Canadiens Need Slafkosvky to Erupt From His Slump

In the grander scheme of things, and as the calendar heads deeper into mid-November, the Montreal Canadiens are in a good position. With an 11-3-4 record and third place in the Atlantic Division, there isn’t a ton to criticize. That said, things can always be better, and it would be disingenuous to overlook Juraj Slafkovksy’s numbers this season. He is certainly off last season’s pace. Montreal will need him at his best going forward.

Slafkovsky’s Slow and Steady Growth

It felt like a long time coming for the Slovakian forward to experience a breakout campaign. It happened throughout 2025-26, which was his fourth season in the NHL. Every coin has two sides, however. It might sound like a long wait. The fanbase witnessed three seasons during which expectations were not necessarily met. Those expectations were extraordinarily high, given that Slafkovsky was the first selection in the 2022 NHL Draft.

Then again, 2026-27 will be the season during which he celebrates his 23^rd birthday (March 30). Is it realistic to put the weight of expectations for glory on the shoulders of a young man when he is 19, 20, or 21 years old? Under almost any other professional circumstances, an unequivocal no. But this is the NHL, and these are the Montreal Canadiens, and that comes with the territory, especially when playing on the first line, realism be damned. 

But it did finally happen last season. Not only was Slafkovsky healthy enough to play all 82 matches (the second time in four seasons Providence shone on him in that regard), but the statistics looked excellent. The attacker erupted for 30 goals, 43 assists, and 73 points, all career bests. His plus/minus was a sturdy plus-9, also superior to past campaigns.

Those 30 markers were evenly split between playing even-strength hockey and on the power play, one reason why Montreal boasted solid power-play figures in 2025-26: 23.10%, good for 10^th league-wide.

A Tough Act to Repeat 

At a certain point, the argument that “it’s early in 2026-27” will no longer hold much water. Through about a month and a half of action, Slafkovsky does not look like his former self. At least, he doesn’t resemble the one from last season.

He’s played in all of the club’s 19 contests, averaging just about the same amount of ice time as last season (18:05 versus 18:32, but both are far above the three previous campaigns). Following the Nov. 12 match against the Boston Bruins, the 22-year-old has netted only twice while adding 10 assists for 12 points.

Considering there are 84 regular-season matches to play and assuming the forward remains healthy to participate in all of them, we can multiply those figures by 4.42 (84 divided by 19) to have an estimate of his current pace. Emphasis on estimate.