things to do in dallas texas Hughes on Slafkovsky: ‘It’s his desire to make a difference’
MONTREAL — General manager Kent Hughes meets with members of the media following the first round of the 2022 NHL Draft on Thursday night.
Hughes looked back on his night’s work, which included taking part in a three-team trade and picking Europe’s top prospect, Juraj Slafkovsky, at No. 1.
Here are some highlights from his press briefing:
Hughes on Alexander Romanov’s trade to the New York Islanders:
” It was very difficult. We tried to move forward. We talked to Chicago for two or three weeks about Kirby Dach. They were very clear about what they wanted in terms of draft picks. We did everything we could to move forward with the many picks we had, but in the end we couldn’t convince a team to make a trade with picks. Romanov was one of the players we talked about. We are disappointed to lose Romy and wish her the best with the Islanders. Sometimes to get what we want we also have to make sacrifices. »
Hughes on what made the acquisition of Kirby Dach intriguing:
“We were looking to improve and get a little faster at center ice. There is also, in an ideal world, an age component for him to grow with our young group and he certainly fit that description. We knew he was potentially available, so we spent a lot of time trying to figure out who he was. We spoke to many people in and around Chicago associated with the team, we even spoke to Justin Barron today, who was with him at the World Junior Championship, just to make sure we understood who was the player and who was the person. We will invest money in the development of hockey players and try to make the most of their potential. We think Kirby has huge potential and we hope that together with the Montreal Canadiens we can develop him and get him to a point where he becomes a pretty special center player. »
Hughes on what made him decide to pick Slafkovsky first:
“Players who skate, who have the physique and who are able to score like Juraj, there are not many. On the other hand, when you build a team, we often talk about center players and goalkeepers. When we tried to differentiate one player from another, we often came back to the fact that Juraj – even when he played with men in the World Championship – he wanted to make a difference. He wanted to have the puck all the time. One of the questions I asked him when we met him today was what he liked the most about hockey. He replied to be on the ice when you win 4 to 3 or when you lose 4 to 3. This type of response was what we saw of him as a player. »
“When we talk about his character, it’s his desire to make a difference. You see it in the way he plays, you see it when you talk to him, he’s a very charismatic boy. I try to imagine myself at 18, he left home at 15. I asked him if he lived in a dorm and he said no. I said, “So one of your parents moved in with you?” He replied, “No.” Then I said, “How did you cook?” He replied: “With an oven”. He is very independent. He’s confident without being pushy and we think he’s a youngster who not only has the mentality we’re looking for, but we also assess where he’s at in his game and what he has in terms of natural abilities and where he could be if we help him in the process. »
“We would like it to be in North America. We will be flexible with this decision. We hope that regardless of where he starts, based on his performance over the rest of the summer and in training camp, if he shows he is ready to play in Montreal, he will play in Montreal. Otherwise, he will play in Laval. We would like to put him under contract fairly soon. »
