"In your first main camp, seeing the big boys, you're always star-struck," he said. "This year, I kind of knew some of them and I'd been through it and I just went to prove myself. I got a few exhibition games, some experience with that, and it was great."

"It was about making a commitment," [Shaun Heshka] said. "This year it was a little bit easier for me because I didn't have to look after getting a job in the summer. Training was my job this summer. I took it as a job, that it was to train every day."

* WHAT THE COACH SAW: His first two fights of Moose pre-season. Manitoba's Colin Sinclair and Joe Cooper had a second-period battle while Manitoba's Pierre Labrie and Toronto's David Ling fought late. Moose head coach Scott Arniel also saw the Marlies score four goals on 17 shots on Julien Ellis and Yutaka Fukufuji in the Moose nets.