Quote:
Originally Posted by Cali Panthers Fan
Ok, that's a fair assessment, but I will take you to task on the bolded. When a player shows up to his 2nd development camp still in pretty bad shape, you have to question his commitment somewhat.
|
I'm not going to hold him to the standard of a professional while he's an amateur. While he's an amateur he should be held to the standard of an amateur, and I am still seeing progression in his fitness. I would question his commitment if he wasn't looking slimmer and stronger physically. He's obviously put some work in from the day of his draft, people are acting as if he's plateaued physically.
You need to remember that this guy was the least fit player in his draft class - he was starting from a very low point. It's not as simple as "oh, Second dev camp and looked winded, must not have much commitment". You don't get in great shape overnight or even over 12 months. He was in better shape than he was a year ago, just not to the
extent that he should be to play in the NHL. And in his case, there's a fine balance between conditioning and fat-burning/muscle-building. It sounds more to me like a failure to balance the two properly than a negligence of either.
If this is an issue
after a year pro? I will be the first to question his commitment. Attending a dev camp before returning to your amateur hockey might give some useful guidance, but it's no substitution for actually living as a pro.