Slafkovsky’s physique and mentality made him too good to pass up as Habs

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Kent Hughes said the Canadiens decided to use the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL draft on Slovakian winger Juraj Slafkovsky on Wednesday morning.

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“We’ve had discussions, we’ve done evaluations, and there aren’t a lot of players that skate, that bring a physicality, that are capable of scoring, like Juraj,” Hughes said Thursday after concluding the first round of the draft in the Center of the Bell.

The Canadians were expected to go the route and draft center Shane Wright, who was the consensus No. 1 prospect.

Hughes said the Canadiens were influenced by the 6-foot-4 Slafkovsky’s play at this year’s world championships.

“Even when I was playing against guys, I wanted the puck all the time,” Hughes said.

Slafkovsky also came up with the correct answer when asked by Hughes what he liked about hockey.

“He said he liked being on the ice, late in the game, when his team was up 4-3 or down 4-3,” Hughes said. “That response is what we saw in him as a player.”

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While centers are generally more coveted than wingers, the decision to move Wright was made easier because Hughes was also working on a deal to get Kirby Dach, a No. 3 overall pick in 2019, from the Chicago Blackhawks. The deal went through after the Canadiens traded defenseman Alexander Romanov to the Islanders for the 13th pick and later traded that pick to Chicago for Dach.

Hughes said he was disappointed to lose Romanov, a 23-year-old who had secured a top-four spot in Montreal. He will be looking for an experienced defender to fill the void, but he noted that the Canadiens have good left-handed defenders on the way in Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble.

“There’s depth at that position,” Hughes said.

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“It was very difficult for me to change Romy,” Hughes said. “We had been talking to Chicago about Kirby Dach for two or three weeks. We wanted to offer several options in the draft, but we couldn’t convince them with the options we had, but Romanov had a very good market value. I’m disappointed to lose Romy, but to get what you want, you have to make sacrifices.”

Dach has a size of 6-foot-4 and speed, and Hughes said those qualities are important in building a winner.

“I don’t have anything against 5-foot-9 guys, but I don’t want 22 of them,” Hughes said.

Hughes noted that Dach was drafted the same year as Cole Caufield and there were concerns Caufield had hit a wall in January. The arrival of coach Martin St. Louis helped restore Caufield’s confidence, and the Canadiens hope some of that same magic will help Dach restore his game.

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Filip Mesar, whom the Canadiens took with the 26th pick, is also from Slovakia and Slafkovsky happens to be his best friend.

Both players hope to be in North America this fall. Slafkovsky will get a good look from the Canadians, while Mesar will likely end up with the Laval Rocket.

Nathan Gaucher was the first of two Quebec players selected. Quebec forward Remparts went to the Anaheim Ducks at No. 22 and Drummondville defenseman Maveric Lamoureux was selected by Arizona at No. 29.

The Canadiens have the No. 33 pick to kick off the final day of the draft on Friday with rounds two through seven starting at 11 am (Sportsnet, TVA Sports).

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