power forward at the NHL level, but it was never going to happen overnight.

Canaidens Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton was interviewed by Guillaume Lefrancois of La Presse and spoke about the patience that is required with a unique player like Slafkovsky.

Gorton mentioned that even off the ice there was a lot for the teenager to get used to. It was his first season in North America, playing in a huge market where everyone keeps tabs on the players which is a huge adjustment for an 18 year old. Gorton commented that those around the team can see his constant growth on and off the ice.

He continued to point out he had Joe Thornton when he worked for the Boston Bruins and the big center scored three goals and seven points in 55 games as an 18 year old who was a first overall pick. Indeed Slafkovsky did have better numbers as he scored ten points in 39 games last season but Thornton quickly jumped to 41 points in 81 games so we would need to see some immediate scoring from Slafkovsky this season for that comparison to hold up.

Gorton also interestingly pointed out that a stint in Laval is not in the team’s plans right now as they want him to continue progressing at the NHL level. So, don’t expect a demotion for Slafkovsky this season unless he really struggles to begin the season.

The Canadiens executive also mentioned he sees Slafkovsky turning in to a player who is a power forward, that is difficult on the forecheck, scores goals and is just good all over the ice which is a disaster for opposing teams to deal with.

Patience is definitely needed with any 19 year old kid and it makes sense that Gorton is suggesting it will take time for Slafkovsky to reach his potential. As they said all along, they did not pick him to be the best player on the ice immediately, but the best player from his draft year 5-10 years after the selection was made.

We will have to be quite patient to see how it all plays out, but it is far too early to make announce any winners or losers from the 2022 NHL Draft.