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Kent Hughes Discusses Slafkovsky’s Play, Developmental Strategy

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Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes

MONTREAL — Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes joined the Ray and Dregs podcast on Thursday to discuss the play of first-overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky

He also elaborated on his goal throughout camp, putting an onus on the future without adding any extra pressure on the players that may not be ready to make the jump to the NHL.

“You watch the entire group, but the focus is on the young prospects and trying to figure out who may fill spots that are available on our roster,” said Hughes. “And also to get a better appreciation for the quality of the prospect and what their future may represent with our organization, whether it is this season or in the future.”

It’s a logical approach, one that will benefit many of the talented Montreal Canadiens prospects. Historically speaking, very few prospects were hindered by spending too much time in the minors, whereas there’s a laundry list of highly-touted players that have failed to achieve their potential due to being rushed into the NHL.

Of course, a fifth-round pick returning to Junior hockey will not garner a lot of attention. But the first-overall pick failing to make the lineup certainly.

Mats Sundin currently stands as the last forward selected first overall pick that didn’t start the following season on an NHL roster, and that was way back in 1989.

However, it’s important to remember why the Montreal Canadiens chose to select Slafkovsky.

The goal was not to draft the best player on that day, but rather the player that projects to be the best once he goes through an intensive developmental process.

With that in mind, it’s only fair to say Slafkovsky hasn’t stood out at camp. The 18-year-old is improving every day, but he’s yet to put together a performance that would lead people to believe he would become an impact player for the franchise.

“We’ll see how he progresses. I thought his two exhibition games were a little underwhelming for him,” said Hughes.  “But the two rookie games in Buffalo, he was great.”

The first part of the quote will grab headlines, but it was the second part of his quote that Montreal Canadiens fans should pay attention to.

“We’ve got to do what’s right for him,” Hughes said. “If we do what we said when we drafted him, we weren’t looking for the best 18-year-old, we were looking for the best NHL player down the road, and I don’t think we do that without making the best decision for him, whether it’s the popular decision or not, we’re going to do what we believe is right.”

As Hughes has shown several times in the past, he’s not worried about external pressure, which is the perfect approach to leading a team in a hockey-crazy market like Montreal.

Juraj Slafkovsky has all the tools to become an excellent NHL player, but the Montreal Canadiens recognize that it’ll take a lot of work to get him to that point.

In many ways, it’s a reversal from the previous regime’s attitude towards highly-touted prospects, a reversal that should serve Slafkovsky, as well as many other prospects, well going forward.