Here's the latest from Washington Capitals Development Camp.
ARLINGTON, V.A. -- The Washington Capitals worked on a little bit of everything on Day 3 of their development camp at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. The morning kicked off with on-ice speed testing, and the afternoon featured transitional work, puck skills and, of course, skating.
Ivan Miroshnichenko again stole the show and made an interesting style choice on the third day, switching out his white laces for yellow ones to match Alex Ovechkin, who he said he models his game -- and lethal shot that's been on display throughout the week -- after.
"Would love to follow in [his] footsteps, too," Miroshnichenko said on Monday.
It wasn't just his laces; Miroshnichenko continues to show that he's going to be an impact player in the organization. In a center-ice 2v2 mini scrimmage, the Russian was all over the ice, moving his feet quickly and working well on his edges. He didn't shy away from bringing his game to the table regardless of how small the area was, and during the mini-game, unleashed a booming slapshot.
VIDEO BY SAMMI SILBER/THE HOCKEY NEWS
Miroshnichenko also discussed who's impressed him so far, and pointed out that Alexander Suzdalev has helped him a lot while also being admittedly impressed with Ryan Leonard, the club's No. 8 overall pick in this year's draft.
Another player who continues to look strong: Haakon Hanelt. The German center, who went in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL Draft, is attending his second development camp and continues to impress with his quick hands and knack for the net. He showed off good stickhandling and speed while crashing the net and looking for second chances, and in the work with Marco, he showed improvement in his edge work to boot.
Andrew Cristall is also working hard to put himself on the radar and show the organization why he can turn out to be a big-time steal. The Kelowna forward dazzles with his quick hands and also possesses a great shot, and he is working hard on improving his skating. Once he builds on that, he is going to be a force to be reckoned with.
One of the other standouts from the third day was a free agent invite: defenseman Max Burkholder. The 5-foot-10 blueliner was a force to be reckoned with and didn't shy away from throwing his weight around. He made some big hits, worked well on the transition and used his skating to his advantage. The 19-year-old had 51 points in 62 games with the USHL's Fighting Saints this season.
In other news, French goaltender Antoine Keller, the Capitals' seventh-round pick in this year's draft, arrived in D.C. for camp. He has a quick reaction time and is good at anticipating what shooters are going to do.
As for the goalies, though, Garin Bjorklund made quite an impression. The young netminder had back surgery this past season but has looked great at camp and is showing his athleticism by making sprawling saves and never giving up on any puck.