Juraj Slafkovský’s next game will be his 10th NHL regular season game of the season. That game comes with some implications, and unlike players who would head to the Canadian Hockey League, any decision the Montreal Canadiens choose to make would not be final.
The benefit to keeping Slafkovský under 10 games is that it would slide his entry-level contract one year, even while he plays in the American Hockey League. This means that his entry-level contract would essentially become a four-year deal and expire after the 2026-27 season.
On the surface, this seems like a slam dunk decision, without even considering the fact that the Canadiens risked putting a forward on waivers due to Josh Anderson’s suspension and Evgenii Dadonov’s pending return from the injured list.