Canadiens Rookie Camp: Demidov Impresses, Mešár Eyes Grittier Role
Montreal, QC – Canadiens prospect Ivan Demidov showcased his offensive skills at the team’s rookie camp, while Filip Mešár declared his intention to add a physical edge to his game, possibly even dropping the gloves this season.
Demidov, selected 66th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, is attending his frist Canadiens camp after spending the past two seasons in the OHL with the Kitchener Rangers and one season with the Laval Rocket in the AHL. He was initially drafted one spot after Juraj Slafkovský, the Canadiens’ first overall pick in 2022.
Mešár, a 2023 first-round pick (26th overall), is at his fourth rookie camp with the association, but his future role remains undefined. Injuries hampered his AHL debut season with the Laval Rocket after a strong start.
“Obviously, the last couple of years were not how I wanted them to be,” Mešár said Thursday. “There were ups and downs, a bit of bad luck, but every year is an chance to prove something, to show something to management, and that’s what I’m going to do this year step by step, practice by practice, game by game.”
He added, “If I can stay healthy, I know what kind of player I am, and I know that I have a lot to prove to this organization.”
The Canadiens’ staff has reportedly encouraged Mešár to incorporate more physicality into his game. He expressed a desire to meet that challenge, stating, “So that’s be productive, be a good player with the puck, but also add some stuff like going more to the dirty areas, go to the net, maybe fight. I would love to have a first fight this year.”
Despite a slight pushback suggesting the team doesn’t necessarily want him that gritty, Mešár remained firm. “It would be good,” he said. “I would like to try maybe one fight, we’ll see what happens. Two years ago, I went to boxing classes for a year back home, so I have something. I know how to fight,but I’ve never fought on the ice before,so we’ll see. I just want to add some grit on the ice.”
Laval rocket coach Pascal Vincent highlighted Mešár’s offensive capabilities when healthy. “His start of the year last year was quite phenomenal; him, Beck and (Jared) davidson was probably our best line for a while early in the season. And then he got injured. Twice. So that really slowed him down. But now he’s back to 100 percent. … I know what I’ve seen when he was 100 percent healthy last year, and he’s a pretty good player,” Vincent said. “I think his ability to make plays at a very high speed, that’s what he can do. He can skate, he can shoot the puck, all of that, but his ability, when he has the puck on his stick, (he can) make plays at a very high speed. he’s very good at that.”
Mešár aims to combine those offensive skills with increased physicality. “That’s how I want to play this year, just play confident, play with the puck,” he said, ”and like I said, when I don’t have the puck, go more to those dirty areas.”
