2:55 p.m.:Â Jaromir Jagr isn’t 21 anymore. In fact, he’s 41.
So despite the fact that the future Hall of Famer keeps himself in incredible shape, it’s not overly surprising if he gets a little banged up here and there. The Devils probably didn’t expect it on Day 1, though. Jagr left practice Thursday with what head coach Peter DeBoer has labeled “general soreness.” Another way to describe “general soreness” is “being old.”
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2:25 p.m.:Â There’s a new sheriff in town out in Vancouver, and that’s bad news for any Canucks who aren’t in tip-top shape.
It sure sounds like new head coach John Tortorella ran the Canucks ragged in their first on-ice practice Thursday. Pro Hockey Talk has done a nice job of gathering a photo and some quotes from the first session in Vancouver under Torts, and it’s certainly clear the Canucks were worked very hard.
1:45 p.m.:Â There are obviously a ton of players across North America in NHL camps right now, but one notable name that is missing at the moment is Tim Thomas. It sounds like the interest in the veteran goalie is building, though.
Count the Florida Panthers as an interested party. General manager Dale Tallon said Wednesday that the Panthers have spoken to both Thomas and Ilya Bryzgalov. The Panthers are lacking goalie depth, at least when it comes to goalies who actually have NHL experience.
“[Thomas and Bryzgalov] have experience and history,” Tallon said, according to the Miami Herald. “They are veteran guys who have won. We’re looking at everything and we’re not in position not to look at everything. We want to get better. It’s important we investigate every scenario to make our team better.”
1:14 p.m.:Â Beau Bennett is skating on a pretty talented line at Penguins practice. It’s obviously the first day and things change and all of that, but the 21-year-old University of Denver product is on a line with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal at Penguins camp.
The California native and 2010 first-round draft pick played in 26 games with the Pens last season, scoring three goals and adding 11 assists.
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1:05 p.m.:Â The Bruins’ Group B has split up into lines, and Jarome Iginla is also right where everyone expected him to be. The future Hall of Famer is skating alongside David Krejci and Milan Lucic on what will likely be the Bruins’ first line. Iginla, of course, would be replacing Nathan Horton after the former B’s winger signed with Columbus this summer.
The Bruins’ fourth line is still intact, as well. Gregory Campbell is centering Daniel Paille and Shawn Thornton, as they’re reunited for the first time since Gregory Campbell went down with an injury in the playoffs.
12:45 p.m.:Â Sticking with the Bruins, the second group has taken the ice for the afternoon practice.
12:35 p.m.:Â The Bruins did some battle drills Thursday, which usually isn’t that big of a deal. However, with Patrice Bergeron still healing from his myriad injuries, it’s newsworthy that he participated in these 1-on-1 and 2-on-2 drills.
Not only did Bergeron participate, but he said he felt pretty good after it was all done. He’s still feeling pain, he said, but it’s obviously manageable enough for him to participate in practice, and it sure sounds like turnaround won’t be an issue, either.
12 p.m.:Â In case you forgot, Jaromir Jagr is with the Devils this season, which is still kind of a weird thing to process given his history in the league. Anyway, they’re set to open camp as well, and Jagr finds himself in a new situation yet again. What are his expectations for this season in New Jersey? He has none actually.
“I don’t have any,” he told reporters. “I just wanna be happy and make people happy. Make happy those people who brought me here and believe in me. That’s been a goal for last three or four years.”
Jagr is also facing the prospect of getting to know a younger team, especially when you consider he finished last season with a veteran-laden Bruins team.
“I think the age doesn’t really matter as long as you’re willing to work. That’s what makes you young, if you keep working.”
11:40 a.m.:Â Loui Eriksson made his Bruins “debut” on Thursday. He was on a line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. Read more about that by clicking here.
11:37 a.m.:Â The injury bug doesn’t care that it’s the first day of camp and everyone is ready and hoping to turn the page and get the season started in a good way. The injury bug is going to bite whomever the injury bug wants to bite.
It bit Washington Capitals center Brooks Laich on Thursday morning at the club’s first on-ice practice. Laich left practice with an injury, and he later revealed it was a hip flexor issue. Laich only played nine games last season because of injuries.
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11:25 a.m.: Welcome to the NHL training camp live blog, where we’ll be providing updates throughout the day from reports all across the league. Training camp officially opened Wednesday, but that was an off-ice day. Thursday marks the return to rinks, which brings smiles to fans across the league.
Here’s what’s brewing so far:
It appeared that Dan Cleary was going to be a Philadelphia Flyer. Then, he wasn’t. Instead, he’s headed back to the Detroit Red Wings after a prolonged saga centering around the 35-year-old forward. According to TSN’s Aaron Ward, Cleary will sign for one year and just under $2 million. That’s a far cry from the reported three-year deal he had supposedly agreed to with the Flyers before everything fell apart.
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The last time we saw Marc-Andre Fleury, the Penguins goalie was benched in favor of Tomas Vokoun after another rash of just really poor goaltending. Fleury hasn’t really done much to inspire faith in his return to the ice. The Pens scrimmaged Thursday, and Fleury gave up four goals. Ouch. Sidney Crosby scored one of the goals.
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