"I still have a lot of room to
develop as a player," Mersch
said. "(Each season) you grow
a little older.You understand
the game better and it slows
down a little bit for you.''
bit for you.''
The 6-foot-1, 215-pound Mersch has been compared to Ryane Clowe, a 6-2, 225-pound winger
for the San Jose Sharks. One of Mersch's NHL role
models was Tomas Holmstrom, now retired.
Mersch was exposed to Holmstrom, an All-Star
with the Detroit Red Wings, during the two years
that he spent with the U.S. National Team Developmental Program in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Holmstrom was virtually impossible to displace
from the front of the net. "He didn't always score
pretty goals,'' Mersch recalled. "But they were goals,
and that's all that mattered.''
Back then, Mersch was a quick learner. He graduated a year early from Pioneer High School in Ann
Arbor, which allowed him to skip an apprenticeship
in the USHL and jump directly to Wisconsin.
Back then, he learned a very important lesson in
sports: how to deal with a slump.
In 2008-09, he scored 65 points, including 27
goals, with the U.S. Under-17 team. The following
season, he saw his production drop off to 14 points
in 49 games against U-18 competition.
"I'm not exactly sure what happened,'' Mersch
said. "I was still learning, I was still growing, I was
still a young kid. I was only 16 at the time and I was
still trying to find myself as a person and player.
"Maybe I just didn't have the confidence.''
Mersch found some answers in a book entitled
"Mind Gym: An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence.''
The author, Gary Mack, offers instructive advice on
how to build mental muscle.
Mersch jotted down notes in the margins. He
thought he had two copies. But he couldn't remember if he had the book in Madison. "I read it awhile
back,'' he said. Lately, he hasn't needed it.
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