Rookie Tournament | No Slafkovsky, no Guhle

(Buffalo) Juraj Slafkovsky said Thursday that he was looking forward to Friday’s duel between the hopes of the Canadiens and those of the Devils in order to “plant” his friend and compatriot Simon Nemec in a corner. He will have to postpone his plans.

Guillaume Lefrancois
The Press

Coach Jean-François Houle will indeed leave Slafkovsky aside for Friday night’s duel. The big meeting of Slovak hockey will therefore have to wait.

“We will look at other players. He will have other opportunities, ”said Houle, after CH’s morning training.

You have to understand that Slafkovsky, Nemec and Filip Mesar wrote a page of history in the last repechage. No Slovak player had been drafted in the first round since Marek Zagrapan… in 2005! However, at the last repechage, Slafkovsky (1^erMontreal), Nemec (2^eNew Jersey) and Mesar (26^eMontreal) were all claimed in the first round.

It was already known that Slafkovsky and Mesar were very close friends. They even vacationed together last spring.

But they are obviously very close to Nemec too. After CH training, Slafkovsky and Mesar crossed over to the secondary rink at the Devils training center, to observe Nemec, and above all, to chat to him as he left the rink. The Devils defenseman even had some skate blades to give Slafkovsky, “very good blades that come from Finland,” Nemec said.

More seriously, Mesar will therefore have a new chance to assert himself, but this time, in the center. He should lead a line with Xavier Simoneau and Lucas Condotta as wingers.

As for Slafkovsky, he should see action again on Sunday, during the third and last game of the Canadiens at this rookie tournament. “We want to give everyone a chance,” said Houle.

Still no Guhle

In defense, Kaiden Guhle will skip his turn for a second game in a row, even though he still took part in morning training.

Houle assures that he is not injured and that the team just wants to give him some practice before sending him into the fray. The first choice of CH in 2020 has “a good chance” of playing on Sunday, assures the coach.

Recall that Guhle’s 2021-2022 season ended in June, as his team, the Edmonton Oil Kings, participated in the Memorial Cup. Two weeks later, at development camp, he was listed as injured.

Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron will be the other defenders left out.

Riley Mercer, a goalkeeper from the Drummondville Voltigeurs present on invitation, should get the start for the Canadiens. At the Devils, Akira Schmid will defend the net. This 22-year-old Swiss, drafted in the 5th^e tour in 2018, took advantage of the Devils’ hecatomb at the goaltending position last year to play six games in the NHL.