Juraj Slafkovsky signed an eight-year, $60.8 million contract with the Montreal Canadiens on Monday. The contract, which begins with the 2025-26 season, has an average annual value of $7.6 million.
"I love Montreal and I feel like we are on a good path and I feel like we're building something very special and I just wanted to be part of it as long as I can," Slafkovsky said Tuesday.
The 20-year-old forward, who was the No. 1 pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, had 50 points (20 goals, 30 assists) in 82 games last season. He led Montreal with 71 blocked shots and was third with 152 hits.
Slafkovsky became the first player in Canadiens history to have 40 points in a season before the age of 20 when he got an assist against the Colorado Avalanche on March 26. He also scored his first NHL hat trick against the Philadelphia Flyers two days later.
"For me it was the eight years," he said. "If I wanted more money or something else I could wait or I could think about all these other things, but I feel like it's done now and it's out of the way and I don't have to think about it. I can just focus on playing and focus on winning, and that's the most important thing to me. So I'm happy that I have a contract for another nine years with Montreal and I want to win and I want to build something special with the other guys."
Slafkovsky has 60 points (24 goals, 36 assists) in 121 NHL games.
Montreal (30-36-16) finished last in the Atlantic Division last season.
"I'm back home in Slovakia and [Monday] I couldn't believe how fast it happened and I was just in a shock," Slafkovsky said. "… It's more like a dream but that's what I was working for my whole life. I wanted to be in this spot and I wanted to put myself in this and now it's just time to get some wins and think about the other important stuff, not the contracts and everything."
NHL.com independent correspondent Sean Farrell contributed to this report
