Juraj Slafkovsky says he didn't expect to be selected first overall

When the Montreal Canadiens took to the stage in their home arena last summer to announce who they were selecting with the first overall pick, many were surprised that they opted to selected Slovakian forward Juraj Slafkovsky over Shane Wright.

But those fans aren't the only ones that weren't expecting Slafkovsky to go first overall. In a recent interview on 'The Raw Knuckles' podcast, Slafkovsky admitted that he didn't think the Canadiens were going to take him with the first pick.


Slafkovsky's rookie campaign with the Canadiens wasn't too bad, but it's still debatable if he should have even played in Montreal this past season or if he would have been better off in Laval (AHL) or with TPS Turku (Liiga) for his development.


The Kosice native's season was cut short after he sustained a lower-body injury in mid-January that kept him out for the remainder of the year. He finished the season with ten points (four goals, seven assists), 33 penalty minutes and was a minus-13 in 39 games.