The Montreal Canadiens have a line shuffle on their hands, and Juraj Slafkovsky is right in the middle of it.
Montreal opened the season with Slafkovsky beside Ivan Demidov on the second line, but Tuesday night brought a different look. Slafkovsky was bumped up to the top line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, putting him back in a trio the Canadiens have leaned on before.
Now comes the real question: do the Canadiens leave him there, or slide him back once things settle down? There’s a case either way, especially with Demidov now expected to miss two-to-four weeks.
The hesitation with Slafkovsky is easy to understand. He hasn’t always been steady enough to lock down that role night after night.
Some games, he looks like a perfect fit next to Suzuki and Caufield. Other nights, he doesn’t have nearly the same kind of influence.
Still, the second-line assignment existed for a reason. Montreal wanted to give Demidov another skilled player to work with, and moving Slafkovsky down helped spread the talent through the lineup.
With Demidov out for the moment, that logic doesn’t really hold up the same way. The Canadiens could keep Slafkovsky on the top unit and shift Chris Kreider to the second line, using another veteran presence to help cover for Demidov’s absence.
There’s also the possibility that the top line brings out more from Slafkovsky. He has the skill to keep up with Suzuki and Caufield, and playing with two players who can generate offense might give him more chances to get involved.
The flip side is just as clear, though: if Slafkovsky is going to stay there for good, he has to be more consistent. Montreal can’t afford long stretches where its top line fades because one piece isn’t pulling enough weight.
For now, the move makes sense. Demidov’s injury forces the Canadiens to adjust anyway, and keeping Slafkovsky with Suzuki and Caufield while moving Kreider down is a reasonable answer.
If it doesn’t work, Martin St. Louis can always drop Slafkovsky back and keep giving Kreider the run on the top line. But Kreider’s value to Montreal’s top six shouldn’t be overlooked no matter where he slots in, while Slafkovsky still leans heavily on his linemates at times to drive production.
So the call, at least right now, is to move Slafkovsky up. He brought a spark to the top line Tuesday night against the Carolina Hurricanes, and if that helps Montreal keep banking points early in the season, that matters. It could also create a tougher decision when Demidov returns from injury, which is exactly the kind of problem a team with Stanley Cup aspirations would welcome.
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