Even if he’s not the most talkative, Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky can never be accused of not being honest with himself. He demonstrated that again on Tuesday.
The 20-year-old Slovakian, who agreed to an eight-year, $60.3 million contract extension on Monday, made no secret of the fact that he was still in shock at receiving such a vote of confidence from the Montreal organization.
“It happened very quickly. Just a few years ago — when I was 14 or 15 — I left home and went to Finland,” he recalled via video conference from his home country Tuesday morning. “Then I worked on my game and now I’m signing this big contract. It’s a dream come true, even though I’ve worked for it my whole life. I wanted to be in this position, and I’m in this position, so it’s time to get to work and focus on what’s most important: winning.”
Slafkovsky, who has one more season left on his rookie contract before the new deal takes effect, said money was not the main factor in discussions with Canadiens management.
“I feel like we’re building something really special. I want to be part of this project for as long as possible,” he said. “The important thing was the length of the contract.” [huit ans]. It wasn’t about making more money… I just wanted to stay here.”
The first overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft is obviously aware that with such a contract comes greater expectations of him. Much like it was the case for forward Cole Caufield, who signed an eight-year, $62.8 million contract with the Habs on June 5, 2023. The Slovak isn’t afraid of the pressure, however, and says he’s ready to take on the challenge.
“It’s certain that everything won’t go perfectly during these eight years of contract. It’s about staying focused and keeping in mind the main objective: winning, not scoring 30 goals per season,” he summed up.
Slafkovsky, who scored 20 goals and had 30 assists in 82 games last season, nonetheless acknowledged that it’s a hefty sum of money to be paid by the end of his contract. He was candid when asked what he plans to do with it.
“I’m still enjoying the moment; I haven’t thought about it too much. But I’m surrounded by very smart people, smarter than me, actually, and I’m sure they’ll help me make the right decisions,” said Slafkovsky, who has just restarted his training program for next season after enjoying a few weeks of well-deserved rest.
He added that he would like to represent his country at the Olympic qualifying tournament in August, but said the final decision would not be his.
“The Canadian will make the decision, because this tournament is just before the start of the season [dans la LNH]”They will make the best decision in the interest of the club and in mine,” he concluded.