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Fresh start? Lecavalier starts camp back at center

Philadelphia Flyers v Carolina Hurricanes

Vincent Lecavalier

NHLI via Getty Images

Vincent Lecavalier said back in July that he just wanted to get his chance. Looks like new bench boss Dave Hakstol is giving it to him.

While the lines in the first day of training camp have to be taken with a grain of salt, it was nevertheless noteworthy to see Lecavalier playing up the middle with two other veterans going into this season with a lot to prove -- R.J. Umberger and Sam Gagner -- serving as his wingers.

“Nothing is set in stone,” Flyers coach Dave Hakstol told CSN Philly. “You don’t have a lot of time to try multiple, different things. We’ll try some different things and look at some different things knowing we have limited opportunity to do that.”

In other words, Lecavalier might not get a lot of chances to prove that he’s still capable of playing in his traditional position of center. Former bench boss Craig Berube often used Lecavalier as a winger and defended his decision by stating, “In the middle of the ice in our system, it’s a lot of work. You have to skate and get back and play both ends of the ice.”

And keep in mind, around this time last year we were writing about Lecavalier’s relief to start the season at center after being used as a winger in 2013-14.

So perhaps this is a matter of history repeating itself, but at least Lecavalier is getting another chance.