Flyers Open Highly Intense Training Camp Under Dave Hakstol
By Ed Benkin
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Dave Hakstol era is ushering in a new kind of intensity.
The Flyers opened up training camp with their new coach on Friday, and the opening workout was clearly more intense than the ones from previous training camps. Several Flyers needed a moment to catch their breath at the end of many of the drills......including the captain.
"I was the one hunched down," said Claude Giroux. "At the end, a couple of the drills were kind of hard, but the hard work is being done right now."
While the intensity may be rising, the players seem to be welcoming the new tempo set by Hakstol. The new coach was pleased with what he saw on the first day, and wants his players to keep the same mentality going forward.
"We all liked what we saw in terms of the intensity level," Hakstol said. "The effort and some of the execution for day one was pretty good. We expect to go out and work at a high level every day."
Despite some huffing and puffing on the ice, players seemed to adjust well to Hakstol's practice routine. Wayne Simmonds could see the difference as soon as the first drill was underway. Simmonds believes the players will feed off the intensity.
"We ramped it up," said Simmonds. "It's day one and it's really intense, so that's a good taste of what we're obviously going to be getting for the rest of the year. The guys seem to thrive under that, so it was a good practice."
The Flyers missed the playoffs last season, and Hakstol replaced Craig Berube shortly after the 2014-15 campaign came to an end. While the Flyers showed no animosity for their former coach, Brayden Schenn said a new voice may be welcomed after a season in which the Flyers missed the playoffs.
"Guys liked Chief," Schenn said. "At the same time, it's a new face and new voice. Guys are looking forward to the start of the season. We have a lot of things to prove this season. I feel like we're a better team than we've shown for the past couple of years. Obviously, it's a big year for this group."
Regardless of how the season goes for the Flyers, it appears the intensity won't change. Hakstol also plans to keep things simple for his players as they settle in with the new coaching staff.
"I think we have good players here," said Hakstol. "We've got to work together. Usually, the best system is the simplest system."
