CALGARY – Johnny Gaudreau At the beginning of the training camp in Calgary Flames, being in a smaller training group could be an advantage and he is sure that he will be well prepared at the start of the Stanley Cup qualification.
“It is definitely the longest time I have ever been on the ice, even in summer and when a lot of people spend time outside the ice,” said Gaudreau on Thursday. “It was definitely difficult, but I think I can definitely take advantage of these skates that we had with only nine guys. We are pushed pretty hard in these exercises, which is great, and we catch up pretty quickly with all these extra reps to come up to game speed. “
Gaudreau opened the camp on Monday, apart from regular linemates Sean Monahan and Elias Lindholmand instead ran a smaller workout that included forward Milan Lucic and Sam Bennettdefender Noah Hanifinand goalkeeper Cam Talbot.
The absence in the larger primary group of 24 players led to speculation that Gaudreau’s commitment was a penalty for below-average conditioning, but Brad Treliving, Flames general manager, said this was not the case.
“Johnny Gaudreau has never looked better,” said Treliving. “It’s totally unfair if we focus on one man. Listen, he’s a top player in our league and I know when people look at our groups … we’re here in a different world. We have to Take precautions, I would caution everyone, speculation and speculation in the area we are in … be careful.
“But I can’t speak high enough about the level of work that Johnny has set. It’s obvious when I saw him. He never looked better. He’s absolutely blown out. He’s in a great mood. I’m totally thrilled where Johnny Gaudreau is right now. “
Video: ARI @ CGY: Gaudreau puts PPG home from the slot
Gaudreau said he didn’t think getting to know his longtime Linemates would be a problem before the qualifiers. Calgary (36-27-7, .564 points percent) is number 8 in the Western Conference and will be the Winnipeg Jets (37-28-6, .563), number 9 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, the hub for the 12 west teams.
Game 1 of the Best of 5 series is August 1st. The winner goes into the Stanley Cup playoffs and the loser has a chance in the second phase of the NHL draft to win the No. 1 NHL 2020 lottery that will take place on August 10th.
“I obviously miss these two,” said Gaudreau of Monahan and Lindholm. “I haven’t seen her too often since I’ve been here in Calgary. We had a lot of good chemistry together and I don’t see it as a problem not to practice for a week or a week and a half together. I played with [Monahan] most of my entire career … 15 or 20 games that I didn’t play with him. I feel like we just take our sticks and we are fine. [Lindholm] did a great job last year and jumped on our line.
“A couple practice and get together a bit and we’ll be fine and go from there.”
Gaudreau finished second in the Flames, three points behind the striker Matthew Tkachukwith 58 (18 goals, 40 assists) in 70 games this season after an NHL career high of 99 (36 goals, 63 assists) in 2018-19. Gaudreau scored 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) in his last 20 games before the NHL season was interrupted on March 12 due to concerns about the corona virus.
“I liked him,” said Flames coach Geoff Ward, who said Monday that the uneven groupings were due to the circumstances.
“I liked him very much. He’s got a lot of bounce. He’s returned in great shape. He works extremely hard. He has fun out there. He has a smile on his face, which is extremely important. This is the time of year that you have to enjoy, everything we wanted from Johnny … at the moment he checked all the boxes.
“We are really happy where he is. We are very happy with how he plays. And we are excited to bring him back to the left.” [Monahan] and [Lindholm]. “
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