Canadian 3 – Blues 6 | The confidence of the great Slovak

(St. Louis) Although he showed a certain sobriety in his celebration and claimed afterwards that he was “just happy to tie the score”, we can assume that Juraj Slafkovsky felt liberated after having , finally, scored his first goal of the season.

Unfortunately for him and, therefore, for his team, this net did not make a big difference in this 6-3 defeat of the Habs against the St. Louis Blues. CH seemed disorganized for almost the entire game and returned to Montreal after a three-game trip with just one point out of a possible six.

We will have plenty of time to talk about the Canadian’s execution problems, so let’s return to Slafkovsky. From the start of the match, it was clear that something had changed about him. The same morning, his coach informed him that he would get a first chance on the first line, to the right of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. The “dose of confidence” that he felt then followed him all day.

He wasn’t with his two line partners when he scored, but the sequence that led to his goal exuded confidence.

On the power play, the exchange he executed with Alex Newhook then his advance, full of authority, to the net no longer exuded the fragility and nervousness of previous matches.

A few moments later, this time with his two new companions, he was very close to scoring again when he jumped on a return throw. Right there, in the space of two minutes, he fired two shots from the bottom of the slot, in the “danger zone”; at his 11^e match of the campaign, these were his first two.

He finished the game with four shots on target and four quality scoring chances (according to Natural Stat Trick), both season highs. And this, in just over 18 minutes, another peak.

Disappointed with the performance of his men, Martin St-Louis saw in the performance of his young protégé “one of the positive things” of this duel.

“He played a good game, he didn’t look uncomfortable,” continued the coach. I am very satisfied, but I am not surprised. He’s a good hockey player. »

His involvement around the opposing net did not respond to a specific command, but playing with Caufield and Suzuki will necessarily give him more time in the opposing zone, analyzed St-Louis, who also praised his progress on the defensive level. It is this last facet which made the pilot more comfortable sending him on the first line, and therefore against strong opposition, which would not have happened last year.

Trust

Slafkovsky, without making a big deal about his goal, uttered the word “confidence” several times. He assures that, always, he focuses on the next match, on the next training, and that he does not let himself be distracted by external pressures. You have to take his word for it. However, we know that the young man puts enormous pressure on himself and is particularly hard on himself. When he speaks of an opportunity to “build [sa] trust”, so it should not be taken lightly.

His confidence faded visibly between the start of training camp and the final days. The injury to Kirby Dach, his designated center, caused all kinds of line changes. He was eventually paired with Josh Anderson and Alex Newhook with regularity. After an interesting start, the three gradually became mired in a slump which required a change.

In hindsight, the problem may not have been Slafkovsky. The recovery of Christian Dvorak allowed St-Louis to transfer Newhook to the wing. The latter, however, had a very messy match, but not as much as Anderson, perhaps the worst attacker in his camp. Number 17 looks completely disoriented. But we will talk about this also another time.

About his new winger, Nick Suzuki spoke of a happy addition to the duo he has long formed with Cole Caufield. His size, speed and individual skills bring a new dimension to this unit, he believes.

It will take more rehearsals, however, before we see a strong and, we hope, lasting chemistry established. “It’s the first time I played with him,” said the captain. This had never happened, not even in training. It will get better and better. »

He too is aware that Slafkovsky, when things go wrong, can be his own worst enemy. It’s no coincidence that Martin St-Louis told reporters that he expected his two offensive stars to take the big Slovak “under their wing.”

“He has to stay positive: speaking negatively doesn’t help anyone,” Suzuki noted. You can blame yourself [après une mauvaise séquence], but you can’t keep that up for the whole game or when you go home. I think he’s taking steps in the right direction. »

This is undoubtedly happy news for the young man. His age is often cited to justify deficiencies in his game. At 19, however, the consequences of withdrawing into himself are undoubtedly much more serious than a turnover in the defensive zone. If his confidence is reborn, perhaps the goals will come. But if it crumbles and flies away, it probably won’t be any better on the ice.

In details

Barron on the power play

Very little used until recently in the power play, despite his obvious qualities in attack, Justin Barron seems to have earned his place on the second wave of massive attack. We had already seen a little of him on Thursday in Arizona, alternating with Arber Xhekaj; On Saturday, he was the one who was entrusted with this task full-time. Barron’s comfort in this position is obvious. The defender, however, was played a nasty trick on the Blues’ fourth goal: during a risky play at the blue line, he lost the puck in the hands of Pavel Buchnevich, who sent Alexey Toropchenko on a breakaway. At the restart, it seemed to us that Buchnevich could have been sent off for tripping. Apparently, the referees saw something else.

Dvorak returns

After missing the first 10 games of the season to complete his rehabilitation following knee surgery, Christian Dvorak played his first match of the campaign on Saturday. For the occasion, he was flanked by Alex Newhook and Josh Anderson. He played a little less than 15 minutes, a figure which would undoubtedly be higher if the Habs had been punished, since the American is generally used shorthanded. He finished the game with a differential of -1, the result of a turnover of which he was guilty and which turned into a goal in the second period; In his defense, Alex Newhook also messed with the disc on the sequence. “We committed too many turnovers, and I include myself in that,” commented Dvorak, who, moreover, admitted that he had felt “a little rust” in his game. won only four of the ten faceoffs in which he was involved.

Lindström in Laval… for now

To make a place for Dvorak, the Canadian had to remove a player from his roster. Failing to place Rafaël Harvey-Pinard on the injured list, management instead gave Gustav Lindström to the Laval Rocket, a logical choice knowing that he did not have to go through waivers. However, it will be interesting to see if other personnel movements will follow, since in the absence of Lindström, the team only has six healthy defensemen. Given the proximity of the school club, which also benefits from a full week off, we could stick to the strict minimum for the next home match on Tuesday. However, CH will return to the road in the middle of the week to face the Red Wings in Detroit, and it is rare for a club to leave without a defensive reserve.

Rising

Juraj Slafkovsky

He perfectly respects the definition of this section: without playing a perfect match, he showed a clear improvement compared to the previous ones. And he scored this first goal which must have done him the greatest good.

Falling

Mike Matheson

He looked bad on three Blues goals. To be honest, this trip was difficult for him. The substitution of Johnathan Kovacevic by Jordan Harris on his right helped him, but did not save him.

The number of the match

2

Before the game, Sean Monahan had never been on the ice for an opponent’s goal at five-on-five. His streak is over, after having closely witnessed two Blues goals, their first and their fifth.