DENVER – The University of Denver's annual hockey pro camp is underway as 23 alumni and other local professionals have begun a week of on-ice work and off-ice strength training at Magness Arena.
 
Among the Pioneer alums taking part in this week's formal festivities are Logan O'Connor of the Colorado Avalanche, Troy Terry of the Anaheim Ducks, Will Butcher of the Dallas Stars, Emilio Pettersen of the Calgary Flames and Ian Mitchell of the Chicago Blackhawks.
 
Three 2021-22 DU seniors are also participating in the four days of skates: Cole Guttman, Brett Stapley and Cameron Wright. Guttman and Stapley are free agents after their NHL rights with their respective-drafted teams expired, while Wright inked an American Hockey League contract with the Colorado Eagles last month.
 
"DU is good about getting all the alumni back in the summer," said O'Connor, who has had a busy and short offseason after winning the Stanley Cup with the Avs in late June. "A lot of guys stay here regardless and then some guys fly in specifically for this camp. So it's nice to get some good hard skates in and a little more structure leading up to everyone's training camps coming up."
 
Several other local pros are taking advantage of the chance to work on-ice with head coach David Carle and his staff, including Devon Toews of the Avalanche, Cal Foote of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Nolan Foote of the New Jersey Devils, Brandon Carlo of the Boston Bruins and Robert Bortuzzo of the St. Louis Blues.
 
"When you get to a pro camp like this, you get to see some more guys that either went to DU or play professionally at other places and are in the area, and you get to have good hockey out there," said Terry. "It's a great experience for everyone involved."
 
"It's awesome to see a lot of guys that you might see once or twice during the year or guys that you haven't seen all season, just catch up and reminiscence and ask how the year is going," said Butcher, the 2017 Hobey Baker Award winner that also captained the Pioneers to the national title the same year. "Just work with each other and try and get better every day. It's a good community here, and that's why a bunch of us come back every single summer."
 
Another reason why Denver's pro camp is so popular is the work done behind the scenes by Matt Shaw, the director of sports performance for DU athletics and the strength and conditioning coach for the hockey program.
 
Shaw is entering his 11th season at the school and helped many of these players before and after their college career get to where they want to be in the weight room, which has correlated to success on the ice.
 
"When I came to college I was about 155 pounds, and I've been training here every summer," said Terry, who produced a career-high 37 goals and 67 points last season with the Ducks. "It hasn't been a one summer thing, but each summer I put on more muscle and gained some more weight and I attest most of that to Matt Shaw."
 
Denver's pro camp began on Monday with the first of four days of on-ice training and also includes one "recovery" day of golf midweek at the University of Denver Golf Club in Highlands Ranch. For the days on campus, the players go through an hour in the gym before taking part in two hours of practice, with the last half being a scrimmage with bragging rights on the line.
 
While they might be former teammates and proud Pioneer supporters, the competitive instincts never leave the professionals when they get back together.
 
"You want to win out there," said O'Connor. "It's still a summer skate, but at the end of the day you don't want to lose. Guys are pushing each other more and more as the week goes on."
 
 
TICKETS: Full and half-season ticket packages and five-game packs are on sale now by clicking here.
 
Visit DenverPioneers.com for complete coverage of all 18 of DU's NCAA Division I sports
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Hockey on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_Hockey on Twitter
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_Hockey on Instagram