Medicine Hat Tigers forward Tomas Mrsic carries the puck out of the Tigers end in the first period of Medicine Hat's 5-3 loss to the Lethbridge Hurricanes last Saturday. That loss was Mrsic's second career WHL game as he was drafted by the Tigers on Dec. 9 and signed with the club soon after.--NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Western Hockey League is a tough league to play in and break into.
That is a common phrase from Medicine Hat Tigers head coach and general manager Willie Desjardins, just how tough the league is to play in.
It makes the jump from minor hockey to the WHL even harder for young players like Tomas Mrsic. The Tigers eighth overall pick in the WHL prospect draft on Dec. 9 debuted last weekend in Medicine Hat’s home-and-home series with the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
The Tigers dropped both games, losing 6-4 Friday night in Lethbridge and falling 5-3 Saturday night at home, their final game before the Holiday break.
Mrsic started down in the lineup in last Friday’s game before being promoted to the first line alongside Lukas Svejkovksy and Noah Danielson for Saturday night.
Desjardins said after Saturday’s loss he thought Mrsic was really good in his first two games donning the orange and black.
“I think it’s a big challenge. Whenever you play with Lukas like tonight you’re going to draw the top guys so it’s really hard for a young guy,” Desjardins said. “Everyone wants to play with him (Svejkovsky) but the problem is when you play with him, you get all the big lines against him. It was tough for him but I thought he was good. He’s got a good future in the league for sure.”
Mrsic, who won two faceoffs in Friday’s game but was held off the score sheet, said his first two games were “pretty great.”
“Obviously guys are bigger and it’s just faster, you have to get used to that,” Mrsic said. “Guys are finishing their checks on every play so it’s just harder and faster.”
He said he wanted to play on the top line and enjoyed getting to start the game in front of the Tigers fans Saturday night. Medicine Hat forward Brayden Boehm, who scored in both Tigers games last weekend, said whenever he saw Mrsic on the ice, he was always doing something good.
“He’s smaller but he never puts himself in a bad position, good with the puck and from what I’ve seen he’s a really good player.”
The Surrey, B.C. product is heading back home for the Holidays and will stay with the Delta Academy hockey team for a tournament. But he will return to the Tigers early in 2022.
In 16 games with Delta this season, Mrsic has 27 goals and 58 points. When asked what he’ll take from his first two games with the Tigers, Mrsic said he learned you have to be hard on everything while playing.
“Get pucks out and play fast to try and get out of hits, not try to get killed every time,” Mrsic said.
The Tigers are off for Christmas with their next action coming on the road in Calgary on Dec. 28. Their first home game back from the Holidays is two days later, a rematch with the Calgary Hitmen on Dec. 30.
