Alain Chainey: Slafkovsky has 35 goal, 90 point performer potential

When Kent Hughes selected Juraj Slafkovsky with the Montreal Canadiens' first overall selection in the 2022 NHL Draft, he made a move based on potential.

Slafkovsky had looked dominant in the Olympics and the World Championships for his home team Slovakia. Doing so as a 17-year-old was rather unheard of, especially on a team that isn't known as one of the dominant hockey countries. This, of course, put him on every team's radar, but more specifically the teams picking in the top five.

After an underwhelming rookie season, many were questioning why Shane Wright wasn't the Canadiens picks. And even more so, when they didn't have Kirby Dach healthy for the full season. With Logan Cooley and Wright available, it would have address a need for the Habs top six centre situation.

The field of amateur scouting can be very unforgiving - having to project how good a 17-18-year-old will be when they are in their mid-twenties isn't easy.

50 points is just a start, but what is his potential?

Slafkovsky managed to play a full 82 game schedule in year two and he also managed to increase his point totals by 40. But the manner in which he played the game, was night and day in comparison to his rookie season. He played with a physical edge and each shift he appeared determined to outwork the opposition and be the one in the middle of whatever was happening for his line.

The jump from playing 39 games, due to an injury and scoring only 10 points was impressive. But he grew in so many ways, that it was almost unexpected, for the pundits who had written him off anyway. But Hughes and Martin St Louis knew they wouldn't get a polished player who would dominate from the get-go.

But when a director of head scouting who has been in the business for two decades talks, he just might be onto something. Alain Chainey was on a recent episode of The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro and felt that Slafkovsky has plenty of room to grow. Chainey believes that in his prime years, Slafkovsky will score around a 35-goal, 90-point pace.

Whether he reaches there or not is yet to be seen, but the way he played in 2023-24 proved that he has a way to go before reaching his potential. It should be considered that Cole Caufield wasn't playing at his very best either, though it was the best that he has played to date. What I mean is that Caufield and Slafkovsky are both trending up, so the odds that they improve their production are very good.

If Caufield can score 40-50 goals and Slafovsky 30-35, then Nick Suzuki will have plenty of open opportunities to make some plays. With the three firing on all cylinders and maturing together, the odds of Slafkovsky reaching such a high point total don't sound so crazy. All I can say is the Canadiens are going to start looking pretty darn good with their three highest-paid players carrying the boat.