from Stu Hackel of Sports Illustrated,
Hockey season isn't on the way. It's here. All the proof you need will be found at the various NHL rookie camps that start in the next day or so and the prospect tournaments that follow shortly after.
Last year's lockout canceled those events, but 20 NHL teams will send squads to face off in game action, much of it beginning on Thursday. At one of those tourneys, a three-day, four-team get-together hosted by the Florida Panthers at their Coral Gables practice facility, three of the top four picks from last June's NHL Draft will make their professional competitive debuts in their new colors: Florida's Aleksander Barkov (No. 2), Tampa Bay's Jonathan Drouin (3) and Nashville's Seth Jones (4).
"How cool is that?" said Panthers assistant GM Michael Santos, who -- along with the fans who go to the games that start Friday -- will be very interested to watch this talented trio go head to head, especially Barkov, who was something of a surprise choice by Florida although many scouts considered the 6-foot-2, 205-pound center to be the most complete and NHL-ready player in the draft.
continued with more camps mentioned...
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