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EDMONTON, Alberta - Anthony Stewart sat on a stationary exercise bike in the visitor's dressing room pedaling and smiling after the Panthers' exhibition game Tuesday in Calgary.
"I haven't checked the score sheet, but I think I had a few hits," Stewart said. "For me to make the team, I've just got to be the No. 1 forechecker, get the puck in deep and bang some bodies."
This is nothing new for him.
General Manager Jacques Martin has repeatedly said, and did again before Thursday night's game against the Oilers, that Stewart must understand he has to become a power forward. That means banging into opponents, crashing the net and keeping things simple.
But Stewart, Florida's second pick (25th overall) in the 2003 draft, has yet to fully break into the NHL, forced to settle for occasional call-ups from the AHL - he was called up from Rochester eight times last season.
Stewart, who has played 26 games in four seasons, continued to say he will make the NHL, but hasn't fulfilled that promise. And he'll admit that.
"You guys have been having this conversation with me every year," he said.
Will this training camp be any different? Well, Stewart has impressed Martin. Martin, who in the past has criticized Stewart's fitness, work habits and professionalism, said Thursday Stewart's conditioning is the best it's ever been and so far he's looked the best he ever has in training camp.
"I felt I did everything they wanted me to do in the summer, got down in weight," Stewart said. "So now it's just going to come down to what I do on the ice, not the off-ice issues like that."
"I give him credit. He came down (in July) and he made a commitment," Martin said. "The key for Anthony is to be able to pick up from (Tuesday's) game and get better."
Playing on a line with Rostislav Olesz and Kamil Kreps on Tuesday, he slid the puck across the front of the goal to Olesz for an impressive assist. It's a play Stewart wouldn't have made last season. He admitted he played cautious, hoping not to make a mistake that would be noticed and cost him ice time.
Now, Stewart said, he's playing with more confidence.
Thursday, trying to build on his success, Stewart skated with two AHL players - Steve MacIntyre and Drew Larman - as coach Peter DeBoer wanted to evaluate how 20-year-olds Shawn Matthias and Michael Frolik played flanked by NHLers.
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