The Colorado Avalanche launched into full training camp mode Friday. Rolling
out a roster of 54 players, the skaters were split into two sessions.Coach
Bednar Sets Direction

Coach Bednar stated his goal was to teach his structure to everyone during the
four days prior to the Avalanche's first preseason game. In order to accomplish
 that goal, Colorado eliminated the traditional Burgundy and White game in
favor of working on special teams.Jared Bednar was all focus at the first day
of training camp  (Photo credit John Saraya/Lake Erie Monsters)

The first day of camp consisted of a lot of drills. The players practiced
3-on-2 scenarios, odd man rushes, battling for turnovers, even strength and
short-handed scoring chances, and the infamous bag skates, where groups of
players raced each other down the rink in timed drills.

Both sessions had six defensemen in black jerseys handling the blue line work,
aiding and opposing five separate forward groups of three skaters (each set of
three in their own distinctive jersey color). Three goaltenders backstopped the
 first session and two worked the net in the second group.

After a week of watching rookies, the first thing that stood out was the speed
of the NHL players. It's amazing how much quicker and more precise they are.
The next difference was the players' improved agility, the ability to shift
from offense to defense in a flash. And finally, the intensity. Even when the
players were waiting for their next shift, they were watching and learning. No
moment was wasted.

For the Avalanche, coach Bednar kept reinforcing the need for speed and
intensity. In his post-camp interview, he stressed the importance of players
already being in peak physical condition. He wanted camp to be difficult both
physically and mentally so the skaters are prepared to play a quick and
tenacious style of hockey.

The new Colorado Eagles head coach, Greg Cronin, was there, too, as were a host
 of other Avalanche and Eagles staff.Return of the MacKinnon Line in Session 1

The first session ran out a forward line combination of Gabriel
Landeskog-Nathan MacKinnon-Mikko Rantanen. Needless to say, they dominated
their matchups. MacKinnon, in particular, came into camp feisty, pushing
players out of his way and swatting away defensemen's sticks. Both MacKinnon
and Landeskog led by example in the bag skates while Rantanen lumbered a bit.A
feisty Nathan MacKinnon came to play at training camp. (Isaiah J. Downing-USA
TODAY Sports)

The other story from the first session concerned the two players who entered
the rink in ‘no-contact' jerseys, Nikita Zadorov and Patrik Nemeth. Both
blueliners are coming off shoulder surgery so the Avalanche appear to be
guarding their recovery. Even so, both men managed to show some spunk. Nemeth
slid down on the ice to block a shot and then popped right back up. Zadorov led
 the way in the timed skates, making them look easy. One has to respect their
offseason work ethic if they can handle everything but contact at this point.

All three free agent signings made an appearance in the first session. Forward
Matt Calvert skated with J.T. Compher and Logan O'Connor. Defenseman Ian Cole
spent a lot of time as Nemeth's compatriot and Philipp Grubauer rotated into
the goaltending slot. All three looked like they were getting comfortable with
the players and the system so hopefully, they will transition seamlessly onto
the roster.

During the timed skating drills, rookie Ty Lewis led the way in the race
between burgundy and grey jerseys, beating out Compher, Calvert, and fellow
rookie Igor Shvyrev. It will be interesting to see if he can duplicate his
performance tomorrow.Erik Johnson Leads the Way in Session 2

The second session featured a pair of interesting line combinations with a
couple of rookies vying for an NHL spot. Marin Kaut rolled out with Tyson Jost
and Alexander Kerfoot, keeping pace with last year's talented rookies who are
now "grizzled veterans". Meanwhile, Vladislav Kamenev centered a line with
Colin Wilson and Sven Andrighetto. Watching Kamenev speed down the ice to just
the right spot, proved he came to play. Both Kaut and Kamenev received a little
 one-on-one coaching from Bednar during the drills. The coach indicated he
wanted to see how they performed with skilled linemates.

The only all vet line in the second grouping consisted of Carl Soderberg
centering Gabriel Bourque and Matt Nieto. With Blake Comeau's departure,
finding an effective line combination for Soderberg will be one of the key
stories of the preseason.Carl Soderberg looks for new linemates at training
camp (Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports)

The blueliners included Erik Johnson, Mark Barberio and Sam Girard. Johnson
returned to form; he looked solid, skated effortlessly and made everything look
 easy. By far, the best defensive moments were when Johnson and Girard played
together. They were quick and smooth. It's too early to tell if they will be
paired together in the regular season but that's another interesting story to
follow.

The skating drills featured Mason Geertsen leaving all the other defensemen in
his dust, with Johnson and Mark Alt chugging to keep up. The best competition,
however, was watching Pavel Francouz and Semyon Varlamov race each other, in
full goalie gear, neck and neck down the ice. Francouz finally started to pull
away on the third drill. One has to appreciate the competitive nature of the
two goaltenders.

The bag skate finished off Kerfoot as he sprawled behind the net, made a feeble
 attempt to rise, then promptly laid back down. Kaut slouched against the rink
wall like a big teddy bear. Both Kaut and Kamenev had a hard time keeping up
with the veterans during the skating drills. The offseason conditioning work
the returning NHL'ers put in was impressive.Nikita Zadorov Returns as Injury
List Grows

Aside from Nemeth and Zadorov in the pumpkin ΓÇÿno-contact' jerseys, two other
key players were missing due to injury. Defenseman Conor Timmins is still
recovering from his concussion symptoms and did not participate.

But the absence of defenseman Tyson Barrie raised some eyebrows. After both
sessions ended, the coach explained Barrie had pulled a muscle during
Thursday's testing and said it was a lower body issue. For those scoring at
home, that's four defensemen not yet ready for the season. A couple of rookies
should pay attention as they might have a shot to start the season with the
Avalanche until the other players recover.Tyson Barrie was missing in actions
from the first day of training camp (Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports)

Training camp just started and there's still a good amount of work ahead.
However, watching which rookies will make the team, what the defensive pairings
 will be, and who will make up the second, third and fourth line combinations
will be the stories of the Avalanche preseason. For the players, the
competition for positions has already started. For everyone else, the Avalanche
 season starts in three weeks.

The post Avalanche Launch Into High Energy Training Camp appeared first on The
Hockey Writers.

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