CRANBERRY TWP, PA (93.7 The Fan) – It's the most first-round picks the Pens have had in a prospect camp in a long time this past weekend in Cranberry. One is working his way back after a break, another was just drafted days ago and the third continues his progression with the thought of playing in the NHL this year.
Defenseman Owen Pickering is only a year removed from the draft himself. He's added nearly 20 pounds from 6'3", 175 to weighing around 194 pounds. He eats six meals a day with a couple of protein shakes, and has also worked on his game.
"I feel stronger," Pickering said during Pens prospect camp. "I put on some weight. I think that's helped a lot. That was obviously my goal last year is to get more explosive and more powerful. I feel like I've done that."
"Obviously I'm not where I want to be."
Going back to his Western Hockey League team (Swift Current Broncos) after the draft last year, Pickering had nine goals and 36 assists in 61 games. Then he got an opportunity to play eight games at the end of last season in the American Hockey League. That opportunity proved he wasn't where he wanted to be. In eight games, no points and a minus nine.
"It's a heck of a jump going from juniors to the American League, but every day we saw progression," said Wilkes Barre/Scranton head coach JD Forrest. "He's got a lot of tools. I think one of the biggest things is he's playing against men all of a sudden. He's doing a great job of getting physically ready for advancing in his career."
"Each day there was a progression, he got a little smarter and learned how to play against his competition."
Pickering said he enjoyed the experience and learned a lot from it. He said the clichés of the players being stronger and faster is definitely true. It didn't break him, if anything he said it motivated him to get where he needs to be. He then dropped some of his own clichés of taking it one day at a time, getting one percent better every day and every day trying to learn something about the game. Pickering said the best in the game come to the rink looking to learn every day.
He will attend Pens training camp in September with little to no chance of making the NHL roster this year. It's not that he's behind schedule, it's what they projected when taking him last year. That does not mean Pickering won't try.
"I mentioned after the draft, my goal coming into any camp is to make the team," Pickering said. "Whether last year that was realistic or not, I'm going to come in with the same mentality this year. I'm going to try to make the team. I don't see a point of coming into a camp and not thinking that."
