CENTENNIAL, Colo. — The Colorado Avalanche continue to grind away at training camp during day two. Head coach Jared Bednar pushed the entire team with a full schedule of skating, ending with suicides. Bednar traditionally “bag skates” the entire team to see if they can handle it with some falling to their knees in past years. Fans have been enjoying new defensive pairings with a mix of players on the ice. But it was a high energy and fast-paced day at the rink for the Avalanche.

Ivan Ivan continues to impress

Ivan Ivan finished the season in a little slump last season after starting with the Avalanche. He would stay with the NHL club for 40 games and manage just eight points before being sent to the AHL. Ivan’s production slipped with the Colorado Eagles with only one point in the last 12 games of the season. In the last two days at camp, Ivan has appeared to have a new fire lit under him. He has been moving his feet constantly and getting into position to steal the puck. Ivan may have an uphill battle to climb with Zakhar Bardakov looking like the first option on the fourth line for the Avalanche. Ivan is trying to change the minds of the coaches every time he steps on the ice.

Landeskog is not holding back

Captain Gabriel Landeskog had another strong session on Friday morning. He is not showing any fear of going into the corners or backing down. Reports from the team are that he is “full go” and that his load management is up to him. Over the last three years, Landeskog had re-injured himself twice trying to make it back. The hope is that Landeskog had learned from the experience enough to know what his knee is capable of. Meghan Angley of Guerilla Sports, reported that Landeskog will take Saturday off to prepare for the game on Sunday at the University of Denver.

Burns shows why he can still do it.

Brent Burns is 40-years-old, but he sure does not show it. He does not play defense with his body, but with his stick. Burns uses his tremendous reach to take up a huge amount of ice and has been displaying that during camp. From the looks of it, Burns may play more of a defensive role, letting his partner take on the bulk of skating. In a few drills, Burns and Sean Behrens showed great chemistry. Behrens was the mobile defenseman, and Burns stayed back.

The Avalanche will have one more day of training camp on Saturday before they play some games. Fans can expect a lot of Colorado Eagles and junior players to be playing on Sunday with cuts probably coming on Monday. Either way, the rest of the weekend will be jam-packed with hockey as we gear up for the season to begin on October 7th.