Takeaway #1: Special Team Focus.
The team hit the ice ready to start focusing on special teams as the season approaches. Head Coach Kevin Hartzell has given this some thought and saw great execution on the ice, “It was a really fun day today, I was sitting at home Wednesday night thinking about the players with unique abilities and how to use them on the powerplay. When I put them out on the ice, I was laughing at how good they were. Killing a penalty, on the other hand, is a disadvantage so teamwork is a premium, and although we are not where we want to be yet it will be a priority and I’m exciting to see how it changes the dynamic as the killers improve.”
Takeaway #2: High IQ showed out today.
With a high focus on penalty killing and odd man rushes the defense proved how high their hockey IQ is, Assistant Coach Vinny Bohn was quick to complement the team, “I saw some amazing defensive hockey IQ in action where good details flourished. The offense was showing great creativity in the odd man rushes as well as powerplay drills and situations.”
Takeaway #3: Another high energy day
The energy around the rink was high once again among the team and it lead to another great practice. Assistant Coach Kyle McKenzie highlighted this today, “Today was our best practice yet, there was high energy and a lot of smiles. We have a smart team and they ask smart questions that challenge us coaches to thing and everyone continues to take a step each day.”