Practice Report: Locker Room Vibe Better than Postgame

The vibe in the locker room after practice on Thursday was much different than the night before. It was loud and relaxed, compared to the low-key, nearly empty room following the 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets at Ball Arena.

Energy was good and the guys were focused with Miles Wood participating in a full-contact green jersey. Head coach Jared Bednar said he will travel with the team on the upcoming three-game road trip to the northeast.

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“Hopefully everything goes smoothly. Tomorrow, we’re just meeting at the plane, pregame skate in Boston. We’ll make our decision then, see if he’s good to go for Boston,” Bednar said. “Obviously, back-to-back right out the gate, and so we just play it by ear. But yeah, I mean, it’s good to have him back.”

The 29-year-old forward was all smiles when we got the chance to interview him for the first time in months. He suffered a lower-body injury on Nov. 27 and has been recovering since then. He confirmed after practice he was dealing with back issues before the playoffs last season and felt good coming back from the offseason but it sparked up again this season.

“Feel good right now. It’s good to be back with the guys. Been skating here for the last two weeks or so. I’ll make the trip, so I’m excited about it,” Wood said.

While I was interviewing Devon Toews, Mackenzie Blackwood shouted at him in the background (which you can hear) making him laugh during the session. Toews was explaining the vibe in the locker room after the game last night — which was not funny.

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“Just knowing you play a good game, and you’re not always going to come out on top …,” Toews said. “And we think we had a really good game. I don’t think it’s near our best one bit, but good enough to be in the game for sure and have a chance to win it. So you play like that most nights and give yourself a good chance. And last night just wasn’t enough to get two but enough to get one.”

Speaking of Blackwood, I asked him about wearing his new pads in the game against the Jets and he said they were still a little stiff. He played well in them to help the team get the one point and should be the normal gear moving forward.

After interviewing Mikko Rantanen, one of the other reporters talked to him about the 4 Nations break and he was asking the reporters what they do with the time off and how that works for their position. He said everyone in Finland gets at least four weeks off a year. I may need to move to Finland next season.