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Cameron happy to see more players in Blades camp
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ESTERO — Malcolm Cameron was smiling on Wednesday night, rejuvenated after his first day of Everblades training camp with his complete team roster on the ice.
On Monday and Tuesday, Cameron had been a little frustrated -- feeling slightly behind because of this year's later start and the fact that the Blades opened camp with just 14 players.
Germain Arena was a much more crowded place on Wednesday, with 25 players on the ice competing for roster spots. Two who probably don't have to worry, though, arrived on Tuesday night and first practiced with the Blades on Wednesday: Mark Lee and Ryan Lang.
Lee and Lang are expected to be among the Blades' top scorers and team leaders. Both have been ECHL all-stars and have averaged more than a point per game in past seasons.
"Coming down from Rochester, this is a more stable environment ... I know this is where I'm gonna be for now," Lee said. "It was definitely an organized practice -- lots of team systems."
"Getting to know guys I've played against in the league -- guys like (Kevin Baker) and (Ryan Lang) -- it's a lot of fun to play with them," he added.
Two more players joined the Blades on Wednesday: defenseman Aaron Brocklehurst and enforcer Riley Emmerson, who arrived after Wednesday night's practice and surprised his coach by walking through the locker-room door.
Emmerson, whose 6-foot-8, 248-pound frame is among the biggest in the league, played for Cameron the past two seasons in Texas. He is a Minnesota Wild prospect, but since the Wild don't have an ECHL affiliate, Emmerson was free to be sent to Florida after being cut from the AHL's Houston Aeros.
With Emmerson on the roster, the Blades will likely have to cut at least three players from training camp. Cameron said it would be tough to make any decisions right now.
"This is the most competitive camp I've had in 10 years of coaching," the first-year Blades coach said after Wednesday night's practice. "This is the first time guys haven't separated themselves by the third day ... there is a top, top end ... but there is a second group, and right now they're all pretty equal."
The Blades have nine defensemen on the training camp roster, including tryout player Nate Hagemo. Cameron has said he wants to keep eight defensemen, meaning one of the contracted players would be cut if Hagemo made the team.
"He's right in there," Cameron said of Hagemo.
Two other potential future Blades remain with the Albany River Rats: defenseman Jonathan Paiement and forward Yannick Tifu, who the Blades traded three players for this past summer.
Cameron said he didn't know much on Paiement or Tifu, other than that both would be playing in this weekend's season opener for Albany.
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we traded 4 players for Tifu.
#1 Posted by SDW on October 9, 2008 at 7:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
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