Canadiens decline to release Juraj Slafkovsky to Slovakia for Olympic Qualifier

It's a move that won't go over well in Slovakia but may be a hit amongst Montreal Canadiens fans. Slovakia has an upcoming Olympic qualifier tournament, and they released their roster for the event on Monday morning. Some notable omissions were Slafkovsky, Erik Cernak, and Peter Cehlarik. The roster does feature ten players from the NHL/AHL, nine from the Czech Extraliga, three from the KHL, two from the SHL, and one from the Slovak Liga.

Slovakia will host the Olympic qualifying tournament, facing Austria, Hungary, and Kazakhstan. David Reinbacher and Vinzenz Rohrer are attending the Austrian training camp, which features 28 players. Reinbacher is a sure-thing to make the roster, but Rohrer will be in a battle to make the squad. The absence of Marco Rossi for the tournament helps Rohrer's chances.

“After communication with the players, which was sometimes difficult, and after communication with the GM of their clubs, the decision was made that they (Slafkovský and Černák) would not come.”

Miroslav Satan doesn't seem happy that Kent Hughes pulled the plug on Slafkovsky participating in the tournament. Slovakia are the favorites to advance out of this group, so the only hope is that Satan doesn't hold it against Slafkovsky when the time comes to pick the Olympics roster. Hughes' decision is understandable with the qualifier being so close to training camp, but it'd be hard for him to deny Slafkovsky an opportunity to compete in the big tournament in 2026.