Here are my quick hits from Day 3 of training camp:
What stood out to me today was how HC Keefe structured his two “main” groups into PP-focused practices, splitting the PP1 personnel into Group 1 and PP2 into Group 2.
Interestingly, these two PP units took 99.9% of all the reps in their respective on-ice sessions. They had little rest between reps but stopped several times to review and discuss routes and plays before immediately getting right back at it.
I loved this uncommon approach (at least from what I’ve seen over the years) because it provided each unit with consecutive practice reps in a row, rather than operating the traditional way of alternating PP1 and PP2 back-and-forth in the same practice session or giving non-PP players reps while your main PPers rested. Another positive result of this practice structure was that the PP units had to practice some reps while fatigued. This allowed for a mimicking of a “game-like” situation when the PP time is almost over and you’ve already been on for, say, 1:45, and now mental fatigue starts to creep into your decision-making. Brilliant!
Near the end of the PP reps in group 1, Nico and Bratter switched roles, became the PKers, and killed off all the remaining PPs they were not on. So, HC Keefe clearly has plans to use these two to kill some penalties as a pair - which makes sense when you consider that they only conceded three goals in 59:09 of PK TOI together last season.
Also worth noting: when Nico and Bratter were killing today, Dillon and Dougie were the D pair. As I mentioned in a tweet earlier today, I’m curious to see how lethal PP1 can be with Dougie at the top.
And, something to keep an eye on with PP2 is that Paul Cotter was playing in the bumper position today. I don’t want to focus too much on this right now, as I believe Mercer will slot into that spot once things settle down, even though HC Keefe said their focus initially was they “wanted him to focus on the penalty killing side of it today”.
Speaking of Mercer, I can’t stress enough how important it was for him to get his deal done with essentially all of camp and every preseason game still to go. If you’re Dawson, you can’t replicate the NHL reps you will now get vs. reps you were getting on your own back home. No, it’s not even close to being the same. There is no way you are “bag skating” yourself to the level HC Keefe has been doing so far to the team in camp. Look, when you’re young, you need to be with your team at training camp, end of story! If not, you’ll find yourself playing catchup the first part of the season, trying to fight and claw to earn back your ice time and the role you likely would have started with. I’m so glad this is over and no longer a distraction!
Lastly, it’s fantastic to see that Markstrom and Allen are moving around well and looking sharp throughout camp so far. There’s nothing more important for this group than having two veteran netminders walking around the dressing room with their chests out, exuding confidence. It allows everyone to take a deep breath and relax, knowing they can go out and play hockey without worrying about every mistake ending up in the back of their net
HC Keefe has already confirmed that Jack, Timo, Nemec, and Dawson will all sit for the first preseason game at home tomorrow vs. NYI. See everyone at 7 pm for our first MSG Broadcast of the season!!!
-Sal
