Analyst weighs in on Juraj Slafkovsky's performance after loss to the Kings
Photo credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
The excellent Anthony Marcotte shared an interesting message on BPM Sports - a message directed at Martin St-Louis about Juraj Slafkovsky.
In fact, I'm not sure if Marcotte was directly addressing Martin St-Louis, but the Montreal Canadiens head coach needs to take the message to heart and pass it on to Juraj Slafkovsky.
It ties directly to what Kent Hughes said last season.
No one is asking Juraj Slafkovsky to play like Jack Hughes (or like Ivan Demidov), and Slafkovsky shouldn't try to imitate those players!
Things had been going well since the start of the season, but last night, Slafkovsky started trying to become a finesse player again - trying to play like Jack Hughes or Ivan Demidov - and the result was disastrous.
A message for Martin St-Louis: he needs to speak with Juraj Slafkovsky right away and remind him of his role
It's probably that Slafkovsky sees Demidov's success and is influenced by it, but he needs to stop trying to play like his teammate No. 93 immediately.
That's basically the message Marcotte sent out today:
"It was a really bad game for Juraj Slafkovsky.
What I hate most about his game - and it's a recurring theme - are those infamous passes through the middle of the ice.
He puts his teammates in trouble.
He's a player who needs to play more north-south; when he starts playing east-west, he gets himself into trouble. [...]
He needs to keep the puck along the boards, because I'm sorry, but he doesn't have the hockey IQ to start making passes through the middle of the ice like Demidov can.
That's not who Slafkovsky is!"
- Anthony Marcotte, on BPM Sports
What I hate most about his game - and it's a recurring theme - are those infamous passes through the middle of the ice.
He puts his teammates in trouble.
He's a player who needs to play more north-south; when he starts playing east-west, he gets himself into trouble. [...]
He needs to keep the puck along the boards, because I'm sorry, but he doesn't have the hockey IQ to start making passes through the middle of the ice like Demidov can.
That's not who Slafkovsky is!"
- Anthony Marcotte, on BPM Sports
Marcotte wasn't the only one to call out Slafkovsky's game...
Slafkovsky indeed needs to keep things simple, work hard, drive to the net, and keep playing the way he had been since the start of the season.
And you - do you believe that Juraj Slafkovsky has the tools to become a finesse player one day?
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