Gabriel Landeskog and Duncan Siemens got their first visit to the Avalanche dressing room this morning. Though both seemed a bit tired from constant travel of late, their eyes widened with excitement with their first visit.
“I heard Peter Forsberg used to sit right over there in the middle,” said Landeskog, pointing to where his boyhood idol had a locker with the Avs.
The Avs introduced their first-round picks from the NHL draft at the Pepsi Center today. Both players will leave town tonight, Landeskog back to Toronto for a couple weeks of intense workouts with a trainer and Siemens back home to Sherwood Park, Alberta, for much of the same.
They both will return to Denver for Avalanche rookie development camp starting July 11, though it will mostly be an orientation and off-ice workout regimen. They will return to Denver after that for training camp in September.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet, but it’s an honor to be here and in this dressing room,” said the 17-year-old Siemens, a 6-foot-3, 197-pound defenseman who was selected 11th overall Friday.
The 18-year-old Landeskog, selected second overall, wants to come into camp in prime shape for what he hopes will be a full season playing at left wing with the Avs.
“That will be my goal,” he said.
For both players, it was their first visit to Denver.
“It’s a beautiful city,” they each said.
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com
