Hockey

Juraj Slafkovsky: a well-deserved point in his fifth consecutive game
Mathis Therrien
Juraj Slafkovsky: a well-deserved point in his fifth consecutive game
Credit: Getty Images

Juraj Slafkovsky has had his ups and downs since the start of the season.

He had some good moments early in the season, but the points didn't follow his performance, and then he quickly fell into a slump, which was roundly criticized by fans and analysts alike.

However, for the past seven games, the Habs' #20 has been playing really well, and the points have followed, as he has managed to blacken the score sheet.

Indeed, Slafkovsky is currently on an excellent run, with seven points in his last seven games, including an assist last night on Cole Caufield's goal.

The NHL ruled that he touched the puck before Caufield deposited it in an empty net, which took away an assist from Nick Suzuki.

Clearly not the greatest pass of Slaf's career, when it's more luck than anything else, but it's a fully deserved point.

Slafkovsky was probably the Canadiens' best player last night, and has been for several games now.

He plays extremely well, while dominating through his main assets: size, puck protection, and vision.

Slaf controls the game and the puck very well, and now plays with enormous confidence and self-assurance, something he was criticized for a few weeks ago.

It's a fully deserved point for Slaf, who is finally seeing some offensive production follow his good performances, which must clearly be encouraging for the 21-year-old Slovak.

With this assist on the Caufield goal, Slaf is now on a run of five consecutive games with at least one point, during which he has six points, including three goals.

That's 16 points, including nine goals, in 27 games, for a pace of 48 points over 82 games.

It's not incredible, but I believe this projection will only increase between now and the end of the season, especially if Slaf is able to maintain his current excellent play.

And we're not the only ones who see Slaf playing well, as Martin St-Louis himself rewards the Habs' #20 with ice time.

With 21:36 of ice time last night, it was Slaf's third consecutive 20+ minute game. Prior to that, St-Louis had only played Slaf for more than 20 minutes once in 24 games, in the third game of the season against the Chicago Blackhawks.

In short, it's great to see Slaf finally producing when he's playing well, and we all hope he continues to be as committed and, above all, confident in his abilities.

He's involved both offensively and defensively, as the following sequence shows.


Overtime

– Another point for the Habs prospect.

– Tsunoda tried his best to contain Norris and help teammate Verstappen.

– Next up.

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