The Montreal Canadiens are not officially eliminated from the playoff race, however, it’s clear with the trade of Sean Monahan that they are sellers, and it is only a matter of time before they are knocked out. But that doesn’t mean there is nothing to look forward to this season. Fans can still enjoy entertaining games, but they can also take notice of the development of the young players on the roster.
Under general manager (GM) Kent Hughes there has been an emphasis on individual development, and with the help of development director Adam Nicholas, fans are getting a glimpse of what is to come. In the case of Juraj Slafkovsky, it has been a meteoric rise. What is the difference between now and last season? What impact has he had on the team?
Canadiens Starting to Find Line Stability
Why is Slafkovsky starting to produce regularly now? Nicholas has had a direct hand in finding elements to his game. From keeping his head up to find passing lanes, to his ability to play at a high pace, to his growing confidence physically and his ability to release his shot at a faster pace.
Individual growth has played a significant role for Slafkovsky, but all of that wasn’t translating to the scoresheet at the rate that he, and the team, had wanted to for much of the season. Why? He lacked stability. At only 19 years old, he still needs to have a level of certainty, a level of stability in his linemates that he lacked until recently. Until 2024, he did not have a regular center to play with. He started with Kirby Dach, then Christian Dvorak, and then Monahan. The first two went down with season-ending injuries soon after Slafkovsky was paired with them, and Monahan was traded to the Winnipeg Jets in an early trade deadline deal. Because of these reasons, he was unable to build chemistry on a line and then capitalize on that. His offensive numbers suffered despite his having good underlying possession metrics.
This lack of stability is seen across the board and at every position as no forward line has been able to remain intact for a long period, until now. The Canadiens have only one forward line that has played 135 minutes or more together, that is the line of Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. This stability has allowed for the trio to build chemistry, and the time to capitalize as they lead the Canadiens in expected goals for percentage (xGF%) at 51.9%, xGF per 60 at 2.53 and expected goals against per 60 at 2.35. This shows that they can control the majority of the play, even against top opposing lines, and generate a positive goal differential as well.
Canadiens and Slafkovsky Improve Together
It’s clear who head coach Martin St. Louis sees as his go-to players. Only five players on Montreal’s roster have played over 900 minutes, Slafkovsky is one of them and he joins his current linemates, as well as Kaiden Guhle and Mike Matheson. During this time, the 2022 first-overall draft pick has climbed the stats charts on the club.
He began turning the corner over the last 23 games, since the western road trip began, scoring nine goals and 19 points which puts him third in point production over that period. Now after 53 games, Slafkovsky has become an essential player, and top-line asset for Montreal as he is now fifth on the club in goals for per 60 minutes at 0.91, fourth in assists per 60 at 1.06 and fourth in points per 60 at 1.8. This comes after a very slow start to the season, so they could be even higher if he had a full season of stable linemates in a top role. His recent improved play has even led former Canadiens goaltending coach Stephane Waite to compare him to retired NHL power forward John Leclair, hopefully from his Philadelphia Flyers Legion of Doom line era.
As Slafkovsky progresses in his game, so do the Canadiens. Until the western road trip, when Slafkovsky started finding his rhythm, the Habs’ power play (PP) sat 24th in the NHL at a woeful 16.7%. It was barely able to generate offensive zone time, let alone score enough to make teams afraid to take penalties. Until that road trip, overall, offensively, the team suffered, sitting at 27th in the league with an average of 2.7 goals per game. Since then, when St. Louis moved Slafkovsky to the top line, even though the Canadiens are essentially a one-line team, the offence has been much improved.
Since the western trip, over the last 23 games, Montreal has now improved to the 21st-ranked offence with an average of 2.83 goals per game. But it’s the PP that has been the biggest shock to the system as they have the ninth-best PP in the NHL scoring at an impressive 25% rate.
The PP began to rise when Slafkovsky was added to the top unit. His addition has given the Canadiens a second shooting option. This has had the effect of forcing the opposing penalty-killing units to focus on more than just covering whatever side of the ice Caufield was on as he was their only weapon. Now, the defences are stretched to cover the entire width of the ice. This has provided the Canadiens not only with significant zone time, but also the ability to have space to move the puck with aplomb in the offensive zone. This has led to more shot attempts and scoring opportunities and of course, more goals.
Now that Slafkovsky has had some time to develop his game in North America, and has been given some stability, he has begun to show why he was drafted at the top of the board in 2022. It’s hard to imagine, but there’s a vocal minority of the fan base that is complaining about the current management group who used their first four picks to draft Slafkovsky, Filip Mesar, Owen Beck and Lane Hutson. More importantly, however, is that Slafkovsky is growing into a top-line weapon as well. He is still just a teenager and several years away from his ceiling, which is exciting for a fan base that has been starved for a dominant player to wear the “blue, blanc et rouge” of the storied franchise.
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