About Last Season: Jaccob Slavin Performance Review and Grade

Jaccob Slavin: 2016-2017 By the Numbers

Age: 22
NHL Seasons: 2
Games Played: 82
Scoring: 5g - 29a - 34p
Ice Time: 23:26 all situations, 0:56 PP, 3:07 SH
5-on-5 Stats: 52.8% CF, 58.3% GF
Contract Status: One year remaining on Entry Level Contract, RFA after 2017-2018.

About Last Season

Jamie Kellner

Canes Country’s player-by-player review and grades for the 2016-17 season.

• April 13: Sebastian Aho
• April 14: Klas Dahlbeck
• April 15: Patrick Brown
• April 17: Phil Di Giuseppe
• April 18: Justin Faulk
• April 19: Brett Pesce
• April 20: Victor Rask
• April 21: Elias Lindholm
• April 24: Eddie Lack
• April 25: Brock McGinn and Jay McClement
• April 26: Andrej Nestrasil and Joakim Nordstrom
• April 27: Noah Hanifin
• April 28: Ryan Murphy
• May 1: Derek Ryan
• May 2: Jeff Skinner
• May 3: Jaccob Slavin
• May 4: Jordan Staal
• May 5: Lee Stempniak
• May 8: Matt Tennyson
• May 9: Teuvo Teravainen
• May 10: Cam Ward
• May 11: Others receiving votes
• May 12: Coaching staff and front office

Making the Grade

For a team that is certainly still considered young and growing, perhaps no player made greater strides in the 2016-2017 season than Jaccob Slavin. Slavin was a stalwart over the course of the season, playing in all 82 games, and logged incredible ice time, averaging 23:26 per night.

While his five goals, 29 assists, and plus-23 rating presents the picture of a productive defenseman, Slavin provided even more than that because of his willingness and ability to consistently take the toughest matchups on the ice. Whether it was being on the ice against John Tavares, Sidney Crosby, or Alex Ovechkin most of the night, Slavin was not only able to curb the production of his opponents, he was able to produce himself. He led all Hurricanes defenseman with 52.6% of his time on ice beginning with a defensive zone faceoff, yet still managed to fall only three points behind Justin Faulk for the team scoring lead for defensemen.

The 22-year-old Slavin has quickly proven that he is the most complete defenseman on the roster as his defensive and offensive game each provide production. If this play continues, expect Slavin to become a regular at All-Star games alongside his teammate Faulk who has made three consecutive appearances.

For Slavin, the highlight of the season would clearly be the masterpiece on March 13^th in Brooklyn against the New York Islanders. Slavin tallied his first career hat trick and notched 4 points total in the Hurricanes 8-4 victory. Though you certainly cannot expect offensive outbursts of that nature too often, the performance showed the growing versatility of a dynamic and still developing young player who certainly will continue to have more to offer offensively from the blue line in seasons to come.

It is unclear if Slavin will develop as a more vocal leader of the Canes as he continues to grow at the NHL level, and as other leaders such as Faulk and Jeff Skinner grow into more of a leadership role on the team, but one thing is clear: Slavin will be part of the leadership group on this team soon enough, even if it is simply through leading by example. His relentless effort, durability, and sheer talent should make him a core member of this team for years to come, as well as a touted player league-wide for his terrific skill and ability.

Exit Interview