Camp - which started on Monday and will run until the team hits the road to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Oct. 12 to kick off the season - has been marked thus far with high-energy skates full of constant movement and lots of rushes.
“They’re trying to instill work ethic early, “ said defenseman Mitch Vande Sompel. “I think that’s awesome.”
Another thing abundantly present at training camp thus far? Skating, and lots of it. In fact, each practice has been capped off by some grueling conditioning work.
“It’s tough,” said Nause. “I was lucky that [Panthers head coach] Paul Maurice put us through the ringer in Florida for two weeks so I feel like I came in in pretty good shape and I was ready for that.”
For Kinnear, this early grind is by design.
“We have a certain way that we want to play and you have to be able to be in good shape skating wise,” said Kinnear. “We want to get the standard to where it needs to be right off the bat.”
Along with the elevated pace, another defining characteristic of this year’s camp is the sheer volume of players. There’s the AHL-contracted players who have been in town for a bit, the players who were recently sent down from Florida’s NHL camp, a handful of PTOs and then a slew of players under contract with the Savannah Ghost Pirates - who are Charlotte’s new ECHL affiliate.
The influx of skaters has ramped up the compete level across the first few days of camp.
“That’s what pushes people to be their best, when you have true, authentic competition and you have to compete against the guy beside you,” said Kinnear. “That should bring out the best in you, because that’s what we all live for, to play in a competitive environment. We definitely have that here.”
“It’s been made clear that there’s spots open,” said Vande Sompel. “It brings competition and brings the best out of everyone. It’s a good thing. The more guys you have, the more guys are looking to make the roster.”
The roster will continue to undergo transformations as both the Panthers and Checkers make their trims, but with the first game of the season just nine days away, Kinnear is making sure to set the tone right from the start.
“We have a certain standard that we want met,” said Kinnear. “The guys are setting that standard. I’m very happy with the group and their work ethic. It’s trending toward the way we want to play.”
