Training Camp - Day Two

Day two of training camp was definitely a lot more physical than day one. The hits were harder and there were a couple of fights (kinda fights, mostly pushing and angry words starting with Winnik and Quincey). Cody McLeod was not taking it easy on anyone, he didn't care who was on the other team, he was throwing hits. Which was probably the highlight of the gray team's play as they lost both their scrimmages in a combined 11-2 score. The blue team beat them 6-1 with two goals from Brandon Yip. The black team then beat them in the second scrimmage 5-1 with two goals and an assist from Chris Stewart. Team blue was the winner of the day as they beat team black 3-0 in the final scrimmage of the day during which Yip scored his third goal of the day. Calvin Pickard and Trevor Cann combined for the blue team's shut out.



One of the young guys that stood out to me was Matt Ford. It seemed like he was constantly flying into the offensive zone and putting some great shots on net. Greg Mauldin continued to look good during the scrimmages and could be a serious contender for a roster spot or be high on the list of call-ups in case of injury. Ryan Stoa is another one of the guys that looks like he could win a position on the roster. He definitely looked good during camp. On defense, Colby Cohen looked great on the ice today. He's definitely an offensive defenseman, but he could possibly be the Avs 7th defenseman (or maybe temporarily the 6th while Cumiskey is being held out with a slight groin injury).

Cameron Gaunce was a name that was bounced around a lot as a guy who could be in a position to take up a roster spot this season, but I wasn't totally convinced that he was ready. He got into a bit of a pushing match with Cody McLeod and that was the only thing about him that really stuck out to me. Kevin Shattenkirk was another name in the same category and another player that doesn't quite look ready for the NHL (I noticed a lot of failures to keep the puck in the offensive zone on his part). Of course they could both step it up during the preseason and steal a spot from someone else, nothing is set in stone yet. The trouble with the shorter training camp format (2 days instead of the usual 4) is that a lot of guys have a lot to prove in a short amount of time.

It seems unlikely that we'll be seeing the Avs' first draft pick Joey Hishon play for the parent club at any point this year. He looks to be headed for the minors. Hishon's on the small side for an NHL player (under 6 feet tall and only 170 lbs.) and has a tendency to look lost when he's not playing the puck. He could just be starstruck attending his first NHL training camp at 18 (not everyone can mature as fast as Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly). He definitely shows some great potential, but I don't think he's ready for the big leagues just yet. During one of the scrimmages he was participating in, he was injured and was pulled off the ice for the remainder of the day (and according to http://avalanche.nhl.com it was mostly a precaution).

Chris Stewart was flying all over the ice today and seems like he is going to be a force to be reckoned with this year. He was really clicking well with line-mates T.J. Galiardi and Paul Stastny and I think they will definitely be a great offensive threat together. The lost weight and gained muscle mass over the summer definitely seems to be a boost to his game. Kevin Porter looked good at this year's camp as well. He definitely seems like the experience he gained with the Avs last year was beneficial and he has built on it.


After a short training camp, it is now up to the players who are trying to earn a job to have a strong showing in the Burgundy and White game and preseason. Of course, everyone who attended training camp will not even necessarily make it to the annual intra-squad scrimmage tomorrow night. It will be interesting in the next couple weeks to see who is cut and who makes it onto that opening night roster on October 7th. All in all it was an entertaining training camp and made me really look forward to the regular season!

Training Camp - Day One

Today was the first day on the ice for the Avs full training camp roster after rookie camp earlier this week and off-the-ice training yesterday. It was great to see the Avs all out on the ice again. The format for this year's camp was three 45 minutes scrimmages with the clock running (the roster was broken into three groups: blue, gray and black; and each team played each other once). The coaching staff, scouts and management watched from the bleachers with the rest of us fans (although they were roped off in their own section). The team that was not playing during the scrimmage did drills on the other sheet of ice.

The scrimmages were held on the opposite sheet of ice from where the Avs usually practice. The ice was apparently not in proper shape for scrimmages (too soft and according to David Jones there was a large hole in the ice).


It was apparent from the start which players were playing for a spot on the roster and which players were comfortable with their positions on the team. That's not to say that the veteran players were lazy, rather the guys just hoping to secure a spot on the team worked really hard and often out-skated the experienced NHL-ers. One of the players hoping to make the team that stood out was Greg Mauldin. He scored a goal and had an assist during the scrimmages and even hit a couple posts. He demonstrated his desire to play for the Avs with his quickness and refusal to take it easy on any of his shifts. None of the players really held back as there was hitting going on left and right from the start of the first scrimmage.

Matt Duchene looked great on the ice, like he was very comfortable being there and confident with himself. He was frequently on the ice with Peter Mueller and Milan Hejduk and the trio had great chemistry. Another frequent line combination which might be familiar to Avs fans was Paul Stastny, Chris Stewart and T.J. Galiardi. Galiardi looked to be playing with the same passion and grit that we saw from him during the playoffs, so look for an interesting season for him.


Adam Foote looked pretty good on the ice as well. He looked a bit faster than last year and definitely like he was ready for another NHL season. Peter Mueller looked comfortable on the ice and like he was more than prepared to return to action after his season-ending concussion. Hopefully he'll be ready to continue producing as he did during his brief healthy stint for the Avs last season. Also looking decent was David Jones who of course had his season cut short with the knee injury last year. It looks like he'll take a little while to be fully back in game shape, but he looked ready to go.

It was great fun seeing the boys back in action and it should be interesting to see who steps up on day two of training camp, which is also tomorrow morning starting at 9AM.

It's About Time!

Finally the Avs have signed Peter Mueller to a 2 year contract today. Last week they signed Chris Stewart to a 2 year contract as well. Those were the last two major unsigned players that were expected to stick around. Stewart lead the team in goals last year with 28 and was second in total points. Peter Mueller only played in 15 games for the Avalanche before Rob Blake gave him a concussion and ended his season. In those 15 games, Mueller had 20 points (9 goals and 11 assists) though so barring any lingering post-concussion symptoms, the Avs are hoping to see more production from Mueller for the next two seasons.

Even more on the good news front is that one week from tomorrow is the start of training camp (or at least the start that us fans can attend). Just one week until we can watch our boys in burgundy take the ice for the first time as a team since last April (that was forever ago!). Much of the young core of the team is going to be back together with veterans like Milan Hejduk and Adam Foote. With Craig Anderson and Peter Budaj back in nets this year, things are looking good for the Avalanche. The biggest worry they should have is all those rookie players from last season hitting the dreaded sophomore slump.