Luke Hughes Returns to Practice at Camp

Training camp continues on in Newark, N.J. as the Devils prepare for Monday's split squad preseason games.

Today's schedule included practice for Group B and a scrimmage between Groups A and C. Check below for full coverage of Saturday's on-ice activities.

Today's Videos:

INTERVIEWS: Palat | Nosek | Miller | Lindy Ruff

The Practice Group

The morning session consisted of a 45-minute practice for Group B.

During drills, Luke Hughes was paired with John Marino, while Simon Nemec was paired with his regular Utica partner Tyler Wotherspoon.

Being that it is training camp, there's often plenty of rotation when it comes to running lines and drills, which was the case with today's third and fourth lines.

Marino joked after the practice session when asked what type of points or tips he has for Hughes on the ice as a defensive pairing: "I don't give him any. I just give him a hard time if anything." 

When meeting with the media, here's what Lindy Ruff had to say about Luke's return to practice:

A real good day. We didn't know if we'd get him through the day, we kind of anticipated half a practice, but he got a full practice in. He feels good, so we're just progressing with him and we'll see where he's at tomorrow.

Group A vs. Group C Scrimmage

Thanks to an overtime goal from Jack Hughes less than a minute in, Group A picked up a 3-2 win over Group C.

Jesper Bratt opened the scoring for Group A in the final ten minutes of the first period, giving his team a 1-0 lead. The second period saw three total goals starting in the first five minutes when Ondrej Palat tied things up at 1-1. Tyce Thompson tipped in Kevin Bahl's shot to give Group A a 2-1 lead, before Graeme Clarke buried one to keep Group C in it.

For a full recap of today's scrimmage, click here.

Marino's Off-Season

Defenseman John Marino spoke with media for the first time at Training Camp and he reflected on his summer training in Boston.

"It was good. (Training was) similar to what I did last summer," Marino explained. "We got a good group in Boston, a lot of NHL guys go back. So it's good to be back (in New Jersey)."

Marino focused on improving position specific details this summer as he continues to be one of the core pieces in the Devils defense.

“Just working on little things,” Marino shared. “Position specific stuff. Puck retrievals, breakouts, little things like that. There’s always stuff you can work on.”

The Devils defense will look different this season without Ryan Graves and Damon Severson. This year becomes an opportunity for Marino to potentially pick up extra minutes and become an even stronger pillar of the d-core through consistent play.

“(I want to bring) consistency,” Marino said Saturday. “It’s a long season, it takes a lot to have a good game 82 games a year. So I think you’re always working with being consistent each year, and each year you’re learning about the league and your role, it doesn’t matter what year it is for you.”

-Catherine Bogart, NJD.TV

Coaches Clinic

Unlike yesterday, today's scrimmage had a bit of an audience. There were several dozen youth hockey coaches were invited to watch the Devils scrimmage and later hear from the Devils head coach in a Q&A. 

Ruff answered an array of questions submitted by the coaches, from his coaching philosophy to how to he deals with telling players they're being healthy scratched. The clinic was part of an initiative with RWJBarnabas Health, and on top of hearing from Lindy Ruff, the clinic also included talks from RWJ as well as USA Hockey's manager of player development, Rich Hansen. 

- Amanda Stein, NJD.tv, Lead Reporter

In Their Words:

Ondrej Palat discussed the younger players fighting to make an impression at camp and reflected on when he was in their position:

"We have a competitve team, and young guys too. If you're a young guy you have to play 100%. I remember my days when I was fighting really hard for a spot and it doesn't change now. So it's every training camp the same for me, I just work hard and do the best."

Tomas Nosek discussed joining the Devils and what role he wants to play in New Jersey:

"It's exciting to be here. It's a young group of players, I'm glad to be here. So far, so good and I'm glad to be a part of this team ... I've established myself as a fourth-line center or if (I'm) going to be (on the) wing here it doesn't matter. I'll take the face-offs and kill some penalties and be a (member of a) good, shut down line."

Colin Miller shared how he wants to help the defense and how his first few days of training camp are going:

"It's been fun, getting to know the guys. Obviously just trying to learn the system and get some familiarity in it ... (I want to bring) stability. There's such a good core of defensemen there. I think as a unit we could be really good so just trying to help out wherever I can."

In Case You Missed It

VIDEO:

• DEVILS NOW: Fighting for Spots
• BTS: Media Day
• INTERVIEWS: Lindy Ruff | Nemec | Smith | N. Foote | Clarke | Bahl
• PRESS CONFERENCE: GM Tom Fitzgerald, Head Coach Lindy Ruff
• DEVILS NOW: Setting the Tone

WRITTEN:

• NOTEBOOK: Day 2 of Training Camp
• RECAP: Group C Wins Opening Scrimmage
• ROSTER: 2023 Training Camp Roster
• FEATURE: Devils Enter Camp with Lofty Goal