After knocking out medicals, testing and media day on Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Lightning took to the ice Thursday for the first official practices of training camp. While it was only day one and things can (and likely will) change, fans got a glimpse of the first line combinations and defense pairings of the year.
Forwards:
Hagel-Point-Kucherov
Stamkos-Cirelli-Sheary
ABB-Paul-Jeannot
Motte-Glendening-Eyssimont
Defense:
Hedman-Perbix
Sergachev-Raddysh
de Haan-Cernak
Fleury-Bogosian
*ABB = Alex Barre-Boulet
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper met with the media for the first time Thursday and, like many of the players who spoke on Wednesday, was pleased with the number of guys that rolled into town weeks before camp to get back to work early.
“This is camp 11 for me and I've never seen this many players back this early for camp,” Cooper said. “Maybe because we had a little longer layoff than we've had the past four years or whatever, but guys were eager to get back and I think at some point too, they're fired up to have a little more direction in practice, because they've been running all their drills at captain skate by themselves, so I think that was probably getting a little long in the tooth for them.
“But, as you'd expect in a first day, everybody's excited and I thought, to be honest, they could probably play a game right now. That's how they were flying out there today.
“You can just tell the shape the guys are in. Guys are bigger, stronger, and there's just life in them. I remember the two previous years, it was tough at training camp. It was tough to get the guys going because when you have such a short offseason, especially coming off a year where we got to the Final and didn't win, it really sucks some of the life out of you.
“I've been proud of these guys, man. They just keep coming back year after year, so hopefully a little extra rest here will help us get out of gate.”
Nick Paul echoed the sentiments of Cooper, elaborating on the value of everyone getting back into town earlier than past years. With a lot of chemistry already built up, the players were ready to go for the first day of on-ice activities.
“There’s a sense of confidence too,” Paul shared. “We got some new guys sliding in here, but the chemistry has been (going) well, especially them coming in early as well and connecting with the group. It’s not like we're just coming in here first day and shaking hands. We know exactly what we're doing and we're looking good.
“We’re skating a lot with the new guys. They're blending perfect. They're making great plays. We're joking with them. We're going for dinner. That's huge.
“When your team buys in and gets here early, it makes it so much easier for bonding. You don't need to wait for the road. You don't need to wait for dinner. You don't need to wait for team events. It's nice and easy.
“Football Sunday last Sunday, someone had the guys over. They go for a game and it’s just nice to see everyone. You're meeting families. The wives and girlfriends are coming in, meeting the girls. When you have the commitment of guys buying in and coming in early, it makes it a lot easier come training camp.”
With players reporting to camp in excellent shape, the Bolts were able to jump right into working on systems and strategy Thursday. A lot of the time on the ice was spent working on defensive zone coverage, breakouts, and other elements that some of the new players on the roster will have to adjust to. There will also be some minor tweaks to the systems that players from last year will have to learn as well.
“Their shape and their conditioning is not in question,” said Cooper. “Like I said, I’m pretty sure these guys all could play a game right now, so now it gets into a little bit of structure and that's what we have to get down in our game.
“We’ve got to get back to our habits and especially without the puck. These guys know what they're doing with the puck, but it's without. And we've got some new guys. Let's be honest, there's a lot of new faces out there.
“So, (there are) guys coming from different systems, different teams. Glendening played a different system than de Haan did, who played different than Motte did. So, they're all trying to learn what we're trying to do and get our guys up to speed. It’s what training camp is for, so we've got to jump on this probably a little earlier than we may have in the past.”
One player hoping to earn a spot on the Opening Night roster is Alex Barre-Boulet, who had a terrific year with the Syracuse Crunch last season, ranking second among all AHL skaters in both points and assists with 84 points (24G, 60A) in 69 games. His plus-24 rating also ranked third among all AHL forwards.
“He has proven all he can prove in the American League and that's what you want to do,” said Cooper. “There are spots on this team open, more than there probably have been in the last five years. You’ve got to play to your strengths. The kid can put the puck in the net, so put the puck in the net.
“In this league, every year it seems to get faster. It's not just for BB. It's for everybody. You’ve got to be able to keep up, and like I said, if today was any indication, everybody, including BB, was flying out there.
“So, play to your strengths. Do what you do well. Don't go outside your comfort zone until maybe we tell you to, but you don't have to do that now. And if you do those things, you’ll be totally fine.”
The Lightning will be back on the ice tomorrow at 8:15 a.m. at TGH Ice Plex. All practices are free and open to the public.
