Andrej Meszároš
Encyclopedia
Andrej Meszároš is a Slovak
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

 professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 defenceman currently playing for the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 (NHL).

Playing career

Andrej Meszároš began playing for Dukla Trenčín
HC Dukla Trencín
capacity 6100HC Dukla Trenčín is a professional ice hockey team in the Slovak Extraliga, based in Trenčín, Slovakia. They play their home games at Trenčín Zimny Arena.-History:The club was established in 1962 as an army hockey club...

 in the Slovak Extraliga
Slovak Extraliga
Slovak Extraliga is the name of the highest-level ice hockey league in Slovakia. As of 2009, it is ranked by the IIHF as the fifth strongest league in Europe. The name of the league is leased to sponsor and changes frequently. From 1993/94 to 1997/98 season it was called Extraliga, then the name...

 as a 17-year-old in 2002–03. After two seasons with Trenčín, he was drafted 23rd overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft
2004 NHL Entry Draft
The 2004 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 26 at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is especially notable because it was the last NHL event to take place before the beginning of the lockout which canceled all the games scheduled for the 2004–05 NHL season.- Selections by round :Listed...

 by the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

.
The following season, he went overseas to play junior hockey in the Western Hockey League
Western Hockey League
The Western Hockey League is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League as the highest level of junior hockey in Canada...

 (WHL) with the Vancouver Giants
Vancouver Giants
The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League . Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in their ten-season history...

. Meszároš recorded 41 points in 59 games with Vancouver — fifth in WHL rookie scoring — and was named to the Western Conference's Second All-Star Team. He was also named the Giants' Rookie of the Year and Top Defenceman. Nearly six years later, he was inducted into the Giants' Ring of Honour, a series of banners inside the Pacific Coliseum
Pacific Coliseum
Pacific Coliseum is an indoor arena, at Hastings Park, in Vancouver, British Columbia.Completed in 1968, at the former site of the Pacific National Exhibition, the arena currently holds 16,281, for ice hockey, though capacity at its opening was 15,713....

 commemorating the team's best alumni.

In 2005–06, he made the jump to the NHL with the Senators. Meszároš registered his first NHL point, an assist, on October 10, 2005, in a 6–5 shootout win over the Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

. Two months later, he scored his first NHL goal on December 9 — a game-tying goal in the third period of a shootout loss against the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...

. He finished his rookie season with 10 goals and 39 points, and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team
NHL All-Rookie Team
The NHL All-Rookie Team is chosen by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association from the best rookies in the National Hockey League at each position for the season just concluded based on their performance in that year...

 with Calgary
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...

's Dion Phaneuf
Dion Phaneuf
Dion Phaneuf is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League...

. Playing on a defensive pairing with Zdeno Chára
Zdeno Chára
Zdeno Chára is a Slovak professional ice hockey defenseman. He is the captain of the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League and won the Norris Trophy while playing for them in 2008–09. At 6 ft 9 , he is the tallest player ever to play in the NHL...

, Meszároš' plus/minus of plus-39 was tied for third in the league overall and first among rookies.

The following year, Meszároš registered seven goals and 35 points and added seven points in the playoffs as the Senators made their first franchise appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals
2007 Stanley Cup Finals
The 2007 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven playoff series that determined the National Hockey League champion for the 2006–07 season. As a culmination of the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Western Conference champion Anaheim Ducks defeated the Eastern Conference champion Ottawa Senators in...

 against the Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

. However, the Senators were defeated by Anaheim in five games. Meszároš finished second on the team in playoff plus/minus, behind Wade Redden
Wade Redden
Wade Redden is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing in the New York Rangers organization for its American Hockey League affiliate, the Connecticut Whale. He joined the New York Rangers in 2008 after 11 seasons with the Ottawa Senators...

, at plus 5. His sophomore season also included an appearance in the 2007 YoungStars Game with teammate Patrick Eaves
Patrick Eaves
Patrick Campbell Eaves is a professional ice hockey forward, currently a member of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League. Born in Calgary and raised in the United States, Patrick holds Canadian and American citizenship and has represented the United States in international ice hockey...

, in which he scored two goals in a 9–8 victory over the Western Conference
Western Conference (NHL)
The Western Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Eastern Conference....

.
Although Meszároš produced at a similar pace in 2007–08, the Senators finished a disappointing seventh in the Eastern Conference
Eastern Conference (NHL)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Western Conference....

 and were swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...

 in the first round. Meszároš became a restricted free agent in the off-season and, unable to come to terms, the Senators dealt him to the Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They have one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the...

 on August 29, 2008, in exchange for Filip Kuba
Filip Kuba
Filip Kuba is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League...

, Alexandre Picard
Alexandre R. Picard
Alexandre R. Picard is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins organization.-Playing career:...

 and San Jose
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

's first-round draft pick (previously acquired) in 2009
2009 NHL Entry Draft
The 2009 NHL Entry Draft was the 47th Entry Draft. It was held on June 26–27, 2009 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The Draft was part of the Montreal Canadiens centennial celebrations. National Hockey League teams took turns selecting amateur ice hockey players from junior, collegiate, or...

. The following day, he agreed to a six-year, $24 million contract.

On July 1, 2010, the first day of the NHL's free agency period, Meszároš was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 in exchange for a 2nd round pick in 2012.

In his first season with the Flyers Meszároš won the Barry Ashbee Trophy, awarded to the best defenseman on the team.

International play

Meszároš debuted internationally for Slovakia in the 2003 World U18 Championships
2003 IIHF World U18 Championships
-Final standings: and are relegated to Division I for the 2004 IIHF World U18 Championships.- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :-External links:*...

 as team captain. After a strong round robin, finishing second in their group behind the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Slovakia upset the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 before being defeated by Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 3-0 in the gold medal game, earning silver. Meszároš finished with four points in seven games, third in tournament scoring among defencemen.

In 2004, Meszároš competed in World Junior Championships
2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
The 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships was held between December 26, 2003 and January 5, 2004 in Helsinki and Hämeenlinna, Finland...

 in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

. After losing their quarter-final match against the Czech Republic, Slovakia was then defeated 3–2 by Russia in the fifth place game. Meszároš scored a goal and an assist in six games. Later that year, he made his senior international debut with Slovakia in the 2004 World Championships
2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2004 Men's Ice Hockey Championships were held April 24-May 9, 2004, in Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic. Games for this Ice Hockey World Championships tournament were played at Sazka Arena and ČEZ Aréna...

. Meszároš recorded one assist in seven games as Slovakia was defeated 1–0 by the United States in the bronze medal game. At eighteen years old, he was the youngest player to compete for Slovakia in both 2004 tournaments.

Meszároš made his second World Junior appearance in 2005
2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
The 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships was held between December 25, 2004, and January 4, 2005, at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, United States...

, returning as team captain. Despite three goals and one assist from Meszároš, Slovakia failed to qualify for the medal rounds.

During his rookie NHL season in 2005–06, Meszároš was chosen to Slovakia's 2006 Olympic
Ice hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics
-Leading scorers:-Leading goaltenders:Goalkeepers with 40% or more of their team's total minutes.-Awards:Antero Niittymäki was named the most valuable player and received the Directorate Award for best goaltender of the tournament. Directorate Awards also went to Teemu Selänne for best forward, and...

 hockey team in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

 and registered two assists in six games. At 20-years-old, he was the second youngest player in the tournament, behind Russia’s Evgeni Malkin
Evgeni Malkin
Evgeni "Geno" Vladimirovich Malkin is a Russian professional ice hockey center and alternate captain for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League ....

. After Ottawa
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 was eliminated in the second round of the NHL playoffs, Meszároš joined Slovakia for one game in the 2006 World Championships
2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships was the 70th such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams representing 45 countries participated in four levels of competition. The competition also served as qualifications for the 2007 competition...

. Slovakia finished eighth.

Awards and achievements

WHL
Western Hockey League
The Western Hockey League is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League as the highest level of junior hockey in Canada...

  • Western Second Team All-Star — 2005
  • All-Rookie Team — 2005
  • Vancouver Giants
    Vancouver Giants
    The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League . Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in their ten-season history...

    ' Top Defenceman — 2005
  • Vancouver Giants' Rookie of the Year — 2005


NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

  • All-Rookie Team
    NHL All-Rookie Team
    The NHL All-Rookie Team is chosen by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association from the best rookies in the National Hockey League at each position for the season just concluded based on their performance in that year...

     — 2006
  • NHL YoungStars Game
    NHL YoungStars Game
    The NHL YoungStars Game started in 2002, to replace the Heroes of Hockey Old-Timers game during the All-Star Weekend activities. The first four games were played as separate games to the actual All-Star Game, but starting in 2008, it was changed to become part of the NHL Super Skills Competition,...

     appearance — 2007
  • Barry Ashbee Trophy — 2011

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season
Season (sports)
In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...

Team League GP G
Goal (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...

A
Assist (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...

Pts
Point (ice hockey)
Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...

PIM
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...

GP G A Pts PIM
2002–03 Dukla Trenčín
HC Dukla Trencín
capacity 6100HC Dukla Trenčín is a professional ice hockey team in the Slovak Extraliga, based in Trenčín, Slovakia. They play their home games at Trenčín Zimny Arena.-History:The club was established in 1962 as an army hockey club...

SVK
Slovak Extraliga
Slovak Extraliga is the name of the highest-level ice hockey league in Slovakia. As of 2009, it is ranked by the IIHF as the fifth strongest league in Europe. The name of the league is leased to sponsor and changes frequently. From 1993/94 to 1997/98 season it was called Extraliga, then the name...

23 0 1 1 4
2003–04 Dukla Trenčín SVK 44 3 3 6 8 14 3 1 4 2
2004–05 Vancouver Giants
Vancouver Giants
The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League . Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in their ten-season history...

WHL
Western Hockey League
The Western Hockey League is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League as the highest level of junior hockey in Canada...

59 11 30 41 94 6 1 3 4 14
2005–06 Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

82 10 29 39 61 10 1 0 1 18
2006–07 Ottawa Senators NHL 82 7 28 35 102 20 1 6 7 12
2007–08 Ottawa Senators NHL 82 9 27 36 50 4 0 1 1 6
2008–09
2008–09 NHL season
The 2008–09 NHL season was the 92nd season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the first season since prior to the 2004–05 lockout in which every team played each other at least once during the season, following three seasons where teams only played against two divisions in the...

Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They have one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the...

NHL 52 2 14 16 36
2009–10
2009–10 NHL season
The 2009–10 NHL season was the 93rd season of operation of the National Hockey League , and the 100th season since the founding of the predecessor National Hockey Association . It ran from October 1, 2009, including four games in Europe on October 2 and 3—until April 11, 2010, with the 2010...

Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 81 6 11 17 50
2010–11
2010–11 NHL season
The 2010–11 NHL season was the 94th season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the fourth consecutive season that opened in Europe with NHL Premiere . A record three events were scheduled, all in previous NHL Premiere cities: Helsinki, Finland; Stockholm, Sweden; and Prague, Czech...

Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

NHL 81 8 24 32 42 11 2 4 6 8
NHL totals 460 42 133 175 341 45 4 11 15 44
SVK totals 67 3 4 7 12 14 3 1 4 2

International

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
2002 Slovakia
Slovakia men's national junior ice hockey team
The Slovak men's national under 20 ice hockey team is the national under-20 ice hockey team in Slovakia. The team represents Slovakia at the International Ice Hockey Federation's IIHF World U20 Championship.-2011 World Junior Championship roster:...

WJ18
2002 IIHF World U18 Championships
The 2002 IIHF World U18 Championships were held in Piešťany and Trnava, Slovakia. The championships began on April 11, 2002, and finished on April 21, 2002. Games were played at Zimny Stadion in Piešťany and Zimny Stadion in Trnava...

8 0 1 1 8
2003 Slovakia WJ18
2003 IIHF World U18 Championships
-Final standings: and are relegated to Division I for the 2004 IIHF World U18 Championships.- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :- Table :-External links:*...

7 2 2 4 6
2004 Slovakia WJC
2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
The 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships was held between December 26, 2003 and January 5, 2004 in Helsinki and Hämeenlinna, Finland...

6 1 1 2 12
2004 Slovakia WC
2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2004 Men's Ice Hockey Championships were held April 24-May 9, 2004, in Prague and Ostrava, Czech Republic. Games for this Ice Hockey World Championships tournament were played at Sazka Arena and ČEZ Aréna...

7 0 1 1 2
2005 Slovakia WJC
2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
The 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships was held between December 25, 2004, and January 4, 2005, at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, United States...

6 3 1 4 4
2006 Slovakia OG
Ice hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics
-Leading scorers:-Leading goaltenders:Goalkeepers with 40% or more of their team's total minutes.-Awards:Antero Niittymäki was named the most valuable player and received the Directorate Award for best goaltender of the tournament. Directorate Awards also went to Teemu Selänne for best forward, and...

6 0 2 2 4
2006 Slovakia WC
2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships was the 70th such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams representing 45 countries participated in four levels of competition. The competition also served as qualifications for the 2007 competition...

1 0 0 0 0
2010 Slovakia OG
Ice hockey at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Canada Hockey Place, home of the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks, and at UBC Winter Sports Centre, home of the Canadian Interuniversity Sport's UBC Thunderbirds. Twelve teams competed in the men's event and eight teams competed in the...

7 0 0 0 4
Junior int'l totals 27 6 5 11 30
Senior int'l totals 21 0 3 3 10

External links

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