Today in the "A": Camping in Springfield - Day 1

With assistant coaches Brad Larsen and Nolan Pratt leading a spirited hour long workout on Sunday, the Springfield Falcons got their 2011-2012 training camp underway. Falcons second year head coach Rob Riley and team President and General Manager Bruce Landon observed the session from above ice level.

The expected contingent of 22 players was not there in its entirety as six recent assignees were still in transit. Driving east from Columbus were defensemen Steven Delisle and Dalton Prout. Defenders Anton Blomqvist and Brent Regner, along with left winger, Oliver Gabriel were excused from the skate because they made it into town late on Saturday night. Winger Aaron Bogosian arrived in Springfield on Sunday afternoon.

Mentioned briefly in yesterday's training camp preview were two players who know the Springfield area very well. First is Holyoke native, Adam Pineault. Pineault's name may be familiar to long time Blue Jackets fans. Adam was the Jackets second round selection, 56th overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. He was a member of the Syracuse Crunch for most of three seasons, from 2006-2009. Adam skated in three games with the Jackets at the end of the '07-'08 season, and was held scoreless.

The other is Tom Mele. Mele, from the Bronx, NY played for American International College in Springfield for four seasons. He was the team's captain in his senior year. Following the season's end, Mele made his professional debut with the Fort Wayne Komets, skating in two playoff games.

Falcons camp continues this morning at 10AM at the MassMutual Center.