53 Days and Counting!

Today I added a countdown timer to keep track of how many days I have left to prepare for training camp. A couple of weeks ago I signed with the Washington Capitals/Hershey Bears for the 08/09 season and I can't begin to tell you how excited I am for the season to start. Camp starts on the 19th of September and it can't seem to get here soon enough. Although I wish it were here tomorrow, having seven more weeks to prepare myself for the upcoming season is a good thing. The professional hockey season is the longest of the four major North American sports. I can personally attest that once you get into the dog days of the season, mid-January to mid-March, it feels like the longest. Having extra time to rest and prepare now goes a long way when you get into April, May and June.

I guess that one of the major reasons why I started this blog was to give myself an outlet for all the excited energy I have in anticipation of this season. Anyone that has been following the Washington organization the past year knows that they are one of the up and coming teams in the league with a lot of positive energy surrounding them. Their rebuilding efforts over the last couple of years are finally paying off now that they have the right pieces in place. Having played for Coach Boudreau for the 05/06 season I know that this years Caps will be a very competitive team that will love to play every night and that will be fun to watch. I am also looking forward to seeing several old friends and teammates who are still with the organization. Seeing all of the great players that have signed on with Wash/Hershey for next season I know that regardless of which team I play for they will be a contender for a Championship. Hershey's team last year had a lot of great, young players. The combination of a slew of injuries and a tough end of year schedule took too much of a toll on the Bears. After two straight trips to the finals, last year's first round loss must have been tough to swallow. The good news is that Hershey has filled in the gaps and all of those great, young players are returning. Combined with the recently signed players this years Bears will be a tough team to play against. In my opinion a championship team has talent, chemistry, leadership, discipline, and desire. Every year I feel that there are 4 or 5 teams with a legitmate shot to win it all. What seperates those teams is mostly will power and a little luck. I feel that Hershey will be one of those teams this year. I am preparing now so that I will be ready to contribute to my team's ultimate success next June. 53 Days and counting!