Prospect Info: Filip Mesar

[DAChampion]

The expectation here is also that any team would hit on every pick they had.

If Mesar is the disappointment but Slafkovsky, Beck, Engstrom and Hutson are all key parts of our team going forward, are we still gonna be whining? That type of hit rate in a single draft would be unprecedented.

Depends, are you disappointed that in the 2007 draft the Habs picked Olivier Fortier and Yannick Weber ahead of Jamie Benn?

;-)

Anyway, for the 2022 draft to be a success, the Habs need Slafkovsky to succeed, anything else is gravy.

 

[Jaynki]

The sooner we have the new regime's hit-rate% with prospects the sooner the discourse around the team will get settled and standardised. Not that it matters but at least we'll know what we're working with. The tanking/rebuilding is over as of this season anyway. These guys have to prove they can build and that means inserting talent into the team. Bergevin was rubbish at that.

So far the statistic is TBD or N/A but very quickly, even by mid-season, we'll know if our HuGo-era prospects are largely on track or off track.

It is easy to focus on Kulich/Mesar but the three pick after looks like solid hit Beck, Hutson and Engstrom.

The 1st overall is still up for debate. Unclear if Slaf will end up more valuable then Cooley or the Ds. But it does look good right now relative to Wright. Fwiw.

2023 we will see. A lot will depend on Reinbacher/Michkov, Fowler and Newhook. Could be both massive homerun or massive, franchise-killing flop.

Honestly so far 2022 looks good despite the Kulich/Mesar fail.

Also, the threshold should not be the former administration. Drafting from the last decade is simply sub-par, total failure, and those are not acceptable result for an organisation investing that much money in scouting.

 

[ReHabs]

Depends on the team's health and even then on lottery luck. I can see the Habs both getting another high pick this year and accumulating additional picks at the deadline, but probably not both as the two are anti-correlated.

I don’t understand why the two are anti-correlated, wouldn't selling at the deadline lead to a weaker performance and better draft pick?

It is easy to focus on Kulich/Mesar but the three pick after looks like solid hit Beck, Hutson and Engstrom.

The 1st overall is still up for debate. Unclear if Slaf will end up more valuable then Cooley or the Ds. But it does look good right now relative to Wright. Fwiw.

2023 we will see. A lot will depend on Reinbacher/Michkov, Fowler and Newhook. Could be both massive homerun or massive, franchise-killing flop.

Honestly so far 2022 looks good despite the Kulich/Mesar fail.

Also, the threshold should not be the former administration. Drafting from the last decade is simply sub-par, total failure, and those are not acceptable result for an organisation investing that much money in scouting.

I am not nitpicking. Time will tell and it is too early, but as soon as we have a reasonable impression of HuGoBo's drafting and development ability (and their hit-rate), the more informed we will be as commentators. I don't particularly think Mesar was a bad pick, mind you. Development is a process and it isn't linear, as we know.

22 and 23 put together, in the best (reasonable) case will not produce a single PPG forward and that to me is the big fail - not nitpicking any pick at all, mind you but something went terribly wrong. I don't know when and where we will acquire this PPG forward but I'm beyond desperate. The Habs organization's 10+ years of bad talent management is shameful.

 

[DAChampion]

I don’t understand why the two are anti-correlated, wouldn't selling at the deadline lead to a weaker performance and better draft pick?

The way I see it is that if guys like Dvorak, Monahan, Anderson, Harris, etc are playing well enough to fetch a good package at the deadline, then the Habs are probably out of a bottom 3 spot.

 

[montreal]

Funny you don't hear any more talk about how he HAD to play pro last year because he played in a men's league. I tried pointing out that so did Jan Mysak and his league was tougher then Mesar's yet he went back to the OHL again. Just because someone plays against men, doesn't mean they are ready to move up a level.

 

[Bombshell11]

Funny you don't hear any more talk about how he HAD to play pro last year because he played in a men's league. I tried pointing out that so did Jan Mysak and his league was tougher then Mesar's yet he went back to the OHL again. Just because someone plays against men, doesn't mean they are ready to move up a level.

Funny how he regressed from last year.

Its either Mesar hit his ceiling last year or Kitchener was just trash at developing him.

 

[Tyson]

Hockey is hockey and the fact that a fast, skilled 1st round pick couldn't produce at a level based on his supposed talent level is concerning. Habs may have dropped the ball on this one.

 

[montreal]

Funny how he regressed from last year.

Its either Mesar hit his ceiling last year or Kitchener was just trash at developing him.

prospects regressing is never funny. there could be a ton of reasons why, but clearly some of the blame falls on him no question.

 

[WeThreeKings]

While this is true, some were disappointed with the Mesar pick pretty immediately as they felt there were better, bigger, or smarter players who could fill the same role, as well as others if they didn't pan out (I saw many clamoring for Kulich and Lambert, as well as Beck and Hutson who we got anyways). Mesar is and always was top 6 or bust. Hoping he can be developed properly now, from what I hear Kitchener has a good coach this year.

I am not upset about taking Mesar, but I am not happy with his development and can easily look at Kulich and feel regret on behalf of the organization. This is because I want to watch the Habs win a cup, I was an infant the last time and didn't even care about hockey at that point. I think the Tampa series hurt more than watching any losing season we had. I was not a fan of Bergevin before that but knowing that a few different choices could have won us a cup irritates me. I don't want to see Hughes be another Bergevin.

I have been watching loser Habs teams my entire hockey-watching life. I saw Koivu play at least a decade without a winger, I saw Price play without a team. So I am very critical of the organization's mistakes now, particularly if we see a pattern. For me first round choices should not be safe picks but not be low upside either, I don't think Mesar is a high upside pick or a safe pick. I won't lament another team getting a star in the 6th round after we've picked some goober. Every team in the draft passed on Hornqvist at one point with every single pick they had, including Nashville.

Anyways, what else is this board for than to lament the mistakes of the organization? We can't really have a circlejerk thread about how much we love the Suzuki trade. What more can be added to that conversation? "I love the Nick Suzuki trade," "No I love it more.". The end. We also don't have any insight to what the staff is doing in terms of development except for a few choice clips they send out about working with Slaf. So what can we discuss in an entirely positive context when ninety percent of what we're discussing is speculative (particularly in the off-season where we can't even discuss games)?

I want to win a cup, too but its way too early to just declare Mesar is a bust and a bad pick.

And if we wanna talk about circle jerking, like what else is going on here but negative circle jerking?

 

[Junohockeyfan]

Mesar should be back in the OHL. He is not AHL ready and can benefit from lots of icetime in the O. He hasn’t proven anything as if yet.

 

[Adam Michaels]

I'm not sure why Mesar is as maligned as he is. He might not have lived up to the hype last year in the OHL. Or more accurately, people's expectations were that he'd simply dominate. But he was still 3rd in PPG on Kitchener. The only two who were ahead of him in PPG were Arcuri and Pinelli, who were both in their 3rd season in the OHL.

I think he's AHL-ready. But I won't rip my shirt off in anger if they do send him back to the OHL.

 

[NotProkofievian]

I'm not sure why Mesar is as maligned as he is. He might not have lived up to the hype last year in the OHL. Or more accurately, people's expectations were that he'd simply dominate. But he was still 3rd in PPG on Kitchener. The only two who were ahead of him in PPG were Arcuri and Pinelli, who were both in their 3rd season in the OHL.

I think he's AHL-ready. But I won't rip my shirt off in anger if they do send him back to the OHL.

He's not maligned, he just hasn't been very good. The whole board loves Engström, because he's quite good.

 

[Habano]

Should’ve picked Kulich.

100%

 

[RationalExpectations]

He's not maligned, he just hasn't been very good. The whole board loves Engström, because he's quite good.

Most of the board loved Norlinder until they saw him in the AHL.
If Mesar had been pick round 3 the board would be very happy with close to PPG Season in the OHL. It's just that some expectations for 1st rounders are crazy esp. in MTL.

 

[MadMslm]

I'm not sure why Mesar is as maligned as he is. He might not have lived up to the hype last year in the OHL. Or more accurately, people's expectations were that he'd simply dominate. But he was still 3rd in PPG on Kitchener. The only two who were ahead of him in PPG were Arcuri and Pinelli, who were both in their 3rd season in the OHL.

I think he's AHL-ready. But I won't rip my shirt off in anger if they do send him back to the OHL.

He finished 86th in scoring. It’s definitely a disappointing performance. Sure, it’s his first time in NA and Kitchener was a mess during the season, but for a player of his caliber he should have been able to do more.

Not sure anyone expected a 100pts season out of him, but he should have hovered around 75-80pts.

With his speed, hands and lower body strength, he has the tools to separate himself and create opportunities in a dynamic fashion.

Hopefully he gets back on track and finds that confidence that it’s in the AHL, OHL or somewhere else in Europe. There’s potential there.

 

[montreal]

For me it's not the skills it's the attitude. Doesn't mean he won't end up a very good NHLer one day or not, and as a huge Caufield fan I wasn't happy with his attitude in his Freshman season. I saw a number of the same things, small, skilled offensive forwards that at times looked like they didn't want to be where they were.

MB did one of the best things from his 8 years here, he told Caufield no and go back and play the right way and he did. He got the message and looked much better with his all round game.

Should they do the same with Mesar, will it work? You would have to know the person much better. Sometimes that works and other times you end up with a player that sulks and then more problems.

It's very early in his development and he's clearly got a number of impressive tools but I can't say I'm a big fan of his game.

 

[Habs Halifax]

He's not maligned, he just hasn't been very good. The whole board loves Engström, because he's quite good.

Mesar is the type to me that benefits from playing with skill. However, it looks like he is on the disappointing Scherbak road as a late 1st rounder. Maybe not that bad but you get the point

Not sure he can fill a bottom 6F or bottom line spot with his game. He has to get physically stronger IMO. Maybe he is the type that shows more from age 23/24+... there are a few like that.

 

[Hins77]

Most of the board loved Norlinder until they saw him in the AHL.
If Mesar had been pick round 3 the board would be very happy with close to PPG Season in the OHL. It's just that some expectations for 1st rounders are crazy esp. in MTL.

I remember many poster loved Norlinder but, their faith weren’t rational. His numbers in the SHL weren’t good for an overager. In 2021-2022, he just had a very bad season. This is not what you want to see about a prospect progression and you should lower the expectation

 

[Adam Michaels]

He's not maligned, he just hasn't been very good. The whole board loves Engström, because he's quite good.

I don't think it's that he hasn't been very good. As I mentioned, he might not have lived up to the hype at Kitchener. But the sense you get from a lot of the messages is that he was a bad pick.

As for Engstrom, if he struggles this year in SHL where he plays a bigger role at Rogle, or if when he comes over and he doesn't do as well as we hyped him up to be, the same will be said of him. That he was a bad pick.

He finished 86th in scoring. It’s definitely a disappointing performance. Sure, it’s his first time in NA and Kitchener was a mess during the season, but for a player of his caliber he should have been able to do more.

It would definitely been nicer to see him finish with more points. But I don't look at where he finished in the overall scoring. I look at it where he finished with his shit show of a team, where he was third in PPG and only surpassed by guys who were in their third OHL season.

And in PPG, in the OHL, he was 61st. Sure it wasn't at the top echelon of the OHL, but almost everyone ahead of him were in their second, third or fourth season at Junior.

And you take into account how he was a key player for Slovakia at the WJC.

Not sure anyone expected a 100pts season out of him, but he should have hovered around 75-80pts.

That's fair. But I don't look at him not reaching that as a reason to talk about him like he was a bad pick.

With his speed, hands and lower body strength, he has the tools to separate himself and create opportunities in a dynamic fashion.

Hopefully he gets back on track and finds that confidence that it’s in the AHL, OHL or somewhere else in Europe. There’s potential there.

He has the tools to be an effective player. He just needs to put it all together.

For me, he needs to stay in North America, whether it be AHL or OHL. Him going back to Europe is my last option.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

@Bombshell11 may get heavily maligned but he's not that far off. Mesar has enormous potential. Let's see what he can make of it but there probably isn't a Hab forward who is as electric with the puck on his stick as Mesar. Great passer.

If he turns it around it's like found money. You definitely want to root for him. Big upside.

 

[Bombshell11]

@Bombshell11 may get heavily maligned but he's not that far off. Mesar has enormous potential. Let's see what he can make of it but there probably isn't a Hab forward who is as electric with the puck on his stick as Mesar. Great passer.

If he turns it around it's like found money. You definitely want to root for him. Big upside.

Im happy that he did not lose his offensive edge, i was getting worried. I dont know if he'll ever become a good all around player but his offensive upside is not appreciated enough i find. He's not lazy nor is he a bad kid. I think he just doesn't understand what he needs to do without the puck and maybe he expects someone will teach it to him. We euro people respect authority and the seniors, we assume they know better and we try not to step over. We assume they want the best of all the players and they'll take the best decision for everyone.

We don't believe that the hockey world is filled with MBs.

The org needs to realize that the only place Mesar would fit in is in a top line, playing 22-25 mins a game. In the OHL they relegated him down to the third line i believe. I think its safe to start him in the AHL even on the third line because there, he's at least going to play with people on his level and he'll see what others are doing on the defensive side. Hes got the tools to learn and adapt with the pros.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

Im happy that he did not lose his offensive edge, i was getting worried. I dont know if he'll ever become a good all around player but his offensive upside is not appreciated enough i find. He's not lazy nor is he a bad kid. I think he just doesn't understand what he needs to do without the puck and maybe he expects someone will teach it to him. We euro people respect authority and the seniors, we assume they know better and we try not to step over. We assume they want the best of all the players and they'll take the best decision for everyone.

We don't believe that the hockey world is filled with MBs.

The org needs to realize that the only place Mesar would fit in is in a top line, playing 22-25 mins a game. In the OHL they relegated him down to the third line i believe. I think its safe to start him in the AHL even on the third line because there, he's at least going to play with people on his level and he'll see what others are doing on the defensive side. Hes got the tools to learn and adapt with the pros.

I didn't think he was AHL ready before today. I still think it a bit risky but he's got tons of skill. Like you said the effort's there. Never seen him coasting so far at this tourney.

A 3rd line might not be the worst because we might possibly have the depth down there to ice 3 good offensive lines at least.

Tbh after today, I'm interested in seeing him get some reps at C. I forgot he was drafted as someone who could potentially play both.

If he turns it around we potentially have a blue chip level forward prospect with him.

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

Getting to the AHL should help him learn to become a man. He's still a kid and will probably be pushed off the puck fairly easily during his first pro season.

Assuming he's healthy and the habs don't have a shit ton of injuries I'm expecting 30-35 points for him. 40+ would be really nice for him.

 

[BehindTheTimes]

I think we missed the boat. We should have played him in the NHL where 13 mins a night and getting your bell rung is an unknown recipe for success.

 

[Tyson]

Undeniable skill set. I think AHL is a heck of a step up for him though.