Head coach implemented systems and structure on Day 1 in Victoria
The Vancouver Canucks got down to business on the first day of the new hockey season. Head coach Rick Tocchet split his players into two main groups and put them through a series of high-tempo drills on the opening day of training camp at Save-On Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria.
Tocchet was well supported with seven other coaches on the ice for both sessions. He had his NHL assistants Adam Foote, Mike Yeo and Sergei Gonchar along with Daniel and Henrik Sedin as well as Abbotsford head coach Jeremy Colliton and Canucks director of goaltending Ian Clark.
The first day looked like a mid-season practice with Tocchet emphasizing the basic systems he wants his team to play. There was plenty of instruction at the white board to ensure that everybody understood the messages the staff was trying to impart.
"I thought overall it was well-done, hard work, there's some details we have to go over, but it was good," Tocchet said. "We did five on five play and D zone coverage. I want to make sure that we get a lot of that in training camp, I think that's really important."
A year ago at this time, Tocchet was preparing for the NHL season as a television analyst. And as a mid-season replacement behind the Canucks bench last January, he didn't have the benefit of starting from scratch with his team. In fact, it's been a few years since he's been in charge of a training camp.
"I gave the coaches crap, we were a little rusty in a couple of the drills," he laughed. "We didn't have the pucks in the proper positions. It's training camp for the coaches, too."
Among the newsworthy items to emerge on Day 1, Nils Höglander and Vasily Podkolzin were both put in positions to succeed by the coaching staff. Höglander skated alongside Elias Pettersson and Andrei Kuzmenko while Podkolzin had the chance to play with JT Miller and Brock Boeser. It was also interesting to see Arshdeep Bains, fresh off a strong showing at Young Stars in Penticton, get an opportunity with a pair of NHL veterans in Pius Suter and Conor Garland.
The biggest news on the blueline was the pairing of captain Quinn Hughes with Noah Juulsen on the first day. Other defensive pairings of note included newcomers Ian Cole and Filip Hronek playing together, left-hander Matt Irwin playing the right side with Jack Rathbone, Tyler Myers in a duo with Guillaume Brisebois while Christian Wolanin played with Jett Woo.
New goaltender Casey DeSmith arrived in Vancouver just in time to head to Victoria with his Canuck teammates after being acquired from Montreal on Tuesday. DeSmith was decked out in white, yellow and black goalie gear from his days in Pittsburgh. It will likely stay that way through the preseason until he can be outfitted with new Canucks equipment.
The Canucks will return to the ice at 10am Friday morning.