On a blue line filled with young talent, rookie Jaccob Slavin has been perhaps the most impressive through the first stretch of the season.
The first-year pro out of Colorado College has recorded six helpers in 10 games and is a team-best +8. His play thus far has been strong enough to catch the eye of the coaching staff.
“He’s a great player,” said Morris. “He’s got tremendous ability to take off from a standstill and accelerate. He moves the puck quite well for a young guy and he’s learning all the nuances.”
“He’s got excellent vision, tremendous poise with the puck, great hand-eye coordination and reads plays very well,” said Hurricanes’ Director of Defensemen Development Glen Wesley.
The level of play in the pro game is obviously a big leap for rookies to take when they start off, a fact that is not lost on Slavin, though he has taken it with an even keel.
“It was definitely an eye-opening experience,” said Slavin on his pro debut. “It’s a good league here. There’s no easy games and there’s no easy shifts in this league. You’re going up against some of the best guys in the world, so you just have to be ready and adapt.”
As it was for players like Dennis Robertson and Phil Di Giuseppe last season, the biggest transition for Slavin coming from the NCAA to the AHL will be dealing with the grueling regular season.
“In college you’re playing 30-something games a season and here you’re over 70,” said Slavin. “You have to work on being consistent night in and night out. There’s a lot of opportunities to succeed but also a lot of opportunities to mess up. So you just have to work on consistency.”
After jumping headfirst into his first 10 games as a pro, Slavin now has a few days to hone his skills before making his home debut on Saturday.
“He’s worked primarily with [assistant coach] Geordie Kinnear, working to really be in the right place at the right time and learning the little idiosyncrasies of being a solid defenseman,” said Morris.
“I’ve had some pretty good games and I’m just learning every single game,” said Slavin.
Wesley, who frequently joins the Checkers at practice to work one-on-one with the defensive prospects, spent time after Thursday’s skate going over some points with the young blue liner.
“The big thing for me is just learning to adjust and realizing that sometimes less is more in certain situations,” said Wesley.
Even with those transitions, the coaching staff has had no qualms with putting their trust in the 21-year-old, relying on him heavily through 10 games, which has benefitted the young blue liner.
“In order for yourself to develop, you have to play in all situations, whether it be power play, penalty kill, four-on-four, three-on-three,” said Wesley. “Just confidence-wise, it’s the best thing for him. He’s growing as a person, he’s adjusting to the speed of the game.”
With what he’s shown thus far, it’s likely that Morris will continue to lean on Slavin as a staple of the Charlotte blue line.
“I’ve been really impressed with what I’ve seen so far,” said Morris. “Not many guys can play the big minutes like that right off the hop and he’s done that quite effectively for us.”
“It’s been awesome so far,” said Slavin. “That’s what any rookie would want. Just playing in all situations is a great learning experience for me and I’m going to do my best to try and help the team win whenever I’m out there.”
