Montgomery Stands Out, Takes It In At Development Camp

RALEIGH, NC. -Any Canes fan that attended last week's Development Camp at Invisalign Arena likely took notice of Bryce Montgomery on the ice.
Frankly, any 6-foot-4, 216-lbs. individual would be hard to miss while standing among a batch of teenagers.
But at just 19 years of age himself, the defenseman was finally able to showcase his skillset to Hurricanes coaches and staff for the first time since being selected in the sixth round of the 2021 NHL Draft.

"It's been an eye-opening experience," Montgomery began after speaking with reporters on the final day of camp. "I've learned so much just being here, skating with the coaches, learning little tricks and stuff to add to my game to make me a better player overall."
For Montgomery and the rest of the Canes prospects, development camp spanned the course of four days, three of which included on-ice sessions. Some were more testing-based to get baselines on players, while others pitted the up-and-coming talent against others in competitive drills.
In either setting, the Washington, D.C.-product was appreciative to be able to work with and receive feedback from the organization's coaching staff after the previous two development camps were wiped away by COVID-19.
"I got to be more one-on-one with the coaches and they get to know me a little bit better as a person and a player on the ice. I got to see how guys want us to play and conduct ourselves," Montgomery continued. "Rod Brind'Amour really stresses being consistent and bringing your 100% effort every single day, so that's what we strive to do here. Compete, battle, and get better every single day."
The sizeable defenseman played in 56 contests last year (49 regular season, seven postseason) for the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), his second campaign with the club. It was a welcome return to action after the league's 2020-21 campaign was scratched due to the pandemic.

As the coaches themselves said during the event last week, development camp is more than just the coaches gaining information and trying to help the players improve though. It's also dually imperative for the players to learn about the organization and also their potential future teammates.
"It's cool to be surrounded by guys who are kind of in your same position, being drafted by the same organization. We're all flying here from different parts of the world, so it's nice being with peers who you get to talk to and pick each other's brains a little bit. We find out we even have a lot of mutual friends and just kind of build friendships like that - and that's always fun."
Again, seemingly equipped with a pro-ready frame that will likely only further develop with another year in juniors, the defender's goals for the upcoming season will be just as much mental, as they will be physical.
"Just knowing it's a process. Taking every piece of advice from all the coaches, all the players, and even the pros that you're going up against in training camp. Working to improve yourself every day and just being ready to go once it counts. Enjoying the moment, enjoying the process, and knowing that not everybody gets this opportunity. Just being grateful for all that."
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