With an unfortunate pattern that began before his season-ending injury last year, Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky went over 30 consecutive games without netting a goal.
He broke that unlucky streak on Saturday, scoring his first of the season against the St. Louis Blues.
Uncoincidentally, perhaps, the 19-year-old’s puck luck changed when one of the team’s least productive lines was broken up. Previously paired with Alex Newhook and Josh Anderson, Slafkovsky got his shot to join dynamic duo Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki on Montreal’s top line.
And the 19-year-old made it count, scoring a beauty just four minutes into the game.
𝓛𝓲𝓿𝓮 𝓢𝓵𝓪𝓯 𝓛𝓸𝓿𝓮#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/auFwXQQIz0
— Canadiens MontrĂ©al (@CanadiensMTL) November 4, 2023
The first overall pick in the 2022 Draft, who was also on the ice for Caufield’s third-period snipe, says getting top-line minutes has the potential to help his game.
“Playing with players like those,” Slafkovsky said. “You know you’re going to get a lot of touches and play in the o-zone, so it just helps a lot.”
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis, who has shuffled in a few partners for Caufield and Suzuki this year, seems to agree.
“I think it’s an opportunity for young players like Suzy and Cole to take a younger player under their wing and teach him,” St. Louis said on Saturday.
“I thought he [Slafkovsky] touched [the puck] a lot, and did some good things with it,” St. Louis added. “He looked comfortable. For me, I thought that, whenever he was on the ice, I felt that something was happening, and a lot of it had to do with some of his play, some of his decisions.”
Suzuki seemed pleased with his new linemate’s effort as well.
“I liked his game today. He’s battling hard, making plays, shooting the puck,” he said. “I know what kind of skillset he has and I think it complemented me and Cole pretty well.”
The captain also revealed that he foresees the young winger’s first goal having a positive effect on the rest of his year.
“I think it was a big weight off his back and he started playing a lot better — you feel the puck a bit better once you score,” Suzuki said. “I’m sure it will be a domino effect for him.”
As for how Slafkovsky’s been handling the recent criticism of his game, which included many people suggesting he be sent down to the AHL, he admitted that staying away from social media has helped him block out the noise.
“I focus on my game, I don’t really follow the media, I don’t have Facebook, don’t have Twitter, just have Instagram. And people don’t talk bad stuff on Instagram luckily,” the Slovakia native explained to reporters. “I just focus every practice and every time I go out on the ice, just focus on myself and just [try] to build my game.”
Slafkovsky and the rest of the Canadiens will get another chance to prove the naysayers wrong when they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Bell Centre on Tuesday.
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