Juraj Slafkovsky sends a clear message to Arber Xhekaj amid contract talks with Kent Hughes
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Juraj Slafkovsky delivered quite a message to the Montreal Canadiens’ locker room.
And it could be aimed directly at two teammates.
The Slovak forward explained why so many players in the team’s core have accepted team-friendly contracts to help the Canadiens move forward.
“It’s not really about the money for anyone there (in Montreal). We all have the same goal on that team. Nobody really cares about the money at this point. I mean, all those contracts that the guys have, or even I personally have, it’s already made our lives easier enough. Nobody really needs more than that.”
“We’d rather just focus on collecting those (Stanley Cup) rings, because that’s a much bigger number, and I don’t think any amount of money can top that.”
– Juraj Slafkovsky
He also added that he wants to focus on Stanley Cup rings rather than salaries, saying no amount of money can compare to that.
Slafkovsky’s team-first message puts the spotlight on Bolduc and Xhekaj’s contract talks
Those comments come at an interesting time.
It’s hard not to see this as a message, even an indirect one, aimed at his two teammates who are still waiting for new deals.
It’s worth remembering that Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield have also helped set that standard by accepting salaries below their full market value.
If Bolduc and Xhekaj follow the same philosophy, their contract situations could be resolved sooner than expected.
Do you think both deals will get done before training camp begins in just a few weeks?
Previously on Montreal Hockey Fanatics