When it came to babysitting the Flyers' roster this offseason, general manager Ron Hextall focused on fitness.
A number of players were told to get their body fat percentages down. Even team captain Claude Giroux.
The players listened.
There are some very noticeable differences in several players who have shown up early for the Flyers' main training camp, which opens next Friday.
Rookies and prospects report this Friday.
“Our team was very diligent about training [this summer],” Hextall said in a four-part Q&A with CSNPhilly.com last week. “Our team last year I don’t think was in great shape. I really don’t know [why] for whatever reason. We better be in better shape this year. A 1-7 [start]? We can’t do that again. We've got to be ready to go on opening night. We've got to fricking go.”
Giroux has slimmed down. So has Jakub Voracek, who said he’s lost at least eight pounds.
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“I didn’t change my workout, it stayed the same,” Voracek said. “Physically, I was doing great. You saw my second half of the season. I was in shape. I changed up my diet this summer.”
Offseason fitness was stressed during exit interviews and in June, as well.
“I sent a letter out to every player, Ron and I,” coach Craig Berube said. “Our strength coach [Ryan Podell] was on these people. It’s about keeping in contact with players. I called every player. I talked to them about it. That is all it is -- staying on top of things. Our guys are ready and focused and in great shape. I know they are in great shape. That was one of the priorities we put in place this summer. They’ve all done that. You want to get off to a good start and that is kind of on our minds – getting off to a good start.”
The Flyers were in terrible shape last fall, a contributing factor to their lethargic 1-7 start, which cost Peter Laviolette his job three games into October.
“Everyone was notified in the middle of the summer that there is a higher level of standards expected of us with fitness coming into training camp,” Luke Schenn said. “I think it’s going to be good this year. A lot of off-ice stuff … the camp is going to be different in the change of pace. When Chief took over, it really felt like we were going back to training camp and it was really hard to do that in the regular season. Guys expect a good pace now and are going to push each other.”
More than a half-dozen Flyers have been training at Skate Zone since late August. Virtually the entire club reported this week, except those who had commitments elsewhere.
“This year feels different already with guys getting together,” Schenn said. “At dinner this week, everyone was talking about fitness and training, which wasn’t always the case in the past. Everyone is paying attention to what they eat and so forth. If not, it’s going to show on the ice.”
Voracek said his diet this summer was rather boring.
“Cut the carbs completely, no bread, pasta, just fish, chicken, eggs, salads,” Voracek said. “Maybe steak, once a week and lot of vegetables. I don’t know my body fat, but it’s way lower than last year, for sure.”
How it all translates onto the ice in the weeks ahead will show whether things worked out as anticipated. Voracek says he has seen a difference already.
“I feel lighter and quicker on the ice,” he said. “Now it’s a question of whether it comes down to hard battles and whether it will benefit me. I feel stronger as well in the gym. I don’t think I lost any of that raw power.”