Three points for Mesar today at CMJ

Slovakia took on Denmark this morning at the World Junior Championship.

On the face of it, it was a fairly easy match for Filip Mesar’s team, who had yet to lose since the start of the tournament…

And the Slovaks answered the call, winning the match 8-4.

Mesar stood out with three assists. That makes six points in three games:

Filip Mešár with another 3A in ’s 8-4 win over to improve to 3-0 at the #WorldJuniors and remain in top spot in Group B.

Mešár was also +2 in 13:52 TOI in the game and is now up to 6 points (6A) in 3 games at the tournament.#OHLRangers #GoHabsGo

– East Ave Blue (@KRangersReport) December 29, 2023

Mesar was only used for 13 minutes and 52 seconds, but not because the coach wanted to send him a certain message.

Club manager Ivan Fenes simply decided to rest his best players because the match was already out of reach for the Danes.

Slovakia will need their best players by the end of the tournament, after all.

The Canadian prospect didn’t have a stellar first period, but he made up for it afterwards.

He looked a little sluggish in the first twenty minutes.

It was in the second period that he really took off. He was good on the forecheck, he was excellent on the rebound and he really showed off his passing skills.

That’s the kind of performance you want from a first-round pick in this tournament.

Že je Filip Mešár skvelý tvorca hry sa nedá prehliadnuť, no málokto si všimne, aký je silný na forčeku. Za 4 decembrové zápasy (2 na MSJ + 2 prípravné) má 2x viac získaných pukov v útočnom pásme než náš 2. najlepší hráč v tejto činnosti – Peter Repčík
JOJšport pic.twitter.com/WrvKrX7Vw0

– Peter Vretenička (@vretenicka) December 29, 2023

Supporters of the @CanadiensMTL: Filip Mesar stands up! @OHLRangers

2 mangific games to lead to goals from Dalibor Dvorsky @Sudbury_Wolves and Servac Petrovsky. #GoHabsGo #MondialJunior pic.twitter.com/mAQnmbUIZ2

– Canadian Hockey League (@LCHhockey) December 29, 2023

The 26th overall draft pick is playing with unshakeable confidence right now, and it’s great to see.

Sending him to junior at the start of the season was the right decision in the end. We can see just how interesting his progression curve is, and we must salute the decision of the Habs organization, which didn’t want to rush anything in his case.

If he can set an example for the youngsters who will be arriving in the next few years, that would be something.

Extension

Things are about to get a little more complicated for Mesar and the Slovaks.

After beating the Czech Republic (6-2), Switzerland (3-0) and Denmark (8-4), they’ll face the USA next Sunday before finding out their fate in the medal round.

I can’t wait to see how Mesar responds in the face of adversity.