Sharks Camp Update with David Schlemko

Hey everyone! David Schlemko here. I'm really excited to be a part of the Sharks organization and start my first season here in San Jose. Training Camp has officially started which means that hockey is back!
Training Camp has been really good so far. We are less than a week in but it's been filled with a lot of tough workouts, high tempo practices and team bonding. On the first day of camp, I got those feelings that everyone gets going in - those anxious nerves until you get on the ice and get your reps in. After the inital nerves go away, it's just like any other day. You're just huffing and puffing a little harder than usual since you're getting back into it.
All the guys were great to me at my first camp with the Sharks. I've been down here for four weeks now so I've gotten to know them pretty well. I haven't gotten to know the World Cup guys as much, but they were here for a few days before they took off for Toronto. I think I've met basically everyone. I haven't seen Mikkel Boedker yet, but I played with him before. I haven't had too much time to hang out with everyone off the ice that much, but I did go golfing with Joel Ward and Micheal Haley - that was a good time. I've also started to get close with Brenden Dillon. He's a cool guy and I want to build some chemistry with him going into the season, especially if we are going to be playing together. Overall, it's a great group of guys and I look forward to getting to know them more.

On Tuesday we played our first preaseason game of the 2016-17 season against the Canucks. Personally, I wasn't pleased with my start but I think that it got better as it went along. First games are always something to build off of and get some of the kinks out. It was great for the team to come back and get a 3-2 win in overtime. Overall, it was definitely a cool experience to play at the Shark Tank. I've always loved playing in this building as a visitor. It has an old school building type of feel to me. Fans are right on top of you and it's loud and full of energy. It's a lot of fun to be on the Sharks side of things now. Playing definitely got me excited for Opening Night here at the Tank. It's going to be great especially after the success the team had last year. I'm really looking forward to it.
It's been a pretty easy transition moving here to California. I can't really complain about the nice weather! I love wearing shorts and flip flops, so I think I'll fit in pretty well here. I can see why it's so expensive to live here and why everyone wants to be here. Perfect weather for golfing. I also love how close everything is here - only takes me 10 minutes to get to the practice rink and SAP Center. It would take around a half hour to drive to get to the rink for every other team I've played for.
My family has only been here for about a week. It's my wife and then two daughters, who are 4 years old and 10 months old. We currently live in Willow Glen - it's such a nice neighborhood and we are enjoying it so far. We haven't gotten to do too much since we've still been settling in but we are looking forward to heading to the beach when I have a day off.
That's it from me for now. Go Sharks!