MONTREAL (AP) — The Montreal Canadiens selected winger Juraj Slafkovsky with the first pick in the NHL draft Thursday night, making him the first player from Slovakia to be taken No. 1.
While Shane Wright was long considered the front-runner to be the top pick, the New Jersey Devils surprisingly selected Slovak defenseman and Slafkovsky Olympic teammate Simon Nemec second. In another surprise, the Arizona Coyotes took Logan Cooley third with Wright slipping to the Seattle Kraken at No. 4.
Slafkovsky, who was named MVP at the Beijing Olympics for leading the tournament with seven goals in seven games, started thinking this was possible after meeting the Canadiens at the NHL scouting combine in Buffalo.
“I felt they were pretty interested,” said Slafkovsky, who was caught off guard when Montreal general manager Kent Hughes announced his name. “When I heard ‘from Slovakia’ I went, ‘Wow!’”
Nemec, who along with Slafkovsky are the highest-drafted players from Slovakia 22 years after Marian Gaborik went third to Ottawa in 2000.
“I lost the words,” Nemec said. “We were kids and when we dream about NHL Draft."
The Canadiens weren't done making moves in their first home draft since 2009. They traded defenseman Alexander Romanov to the New York Islanders for the 13th pick and moved that selection and the 66th to the Chicago Blackhawks for young forward Kirby Dach.
It was the second dismantling move made Thursday by the Blackhawks, who also traded high-scoring winger Alex DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators for three picks.
The 6-foot-4 Slafkovsky, who has drawn comparisons to late Hockey Hall of Famer Clark Gillies and plays a bit like a young Jaromir Jagr, said he told the Canadiens on Thursday morning to take him.
Slafkovsky, who turned 18 in March, is among the most NHL-ready players in the draft after playing against grown men in Finland this past season and impressing at the Olympics with seven goals in seven games. The youngest player in the tournament was the biggest reason Slovakia won an Olympic bronze medal for the first time.