Well, my one day of summer hockey has come and gone. It was the first chance Pred fans had to see the new faces from the 2008 draft, and some of the younger faces in the previous drafts. The drills were entertaining and most of all it was nice to be next to the ice, watching hockey players do their best. I have some thoughts on specific players (from what I saw on my end of the rink anyways), and more importantly some quotes to share from Nick Spaling, Chet Pickard, Colin Wilson, and Head Coach Barry Trotz.
Observations:
The goalies did some work with Mitch Korn before the forwards came out. Some simple drills that showed lateral movement and skating ability. From that I noticed that Pickard really fills up the net, he’s a big kid. Dekanich probably had the best lateral speed and really closed off any chances short side against the posts. Smith seemed the better skater to me and was pretty quick in the goalie equipment.
Then the forwards and defensemen came out and the entire group began some drills. Realize that it is very hard to judge goalies since there are no defensemen to help them, and they basically are being put in a 3v0 situation. So, if a guy is really good up close, then the goalies don’t stand much chance even if they are other-wordly. Now some quick hits:
Brandon Buck really looked like he was trying to make the squad. He is a free agent invite and scored 3 goals or so at my end of the ice. He has some talent so it’ll be interesting to see what happens with him.
Ryan Thang has a very nice scoring touch and looks like the Notre Dame experience is treating him well. This is his first camp I believe, and he looked good.
Nick Spaling came as advertised. I had heard quite a bit on him since he began to tear up things with the Kitchener Rangers and he was scoring pretty consistently.
Roman Josi, the newly drafter defensemen, even added a goal on my end of the ice.
Blake Geoffrion has really improved since the last time I saw him. He looks a bit bigger and more importantly has developed a real nice scoring touch. I don’t remember him being as accurate with his shot in previous camps, but today he scored some pretty goals.
Colin Wilson is a big dude. Just standing talking to him after the on-ice session proved to me how big he is. His body is ready for the NHL. I think he is mentally there as well, but you’ll hear more about this in the quotes in just a minute here. He played well, showed a little rust by missing some back door chances, but also made a real nice pass block to prevent a scoring chance in the 3v3 session at the end. This guy is the real deal from what I saw and I think he has to be given a look at training camp. He’s definitely able to play in Milwaukee at the least in my opinion.
Some might wonder what happened to Jonathon Blum. I caught up with Blummer near the benches and he told me he was having some minor problems with foot blisters, and thus wasn’t participating today. For those curious, yes, he does appear to have gained a few pounds.
After the on-ice session I got to chat with Nick Spaling, Chet Pickard, Colin Wilson, and Barry Trotz. Here are the interesting quotes from them:
Nick Spaling: “I want to get to the pros as soon as I can and I have to work hard this summer. The main thing (this summer) is to get bigger, stronger, and a little quicker.”
Chet Pickard: On his first impressions: “It’s been a pretty enjoyable experience so far. When we first skated out it was pretty high tempo.”
On Mitch Korn: “There are so many good goalies in the system and that’s a reflection on not only the scouting staff but the goaltending coach. He’s a great guy to work with, he really works you hard, and he really shows you how hard you have to work not only on the ice but off the ice to get to the next level.”
Things he is focusing on improving this summer: “I really want to trim down about 10 pounds and become a bit quicker. I think it would benefit myself on the ice and throughout the season. Aside from conditioning is working with Mitch which should help quite a bit.”
On playing against his buddy Colin: “We have a good time. We haven’t practiced together in about a year so we had a little competition going out there.”
Colin Wilson on his 1st impressions of the Preds: “They take a lot of pride in the way they play the game. They play a hard working, real gritty style and they want to win. That’s the reason they have us here right now is to see if we can develop into an NHL hockey player and into being a Nashville Predator more importantly.”
On his focus for improvements this summer: “I’ve been doing a lot of more explosive training. Quick footwork and things like that just so I can defend down low and get to the net quickly.”
On having a meaner streak than his father: “That comes from my dad. He made me a gritty hockey player when I grew up. I think he knows that he would have had a longer and better career in the NHL if he played that way. He’s always told him that I have to get in there and make those hits and because of that I am where I am today.”
On his dad’s influence and how it tailored his play more toward the NHL style: “He knows what it takes to make it to the NHL so ever since I was 8 years old he was telling me the aspects that other people weren’t thinking about because he knew that was what it was going to take to make it to the next level.”
On his confidence that he is ready for the NHL: “My dad always tells me that the things that get you to the next level is a head for the game, and go work and the rest of the things will take care of themselves. Those are two things that I have really developed over the last couple of years. I think to make it to the next level is a step I really feel that I can make. Also, watching guys like Kyle Turris, Pat Kane, and Johnathan Toews, guys who I’ve played with, makes me want to get to the NHL that much quicker.”
On his versatility: “I can play in every position of the game. I can play 1st line to 4th line. I can change my style of game to fit in the team’s framework and that is one of the reasons I was taken.”
Barry Trotz on importance of the camp for prospects: “A lot of importance is on the fact that they “get it”. They understand that we are serious about how they train, we are serious that they are committed, about their nutrition, decision making process, that is the most important thing that they understand that and they buy in. How they perform is secondary right now because it is summer and a lot of the players are going back to juniors, college, Milwaukee, and some might even make our hockey team but right now it is about getting our message across to them.”
Trotz after I asked him if Wilson is the most physically ready Pred drafted: “Colin is probably the most physically ready from this crop we just drafted. There are some kids that have impressed me in terms of their fitness level, strength level, and body composition, that they have worked on it. A guy like Ryan Thang is right up there. Blum is bigger but we still have to get him stronger and even bigger. They all have their own time frame so this is a great week to give them individual attention and give them a very specific direction of where you want to go with them. Some guys you want to see their gamesmanship develop on their own hockey teams, you might want to see their leadership develop to a higher level. For some guys, they’ve done those things but they haven’t got their body composition where it needs to be and they need to work harder at getting stronger and bigger. They all have their own things they do well and some things they have to improve on but we make it very clear and specific what they need to improve on.”
I’ll keep this blog up till July 1st. This way, if any of you attend tomorrow you’ll be able to post more. I won’t be able to go to anymore of the prospect camp but I’m sure you guys can fill everyone in on the comments just fine. On to free agency, just a few days away and if anything breaks before then I’ll let you know. I’ll be traveling on July 1st, but that night I’ll give you an update on any moves the Preds make if some occur. Till then, TAKE CARE.
Questions, comments, and criticisms are welcome and can be directed to [email protected] if you wish to contact me personally.
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