USA Hockey Magazine

Here's what your favorite NHLers were busy doing in the summer when they were kids. "Growing up in Warroad, we got to do pretty much whatever we wanted, running around, no rules. I remember there was a group of us, guys who were close, we played pretty much anything we could do. We'd go up to the school and play basketball, volleyball, we go play tennis. Just the small town aspect of it, just pretty much run around and have fun." Brock Nelson, New York Islanders, Warroad, Minn. "I played baseball, Little League, a little Babe Ruth. I played soccer, I played every other sport in the backyard. I had two older sisters who played softball, basketball and a little hockey. We were always kind of playing around. We played football in the backyard. We were always doing everything. That's what the summer is all about. We were playing every sport all the time. It was so fun growing up in a neighborhood of kids doing that." Charlie Coyle, Boston Bruins, Weymouth, Mass. "I played football growing up, so there were a lot of early mornings. That and being on the lake as much as possible." K'Andre Miller, New York Rangers, Minnetonka, Minn. "I grew up in a small town where there was ice maybe six weeks in the summer, but for the most part I played tennis, golf—anything with a ball, I played. Even now, I like to take that time off from the game." Blake Lizotte, Los Angeles Kings, Chisago Lakes, Minn. "When I was a kid, I was a golf guy. I was OK. But I also played a ton of sports. It wasn't really full hockey in the summer. Growing up, summer was not hockey for me. I was doing everything else." Brady Skjei, Carolina Hurricanes, Lakeville, Minn. Strength and Conditioning It's not all fun and games. As summer hits its stride, players look to maintain a focus on off-ice strength and conditioning regimens. A few hours at the weight room, with strength coaches or trainers, and then cardio in various forms. "I think a lot of stretching, mobility and slowly ramp back up," said Nelson, who had 37 goals and 59 assists last season. "Today I was on the hills and then I'll go to the turf in August. Just trying to stay active. "It's a lot more mobility-based for me. I get a lot of guys trending that way. Early on it's more heavy lifting. Game's getting faster so as long as you work on what you need to keep up, you'll be OK." Matt Harder, strength and conditioning coach for the Wild, recommends that players ease into workouts and focus on their weaknesses more than strengths in their offseason calisthenics—preferably ones that they can be consistent with. "Obviously these guys made it to the NHL, so we know what their strengths are," Harder said. "So we want to make sure we identify the weaknesses that we want to correct before the next season." Harder said those weaknesses, just like every strength, varies from player to player. A player in their early 20s will likely need to focus on building body mass. Others might need to work on their speed and acceleration. Hurricanes defenseman Brady Skjei said he's always main- tained a good balance of weight lifting and cardio on the side. "It's never the most fun workouts, especially in the sum- mer," joked the 28-year-old, " but you can certainly tell a difference between those that do it and those that don't." Back On The Ice For most players, once the off-ice work is completed, the on-ice element comes into play. "I'm just now getting back on the ice [at the end of July]," said Miller, who averaged nearly 25 minutes per game with the Rangers last season. "For me it was about maintenance and getting ready, but again, with it being my first full season in the NHL, I wanted to make sure I got the proper rest in to physically and mentally reset. It's a long season, a lot of games and practices, too. So I'm focused on making sure I'm doing what I need to in the offseason to make it during the season." Los Angeles Kings forward Blake Lizotte on the other hand was on the ice once or twice a week beginning in June. "After the 4th of July it moves to three or four times, and then in August it's full go," he said. "The early on-ice is maintaining your skillset, but now it's time to gear up and dial in." All in a summer day's work. P Jessi Pierce is an NHL.com correspondent and freelance writer based in St. Paul, Minnesota. She also hosts a weekly hockey pod- cast, Bardown Beauties. 22 // AUGUST 2022 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM When They Were Young… A ME BREAK! GIVE

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