Training Camp: Day 1 Wrapup, Day 2 Preview
On the first day of Phase 3 (formal training camp) of the NHL's return-to-play plan, Flyers head coach Alain Vigneault eased players back into camp mode with a two-group (Group A and Group B) session with staggered on-ice times.
Both groups consisted of nine forwards, six defensemen and two goaltenders; meaning that all players on the Flyers Phase 3 roster were presented and accounted for on the ice.
GROUP A
FORWARDS: Sean Couturier, Claude Giroux,Jakub Voracek, James van Riemsdyk, Scott Laughton, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Morgan Frost, Andy Andreoff, German Rubtsov.
DEFENSE: Ivan Provorov, Matt Niskanen, Robert Hägg, Justin Braun, Tyler Wotherspoon, Nate Prosser.
GOALIES: Carter Hart, Alex Lyon.
GROUP B
FORWARDS:Kevin Hayes, Travis Konecny, Michael Raffl, Derek Grant, Tyler, Pitlick, Nate Thompson, Joel Farabee, Connor Bunnaman, Carsen Twarynski
DEFENSE: Travis Sanheim, Phil Myers, Shayne Gostisbehere, Mark Friedman, Andy Welinski, Egor Zamula
GOALIES: Brian Elliott, Kirill Ustimenko
Apart from the on-ice work on Day 1 of camp, there were three other items of note on Day 1:
1) The Flyers confirmed that Nolan Patrick would not be on the club's roster for the postseason due to his season-long absence resulting from a prolonged bout with chronic migraine syndrome. Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher said that the goal with Patrick is for him to be ready to play next season. The player self-reported that he feels better now than at any time over the past calendar year.
2) In a post-practice discussion with reporters, Shayne Gostisbehere said he is about seven weeks removed from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Back in January, he had a similar procedure on his left knee. "Ghost" said the nagging injury came about from overcompensation for the initial one. The defenseman only recently has been able to resume skating. Thus, he's not where he wants to be at this point but felt the first day of camp had been a productive step toward getting back up to speed.
3) The Flyers announced that they have signed defenseman Mark Friedman to a two-year, one-way contract extension.
For a full rundown of Monday's practice,
click here. Vigneault indicated that Days 2 and 3 would be similar in format to Day 1, with split group sessions, and each day the pace would pick up gradually. Systems refreshers are slated to start on Day 4.
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CHUCK FLETCHER TRANSCRIPT FROM DAY 1
Is Nolan Patrick’s absence from the roster a continuation of the migraine issue that he has since September?
Yes, his situation has been well documented. Jim McCrossin, our athletic trainer, and I have been in continuous communication with Nolan and his representatives. Frankly, our focus is to get him ready for the 2020-21 season. We really want to be prudent about this matter and prioritize his health and safety over the long run. The reality is, not just for Nolan but for every player, we have a very short runway here before we jump right into what is essentially playoff hockey. We felt that at this stage, when we have time, use it. Let’s focus on the 20-21 season. We have 34 players that are here in camp and ready to go. We’re excited about that.
What has the message been to your team as you try to restart in these unique circumstances?
There’s a couple messages. One is the non-hockey message and it’s the obvious point to make. We’re in a pandemic right now. We’re in a situation where we have to be careful. Even if you are careful, you can contract the virus. We need to make sure we are playing the odds and doing the right things, both on and off the ice to protect ourselves and protect our group. And to the best of our ability, do what we have to do to play hockey and finish the season. The second message was hockey related. I thought AV did a great job this morning addressing the group. We’ve worked hard all year. We’ve put ourselves in a good position. We’re a good hockey team, yet we’re all coming off a four month pause. We’ll have to see what it means. We’re going to focus on what we can control. We like our team. We like our group. And why not us? Let’s push forward here and see what we can do.
Can you walk us through the process where you chose the 30 skaters to round out the roster for Phase 3? How much emphasis was put on guys who played in the NHL this season or the past year?
The whole goal, I believe, with our roster of 30 players was to make sure we have enough depth to get through both Phase 3 and Phase 4. Every player we invited is certainly a candidate to play for our team and in many cases, has played for our team already. There’s some familiarity between our players and the coaches. There were other players we considered as well obviously, Chris Stewart, Chris Bigras, Isaac Ratcliffe, [David] Kase. Vorobyev had indicated to us that he was going to go back and play in the KHL next year. Rather than push that issue, we let him return to the KHL and focus on the upcoming season as he is a restricted free agent. You are trying to do what’s right for the player and do what’s right for our team. This is the group of 30 that we settled on, 30 skaters.
Going back to Nolan Patrick, regardless of this playoffs, where do you think he is in his comeback just generally?
I have to rely off what Nolan said to me. He’s indicated that lately this is the best he has felt in the last 12 months. He feels he is making progress. He feels much better, sleeping better. Able to exercise. Able to skate. I’ll just rely on those comments.
One of the defensemen you have on the roster is Egor Zamula. Does he have the potential to play in this tournament or is he here more for the practices and being around the team?
He’s a young man, who was obviously injured at the end of last season. Had surgery at the end of the season and has now gotten to a point where he’s been cleared for full participation. Certainly his talent would allow him to play in my opinion. He’s a very talented young man. Having said that, we are certainly cognizant of the fact that he is coming off of a tough surgery and he’s 20 years old. I think we felt that it would be good for him long term to come back and to participate and skate with our group. Over the next two weeks, the coaches will have to make that decision whether he would be a factor for Phase 4. Make no mistake about it, this kid is a top prospect and is going to have a very good career for us.
What was Nolan Patrick’s reaction to being left off the roster?
We discussed this at length with Nolan and his representatives. I think our medical team, Nolan, me, everybody agreed that this was the prudent approach for a young man that’s going to be a big part of our future.
What is your confidence level in this team that it can make a strong push in this playoffs?
This is going to be new for all of us. This type of situation has never happened before. We’re going to be playing in two hub cities in front of no fans. Who knows? Everybody is in the same boat. Certainly very exciting and a little nerve-wracking at the same time. I guess we will found out over the next few weeks how we react. I am confident in our group. I believe in our group. I think we have a good team. As the year progressed, we got better and better. The question is can we pick up where we left off. That will be the focus. I really like the plan that AV and the coaching staff put together. Looking at this from a four-week perspective to try to get ready for that game on August 11th.
How important is your depth right now? It looks the pause allowed you guys to get healthier and the trade deadline acquisitions allow AV to have some good decisions to have?
There’s no questions about that. Probably every team could say that same as us. Obviously, everybody has the majority of their injured players back in their lineup. Everybody is rested and refreshed and excited to go. We like the depth of our group. I think you’ll see as you watch practice this week. We have six good forward lines and six good defense pairings and four talented goaltenders. We feel we have the depth and we have the talent. Right now, it’s just about trying to get back up to speed and regaining our focus. Just push forward. We are excited about the opportunity in front of us.
How do you view the round robin tournament? Do you view it as a chance to get in shape or do you view it as important to the highest in seed you can?
I think a little bit of both. I don’t think it would be smart to overstate the importance of the round robin. Ultimately the first game that is going to be truly of massive importance is that Game 1 on August 11th. We are certainly going to try to win, but I think we are going to give certain players an opportunity to get some game participation. We’re going to need more than 20 healthy bodies to get through this. I think the important thing is that everybody at some point gets some action and get some ice time. You would hate to put somebody into play in the playoffs that hadn’t played in a game since March. I think we need to be smart about it. Our guys are competitors. Every time we go out there, we’re going to try to win and we’re going to try to place as high as we can while making sure the guys are game-ready.
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ALAIN VIGNEAULT DAY 1 TRANSCRIPT
You are only going to have a couple weeks of training. In your mind, is that enough time to get ready for this long playoff run?
Yes, it is. I’ve looked at the schedule with my staff. We’ve got Phase 1 here in Philly where we have close to two weeks that we’ve prepared them to a T. We are going to start off progressively. The first three days we are going to split them up into two groups, so that guys can get a little bit more touches on the ice. Then we are going to get into obviously some system work and some tactical work. We’ve also got a couple of scrimmages planned. We’ve got Phase 1 here we feel really well laid out.
Obviously, one of the keys is staying safe and making sure that we follow the NHL guidelines here and outside the facility. I feel real good. Phase 1. Phase 2, we’re in the process of working that out also. We know we have one exhibition game and the three seeding games. At the same time, we do know that we are going to have the last change at least for the first series and we can improve on that. We have a lot of stuff planned. We have thirty days to get ready for our first official game on the 11th of August. Our group is excited, focused and energized. We have been waiting a long time here for this opportunity to compete for the Stanley Cup. We’re going to get it.
How would you compare today to a typical first day of camp, in terms of conditioning levels, player’s hands and those types of things?
I liked what I saw from our players today, but I did tell them that we were going to go progressively. If you noticed today during practice we went to the board, we didn’t pre-ice practice before today because we wanted to do this progressively. We’re not quite sure what people had the opportunity to do during COVID. Some guys had gyms at home. Some guys were able to find ice time and etcetera.
We’re not quite sure where everyone is as far as conditioning-wise and as far as where they are with their timing on the ice and conditioning on the ice. What we want to do is we want to be real smart about this and we want to be scientific about this. I’ve sat down with Ozzy and Dan and Jimmy. We sort of laid out what the science says and we’re going to progress through different stages of things we need to do of skill and conditioning on the ice, technical and tactical things we need to do on the ice. We’re going to put it all together. We have thirty days to be smart. We need to use the science we have available. That’s what we are going to do.
Once we got the dates about Phase 2 and when Phase 3 was going to start and Phase 4. As a staff, we got excited about the opportunity to come back and compete for the Stanley Cup. We’ve been talking almost every day for the last three weeks on a regular basis with the conditioning guys, with Jimmy and Sal, our athletic therapist guys about what we needed to do with our group, not knowing what everyone had available during COVID. We got a plan laid out. It’s precise. I think it’s science-based. I believe it’s going to work.
Alain, you mentioned about staying safe. Would you able to walk through what your morning was like before you could get on the ice and the things you had to do?
Before being allowed to come down yesterday to my office because we were working from Chuck’s boardroom upstairs, we had to do four days straight of testing. Everyone in my staff had to be negative for four straight days, then we were allowed to come down. Today, when you get up in the morning, you’ve got to take your temperature and a set of questions that you have to answer. Once you send that in and get to the rink, they take your temperature twice. You get a set of questions to answer and then you get to go about our normal hockey life, what we usually do. Everyone here is walking around with masks. Our job is to get ready, to get to that bubble in Toronto. That’s what we intend to do.
What was your message to the team before getting on the ice?
We had a very good meeting this morning where talked about the different phases. I explained how camp is laid out. The first phase here in Philly and the second phase in Toronto. I obviously expressed to them the opportunity to compete for the Stanley Cup and how we were going to proceed throughout this process. As a group, you can tell in our players’ face when we saw them this morning that there was excitement and understanding of the opportunity in front of us. We’re getting to do what we love.
For the players, that’s playing hockey. For me as a coach, to coach these players. I think we have taken some great strides since September the 12th when we all got together. That’s one of things we talked about this morning. Our journey started on September the 12th, we have really just two new faces to our group. We have Nate and Derek, who joined us at the trade deadline. It’s the same group. We’ve progressed. We’ve earned the right to compete for the Cup. Now it’s up to us, to do the work and get it done.
Alain, you have a few decisions you have to make, as far as with JVR coming back in the lineup especially. What is your plan right now? Are you going to go with a veteran lineup? And how does Joel Farabee fit moving forward?
That’s a real good question. I think what we are going to do. I don’t think, I know what are going to do. We are going to take this time in front of us here to obviously prepare the team. We’re going to take also the exhibition game and the three games that were going to play because really, August the 11th is our first game in our first round for the Stanley Cup playoffs start there. I’m going to put on the ice at the time the best lineup that we have.
These are different times. This isn’t a normal season where you have training camp, exhibition games, 82-game schedule and playoff starts. You pretty much know what your team is. Your guys have developed a sense of trust and you know what they can bring to the table. We have been basically off for four months and now we have a month. Before we play our first playoff game, it’s going to be a five month stoppage. I am going to utilize this time to see whether you are a ten-game veteran or a ten-game veteran.
Wherever we feel, Chuck, I and my staff, after watching the games and the preparation, the attitude that I’m going to see going through this, the will that I’m going to see going to see going through this. I’m going to put on the ice the best lineup I believe is going to permit us to win and then from there, like any playoffs, make adjustments we have to make. We will take the best decisions that will benefit the team.
Just wondering about what you said about the guys coming in with different levels. What is your assessment of the kind of shape the guys that were on the ice? Did they look like they were up to speed? Did they look like guys who have been off for four months?
No. That’s one of the things that as soon as we got off the ice with this first group that we saw, we were happy. We were happy. We were impressed with what we saw. The guys that have been around Philly for a while here, working with Dan and Ozzy off the ice and working with Lappy on the ice. I knew that for the most part the conditioning and the execution was going to be good. It’s different. When you are going out there, whether pre-camp or during camp, the intensity picks up a little bit. The execution picks up a little bit. I was happy with what I saw today. It’s Day 1. I expect it to get better every day.
It sounds like almost you are going to use the round-robin as an experimentation period or are you looking at those three games as being important?
First of all, those three games are important for seeding, but there’s no doubt that we’re going to use, not sure of the number. Obviously if your intentions are going on a long playoff run, a lot of times there is some battle days and some days where you need some guy to step up and chip in. To do that, it would be safe to say at this time, I would intend on using more than 20 guys for those four games.
As important as they are, I’m going to look at different players in different situations during that time. It’s not about an experiment, but it’s about finding where guys are and then making the best decision for the team.
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MATT NISKANEN DAY 1 TRANSCRIPT
How tough was the four month lay-off? And how tough will it be to regain the momentum you guys had built?
I think the uncertainty was the toughest part. A lot of guys like having a set schedule so you can gradually build yourself up and peak at the right time. It was pretty tough to plan anything with all the uncertainty out there. I think any momentum we had is gone now, but our job and overall goal is to get back to where we were at and build on it. We’ll see how it goes. We had a great first session out there. It’s great to back out on the ice with the guys. We’ll have to build that up again very quickly so we can hit the ground running.
I don’t know how much you were able to skate before all of this today. How did you feel? And how did the rest of the guys look? How did it feel out there?
I would say similar to a normal first day, as far as pace and execution. In some ways it’s the same. We had almost normal off-season length of time, but players’ availability for gyms and ice times were a really wide range. Some guys skated a lot. Some not much at all. Kind of all over the map there.
I felt alright. Certainly hope I feel better soon. For the first day, I thought it was productive. Guys’ passes were alright. Guys’ legs were alright. It was a productive first day. It’s going to be a process for sure. I’m sure nobody felt fantastic. We were playing mid-season form. Hopefully we get a little better every day and hit a high level when we need to in a couple weeks here.
How quickly do you think you guys will be able to recapture the chemistry where you sort of know where everyone is without thinking?
I think practice reps are going to get better fast. I think already by tomorrow I think everything will be cleaner. I am assuming the coaches are going to be putting us in more game situations where there’s defenders too. A lot of the stuff we did today was just reps passing the puck with no defenders. That’s where I think your timing and your feel for the game is going to get tested. That might take some reps.
I hope we just gradually get better and better. It’s hard to replicate in small groups or by yourself or just a couple guys the timing or the feel of the game. That’s going to take some reps and some time. Hopefully that exhibition game and obviously those three games are for seeding, but we’re going to view that as we need to get better each game. When that first round hits, everybody’s got a good feel for the game back again and feel for your linemates.
Everybody on the same page again on how we want to play and what are systems are. Our trigger moments and all that good stuff. It’s going to be a process. We are not there yet. It’s going to be hard to replicate with just reps. We’ll get better and better.
I’m sure everyone was dealing with rust. It seemed you enjoyed watching Carter Hart today and he looked pretty sharp. How confident are you going into this tournament with a kid like him?
I talked to him the other day. He said he feels good. I don’t know anything on how to critique a goalie, but he looked awesome today. He’s shown what he can do. His capabilities. I think everybody’s real confident and excited to have him back there. Especially the further you go now, you have a talented goalie and he gets hot, ooh, that’s a dangerous card to have. We have that potential with Carter and he looks fresh and happy. Looked pretty sharp to me today.
You talked about the excitement level. What is the excitement level with this team? Is it going to take a while to get it back up, ramped up?
Yeah, I think it’s still there. I think our intensity and our execution is going to take a little while here to get that back up. I think everyone knows our potential now because we showed we can beat anyone. We have the capability to play really good hockey, playoff hockey. We’ve played real tough defense for big portions of the year. I think we got better offensively as we went. We know the potential here. We have a good team, but man, is it hard in the playoffs. I think for us, our execution and our intensity we just need to gradually ramp that up, so we are at peak competitiveness for Game 1 in that first round.
You talked about the execution. I also want to get your thoughts on the systems and communications side. Unlike September, when there was a new coaching staff and multiple players who were new the team, this time around everyone knows your systems. The players know each other, and had established your communications on the ice. Is this side more of a refresher and will that make that part of the process a little quicker?
It should be quicker in theory. There might be a little rust. You might need little reminders on how we play and what we do in certain situations. It should come back quite quickly. I think the biggest thing for us is to be together a lot, be on the ice, get lots of reps. I am certain we’ll go through some meetings for some reminders on how they want to do things in every situation. We’ll be prepared. Like you said, we’ve got that familiarity. We built some team chemistry throughout the year. That should come back real quick now that everybody is here. Guys are excited. We’ve earned the opportunity to be one of the top seeds in the East that a good shot at pointing to our potential.
You have been on a Stanley Cup Championship team. Do you have any advice to the younger guys about not getting too excited one the first night or things like that?
For me, it’s just a feel thing. I am not going to make a set schedule of when we get to this point, I’ve got to say this or that. A little bit more behind the scenes. If I notice somebody’s acting differently or maybe when we get into that first series, if I feel the need to pull a guy aside and have a little chat, I’ll do that. That’s part of my duty as an older player that’s been through this.
As a veteran player, have you been able to take a step back and reflect on how strange this situation is? The second group was watching and they all had masks on. Is that something you’ve thought about?
Actually, a lot. The world is pretty bonkers right now. It’s hard to believe really from where we were March 11th or 12th and everything that’s transpired to now. Nothing’s normal. As hockey players, especially being in our situation, on a good team with a chance, we just want that chance. We just roll with it. We’re happy to be here. Hope we get to Toronto and everything goes real smoothly.
Let’s see what we are made of. Hopefully we have a good Stanley Cup playoff. You are right. Nothing’s normal right now. There’s a lot of exterior factors that might lead into this that normally wouldn’t be there. We’ll just control what we can and make sure we’re ready to play hockey when the time comes.
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CLAUDE GIROUX TRANSCRIPT
How do you view the round robin? Is it really important? Or is it more of a tune-up to get to the Stanley Cup playoffs?
It’s for the seeds. Home ice advantage, you have the last change. I think that’s going to be important later on. At the same time, you want to get your legs under you. I feel like you can practice as much as you want. Game time, it’s a different speed. It’s a little bit more intense. It will be important during our practices and the one exhibition game that we are going to have that we have to go as hard as we can.
Matt Niskanen was talking about how the momentum from the season is gone right now. How important is it for you to get it and regain the momentum you had?
Everybody is starting from point A. The momentum is obviously huge in hockey. We have to find the way we were playing. We need to work on working as a team and keep playing the same way we were at the end of the year. A lot of teams, even us we have a few guys back. A lot of teams got guys back. It’s definitely a unique situation here. For us, it’s going to be able to get the momentum as fast as you can.
I don’t know how much you were able to skate before today. How was your physical conditioning and how you felt after one session? How did the rest of the team look?
Everybody looked good today. I thought I was in great shape. But at practice you can see the intensity went a little higher. We have two weeks here to get in the best shape we can. Get our legs under us. Get our hands going. I think we are going to have some good practices here. It’s going to be important that we’re all in this together. We’re going to try and find our game. That’s all I can say.
Alain mentioned this practice was a little different. How different did today feel compared to the first day of training camp in September?
I think the intensity wasn’t as high. I think we are just trying to get our legs going. We’re going to ramp it up here as the days go. First day, just get back on the ice, everybody together. Do a few drills, get the feel of the puck. As camp goes, I’m sure it’s going to ramp up. It was good first day on the ice.
A Cup run would be special. Could this year be even more special given the circumstances and how crazy this has all been for you guys?
Yeah, it’s been very different, especially the last four months or so. I think we are in a position here that anybody’s got a chance to win it here. Everybody is starting at zero. It’s whichever team gets on the same page as quick as possible. There’s play-ins and round robins. It’s not really something that we’ve lived before. I think being able to get our game as quick as we can, that would be the main goal.
Was there ever a point during the long pause that you thought this day would never come and the season would just be called?
There was a lot of things happening. One week I would think we would come back. The other week I thought there would be no chance. To be where we are right now, it’s pretty fun. Getting all the guys back together. We started the season with one goal, to win the Stanley Cup. Now we have a chance to do that. Guys are pretty excited to get back on the ice and compete together. Should be definitely a little different. Obviously there is a lot of things, no fans, staying in one city. It’s very different, but we are going to have to get on the same page and try to enjoy it.
What was it like to see Gritty waving to you guys this morning as you drove in?
I wasn’t sure when the first chance we were going to see Gritty, but he didn’t waste any time. He was right there. He was probably the first one at the rink. It was good to see him there. I had a good chuckle when I saw him pulling in to the rink.
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SHAYNE GOSTISBEHERE TRANSCRIPTION
With all the length of time that the pause has gone, how much do you look at the upcoming postseason as a reset button for you and a chance for a different ending of the season? Also, how hard will it be for the team to regain some of the momentum that was lost?
Personally for me, it’s a good reflection period, a time to regroup. I think we were one of the hotter teams in the NHL since November. I think for us, it’s just finding that spot of where we left off and getting back in to the swing of things and bringing it into playoffs. Obviously it’s a different situation but we know playoff hockey is going to be different.
Right before the season pause, it seemed like you were struggling with getting your knee where you wanted it to be. How does your knee feel now? How did it feel out there on the ice? How much were you able to skate during the pause?
I actually had another knee surgery on my other knee about seven weeks ago. It was something I was trying to rehab personally and I hit a point where there was no way I could rehab it anymore. I had to get a small scope done again. It was different. It didn’t have to do with any tendons or anything. Just a small little cartilage thing. Obviously, trying to battle back from that. I haven’t really skated too much. It was awesome to get out there with the boys and see where I was at. It was a good benchmark to see where I am. Obviously it was the start of camp. I am definitely not where I want to be, but I think just progressively working into it. It will be good down the road when we get to Toronto.
Will you be good to play come tournament time? Will you have any limitations?
Obviously, my ultimate goal is to get back in the lineup. Get out there and do I what can do to contribute to this team. Win a Stanley Cup. Right now, I’m just focused on good skates out there and getting that feeling and what not. It’s been tough. Just grinding my way. I want to work hard. I want to help this team win.
You had surgery. Which knee was that latest surgery?
That was my right knee. My left knee was in January. I had to have my right knee about seven weeks ago.
What kind of problems were you having with it?
Just power. Push-off. I was compensating so much over time. My quads were really uneven. It was hard to fix it off the ice and workout-wise. I had to get a procedure done and that helped a lot. Getting my body back in line and feeling good again. It’s definitely been a tough road, especially with all this stuff going on. I am not going to feel bad for myself. There’s a lot of bad stuff going on in this world that people are worried about. I am just going to do my best to get back and be healthy. Help this team win.
How have you and the guys kind of gone about having that balance of having a sense of normality while staying safe?
We’re a team here. A team is only as strong as its weakest link. Everyone’s got to follow the rules. When you aren’t following the rules, you are putting your whole team in jeopardy. Obviously, the ultimate goal is for our team to win a Stanley Cup. For us to do that, especially in these times right now, it’s about us being smart as a team. Harping on each other to follow the rules. I know it looks a little silly sometimes, but we got to do what we got to do to keep everyone safe and healthy. Keep this team together so we can take a run at this thing.
What was it like this first official day back?
It felt like a pretty big break. Me, Coots and some of the guys were here the whole time. Having everyone come back into town and what not, it definitely felt like training camp again. You definitely felt those butterflies before you step out on the ice for the first time with the boys and having the coaches on the ice. It was good feeling. It was a good first day. I think it’s a good step forward for our team, getting ready for the bubble.
How confident are you in the safety of the bubble in Toronto? What do the other guys’ think?
I’m pretty confident ,just seeing the protocols put into place here in Phase 3, ultimately moving into Phase 4. Obviously, we feel pretty comfortable. I don’t think we would have agreed if we didn’t think so. Everyone’s going to have their own opinion. It’s just like everything else, if everyone follows the rules and is smart about it, practice social distancing and don’t be an idiot out there. I think we can control this. Even if someone does test positive, just follow the protocols and what they want us to do. I think ultimately we will be okay.
How long do you think it will take to get hands, timing, game legs and game lungs back?
I think the coaches and the training staff have a good regiment in front of us, a sort of game plan to get us ready. These first couple of days will start off slower and get moving. Obviously, ultimately focus on systems and special teams. Keep moving us into it. The thing is everyone’s in the same boat. It just depends on us. We just have to go along in our process and just take it day by day. Work at it and be ready.
When you pulled in this morning, Gritty was out there in the parking lot, waving? Did that give you guys a moment of levity?
Sure. Everything’s been pretty serious around here. Just get some comic relief. Gritty always helps. Just makes you realize it’s sort of a training camp again. We’re getting ready for the playoffs. That’s something you don’t get to do in your career sometimes. You have another kick at the can here. We have a pretty good kick at it. We have a really good team. Great chemistry. We were, if not, the hottest team going into this. I think as a whole we are pretty excited. We’re excited to get to the bubble and hopefully do some damage.
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TRAVIS KONECNY TRANSCRIPTION
Was there ever a point that you thought the season would not resume? Now that you are back, how excited are you to get this thing going?
Looking at how bad things were getting, you start thinking about family and friends before hockey. So at that point, I wasn’t sure where the season was going to go. Once things were starting to get under control and we were able to get back here, there is a lot excitement going through the group chats. We’re definitely excited to be here now.
How much you were able to skate during the pause? How did it feel to get back out there?
I was able to skate a couple weeks before I came back here. Then I skated here a little bit before the training camp. Definitely not as much as I would have gotten in during a regular summer. I did the best that I could do for what I was working with.
How are you health-wise? Given how this has been such as a special season for you, how excited are you to finish this season?
Right now, I feel good. Health-wise, I am good. As far as on the ice, conditioning needs to get up I was fortunate that I was in a good spot and I was healthy for the whole process. That’s kind of where I’m at. Good to be back.
How did today feel compared to the first day in training camp?
I think guys were pretty in sync. They know how fast we need to get back into things. We know there’s not that big time period where you know you have that time to get where you need to go. You need to be sharp right away. As far as a regular camp skate, they definitely didn’t push us that hard today. When it comes down to numbers and what they need to do for us on the stat side of it, they know what they’re doing. Our workload wasn’t too bad today.
What are your thoughts on the bubble in Toronto and it being safe up there?
I’m sure we have a great group putting in a lot of work to make sure we are going to be as safe as possible. We’re not even to Toronto yet, to the actual bubble. I know that here, it’s definitely very safe and the precautionary things we have to do and testing wise. You feel like you’re in a good environment. I haven’t looked much into what’s going to go on once we’re there, but they’ve kind of told us a little bit.
Earlier today, the league said that there are more positive tests. The Penguins are keeping nine players away. Is this something you know you have to kind of expect as you go along? Do you try to block them out or accept that this is going to be part of the process?
I think for the most part, being here, I’ve kind of accepted that it’s a possibility. There is definitely a chance that you could get it. But there’s no more possibility than being anywhere else. You are almost safer here because you are testing so often. There are definitely those false positives. I kind of expect those to pop up as well. We just do our best to stay safe and try to avoid that stuff as much as possible.
I know you are going to be in the bubble with the other teams you are going to be going up against in the round robin. You and Scott Laughton have talked about doing research before you start chirping. How big of an advantage is it to spend some time in the bubble with those guys?
I don’t know. It’s definitely going to be a different environment. I know the hockey world’s very small. You end up knowing a majority of the guys, whether it’s personally or a friend of a friend. It’s definitely going to be a little different being around them all the time. I’m sure once you are on the ice, it will be back to normal. I’m going to stay away from the chirps as much as possible. I’ll leave it to Laughts.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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