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King · 10-28-2018, 10:10 PM

There's a life cycle to being drafted to the SMJHL. You're a prospect, you sit you wait, and eventually the day comes and you get drafted. You work your way through your rookie season and try to earn your ice. Eventually you become established as an SMJHL regular, and when your time comes you get drafted to the SHL.

In this cycle the rookies are burdened with paying there dues and the veterans are given the responsibility to mentor the next crop. Leshaun King takes this to heart, and will invite different rookies to join them for a skate. Today TSN followed King with top prospect Cassius Darrow @hhh81 as they spent the weekend training at his summer house in Halifax.

TSN: So Leshaun, how did you and Cassius set this up?

Leshaun: Honestly he's a great guy, I value character over anything else, and if you have that and if you work hard, good things happen in your career. So it's special to get to train with these young guys before they become something special in the SHL. Also I like working out with different guys, with different young and veteran talent, cause you can always add things to your game, and learn from others. Just need to stay humble and learn from everyone.

TSN: And Cassisus, what's this weekend sort of mean to you?

Cassius: I mean I'm a competitive guy, I don't take kindly to people half-assing it, even when it comes to practising. King is obviously a hard worker, he's gotten to where he is cause of his work ethic, so he's the kind of guy I want to be competing with. You have to respect people who hussle and get better every day.

TSN: How has getting along been so far?

Leshaun: I mean, Cassius and I both don't really care for drama or attention. Just pretty low key. So it's been really easy to work together.

Start: 6:00 am

Nothing bad happens at 6:00 am. So the boys got up bright and early. "Xena is still in bed, she's not a morning person so I let her sleep as we get some breakfast." - Leshaun

"For breakfast we have three eggs, some ezekiel bread, pumpkin seed butter and a banana. Have a glass of whole milk to wash it down." - Cassius. The boys scarfed down there breakfast and got ready for there morning work out, today is a purely off ice training. Leshaun used his first contract money to build the summer house with a fully decked gym attached, and next to a lake.

On the dock for the first workout the boys have 3 x power clean (205 lbs) Every Minute on the Minute for 10 minutes. Then rest 5 minutes and followed by 15 min as many reps as possible of 5x pull ups, 10 x push ups, 15 body weight squats. Thirty minutes is all it took for the guys to get a sweat going. "My God this kid doesn't quit." - Leshaun. "I thought he was done when he threw up, but he just let it spew and kept going." The boys dropped the weight and headed to the lake to cool off. A relax swim to cool off and a recovery snack, Leshaun's favourite mashed sweet potatoes with blueberries. "Everything Leshaun eats tastes terrible." - Cassius laughs. "I have weird taste, and I'm currently doing no sugar and no refined carbs." - Leshaun "So the food can only taste so good." The guys finished there wamr up and got ready for some post warm up rehad. The guys grabbed a resistance band and a few plates and brings them into a corner. For the next 30-or-so minutes, they proceed to do mobility exercises—including BOSU eccentric lunges, banded single-leg swings, and single-leg deadlifts—as a part of some meniscus rehab. Then it was off to work out number two.

Workout 1, 9:30 am

The guys warmed up with a minute on the bike, ten single arm standing shoulder presses, ten suitcase deadlifts, a minute of planks and for three rounds. Once the warm up was done they got into cycles of fifty muscle ups, a handstand hold, 50 reps on the bench press, d-ball holds, fifty d-ball throws and dead hang pull ups. After the work out was done Leshaun took a jab at Cassisus being tired, so Cassisus suggested squating for max weight. The guys went back and forth, legs feeling like jello but both too stubborn to stop.

"The second snack was Cassius's choice, and these kids with there fast metabolisms. I think we have a... "funkey monkey" " - Leshaun "Don't hate it till you try it! Okay, a funkey monkey is whole milk, chocolate protein powder, some organic peanut butter and a banana. A litre of this and you're recharged and ready to go for another workout." - Cassisus. The boys had there drinks and moved to do a bit of physical therapy. An hour with the trainer, a session on the bike and then an ice bath.

Lunch, 12:30 am

For lunch the guys went to the only good sushi bar in Halifax. Lunch was filled with talk of hockey and what to expect in your first season in the SMJHL. "The GM's in Colorado are great guys, love them both and they'll make life good for you in Denver." One of the few councils King shared. The boys enjoyed a lunch of salmon sashimi and green dragon rolls. Then went to let the meal digest while they played some NHL. Cassius mopped the floor with King. "I don't like losing at anything" - Cassius. Well after the meal digested the pair took an evening nap and woke up ready for the second work out.

Workout 2, 4:30 pm

The second workout consisted of a benching pyramid. Starting with low weight, 12 reps, then up the weight for 10 reps, and so forth to 2 reps, then worked there way back down. Then the boys did the same with tricep dips, and layers of chains. High rep with no chains, add one chain, then another then another etc.. this time each trying to out do the other. Finished up with a core circuit, medicine ball throws, ab rollers, the works. They finished with a recovery shake and headed home. The boys then hit up some cardio, an extended run, some swimming, and a bike ride. Which wrapped up a full day of training. The guys then headed home showered and changed picked up Xena @Nickleback_lover69 and met up with some of the Halifax boys who are already back in town for training camp, Vince Reaper @ViN and Richard Metcalf Jr. @Lazyeye. The guys went out to dinner, and after Leshaun showed Cassius how to train like a pro, Vince and Rich showed Cassius how to drink like one. A steak dinner, and then rounds of drinks, at this point the TSN group had to leave the guys to do there thing. But we're sure there will be many more training days between these guys to come.

1220 words x2 for SMJHL rookie