#CapsDevCamp Diary: Mitchell Gibson

I drove down to D.C. Sunday afternoon from Phoenixville, Pa. It was an easy drive, it's only about three hours from my home town, so I got here by dinner time.
It felt good to be a bit more comfortable with the whole process. I knew where the facility was, where the hotel was, recognized the staff, new the general schedule of everything. That makes it a little bit different compared to last year when I came here just days after I was drafted as a new guy. I'm really proud that I get a chance to represent a team like the Capitals. It's something that's really special and a dream come true.

Yesterday was the second day of development camp. We went to the track in the morning around 8 a.m. and got a good workout in. It was a lot of running. Our staff did a really good job with training us and getting us ready for the ice sessions we had ahead of us. A few of the guys were slipping on the turf surface, which was pretty funny to watch. Luckily, I didn't take a tumble.
We got to the rink around 9:30 a.m. to look over some film with the boys before we hit the ice. Around 10 a.m., my fellow goalies and I jumped on and worked with the coaches. Yesterday was a lot different than the first day, we had a lot more game situation drills and some small-area games. The puck was coming at me a bit more frequently and quicker, which allowed me to work on my speed and sharpness. All around, it was a great day to test my mind and body.

This is my second year here, so my good friends are in that sophomore class that was drafted last year, since we are all going through this together again. Alex, Martin, Kody and Sutts are the guys I have really been hanging out with. We've all just been talking about our past seasons and are excited about what lies ahead. The goalies and I have developed a great bond this week as well since we are going through the same practices and workouts every day. I mean, it's kinda hard not to band together when your commonality is getting hit with the pucks. This is a really great group of guys and I have loved every second of this camp so far.
I went to bed pretty early last night to rest and recover, it was a lot of conditioning and my legs could feel it. It was a busy day, so I have to take any chance I can get to rest and recover.
The guys and I are planning on heading out tomorrow night and getting a taste of what this beautiful city has to offer. I'm really excited about that. From what I've seen these past two years, Arlington is a great place and I can only imagine what downtown D.C. has to hold. I'm really excited to be here again and to be a part of the Capitals organization.