Slafkovsky got confidence boost at Olympics ahead of 2022 NHL Draft

The 2022 NHL Draft is scheduled to be held July 7-8. Every two weeks, NHL.com will take a closer look at some of the draft-eligible players to watch.

Juraj Slafkovsky relishes the big moments of any hockey game.
His performance for Slovakia at the 2022 Beijing Olympics will go down as one for the ages.
The 18-year-old forward led all players with seven goals and averaged 15:50 of ice time in seven games on the way to earning most valuable player as the second-youngest player in the men's ice hockey tournament.
"'Slavy' plays well, he plays hard, he's physical, but he just couldn't score and then we took them him to the Olympics and, first game, he scores two goals and, boom, away he went," Slovakia coach Craig Ramsey said. "Sometimes they just need some little thing that gives them that confidence. But he's big (6-foot-3, 218 pounds), he's strong, he has good feet, good hands, and has a great attitude.
"He wants to be a player, wants to go on the ice at all times, so he's a joy to be around. I see a great future for a guy like Juraj Slafkovsky."

Slafkovsky scored two goals on six shots in 17:17 of ice time to help Slovakia to a 4-0 win against Sweden in the bronze-medal game Feb. 19. It was Slovakia's first Olympic hockey medal.
"I was so surprised, and I'm still surprised, and I don't believe I scored that many goals," Slafkovsky told "The Pipeline Show."
"Maybe my stick was just on fire, I don't know. Everything I shot just went in."

Slafkovsky,
No. 2 in NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of International skaters
, scored 10 points (five goals, five assists) and took 89 shots on goal in a second-line role in 31 regular-season games with TPS in Liiga, Finland's top professional men's league. He has scored seven points (two goals, five assists) with 44 shots on goal, and he's averaged 15:43 of ice time in 17 playoff games.
"He uses his great size, reach and strength inside the rules," said Goran Stubb, NHL director of European Scouting. "He's an effective checker both in the offensive and defensive zone and is surprisingly a mobile and fast skater for a player his size. He'll likely represent Slovakia at the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland (May 13-29)."

Prior to joining TPS and playing for the junior team in 2019-20, Slafkovsky played in Czechia, where he scored 42 points (19 goals, 23 assists) in 22 games for Hradec Kralove U-16.
The intriguing part of Slafkovsky's game is his physicality, one he models after Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews. It's that aspect that might set him apart from other forwards in the 2022 NHL Draft, according to Ramsey.
"He reminds me a little bit of Clark Gillies, who played for the New York Islanders on that great line with Bryan Trottier and Mike Bossy," Ramsey said. "He's a powerful guy who can score goals and was a presence every time he was on the ice. There are other guys similar, maybe, but he's going to be his own player. I believe that given the right opportunity, where coaches give him a chance to just go play, he'll be fine.
"I always worry about coaches trying to overcoach and make a player do certain things when they should sort of open the door and let them go play and adjust to it after. But Slavy, with a little bit of freedom, has the chance to be a star."
PROSPECTS ON THE RADAR (listed alphabetically):
Isaac Howard, LW, USA U-18 (NTDP):The 18-year-old (5-10, 182) led the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 Team with 77 points (32 goals, 45 assists) and was second with an average of 1.35 points in 57 games this season. Howard, who is committed to the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2022-23, is third in scoring at the 2022 IIHF World Under-18 Championship with six points (five goals, one assist) in three games.
"He can score, for sure, and also make plays," NTDP coach Adam Nightingale said. "He's most dangerous when he gets to the inside and he's got a really, really good release."
Ben King, C, Red Deer (WHL):The 19-year-old (6-2, 205) finished first in the Western Hockey League with 52 goals and second with 105 points in 68 regular-season games. King, passed over in the NHL Draft the previous two years, also led the WHL with 24 power-play goals and 15 game-winning goals. The right-handed shot has won 705 of 1,199 face-offs (58.8 percent) and scored three points (one goal, two assists) in four WHL playoff games.
"King is one of the top scorers in the league; he has size, can skate and has skill," said John Williams of NHL Central Scouting. "In the past he had not been real consistent in his efforts and that area has improved this year."
Cole Knuble, RW, Fargo (USHL): The son of former NHL forward Mike Knuble was second on Fargo with 49 points (20 goals, 29 assists) in 62 United States Hockey League games. Knuble (5-10, 170),
No. 118 on Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters
, tied for the Fargo lead with six power-play goals and led the team with 174 shots on goal.
"He's quick and elusive; his stride is short but he's good in transition," said Greg Rajanen of NHL Central Scouting. "He's a solid puck mover on the power play, battles and comes back hard. He can roll off checks in contact areas, is hungry around the net and plays a nice 200-foot game."
Photos: IIHF
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