Erik Karlsson wants to step up conditioning for next season

Erik Karlsson wants to increase his offseason conditioning during this summer, which should scare every other NHL team.

Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson is coming off one of the most impressive seasons that a defenseman has ever had. He averaged a point per game and managed to lead the NHL in assists, something that only Bobby Orr has done as far as defensemen are concerned. However, he’s convinced that his game could get even better because this offseason, he’s going to focus more on conditioning.

“This summer is going to be different than the previous years. I’m going to have a lot of time to work on the things I need to,” Karlsson said, via TSN. “I started training early this year. And hopefully if I can maintain this it will translate into having a better start and staying healthy throughout the year.”

It says a lot about Karlsson that he is still finding ways to improve his game even after having the kind of season that most defensemen could only dream of having. That says a lot about the kind of player Karlsson is. Elite players are never content with how good they are. They don’t rest on their accomplishments. What separates them from everybody else is that they find ways to improve even when it seems like they don’t have much to improve on.

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If Karlsson can truly find ways to improve after having arguably the most productive season that a defenseman has ever had, once you consider the era that Orr played in, the rest of the NHL should be on notice.

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