ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Bruce Boudreau era has begun for the Minnesota Wild.

For the players, the demands will be many. The expectations will be as straightforward as can be. The experience also promises to be a lot of fun.

''Sometimes he doesn't even know what's coming out of his mouth when he's talking,'' forward Charlie Coyle said.

The rotund new head coach, well-regarded for his regular-season success, well-known for his profane rants and well-liked for his down-to-earth and self-deprecating manner, formally took over Friday for the first two practices of training camp. The squad split into two groups and, in addition to plenty of time with the white board picking up Boudreau's defensive scheme, went through a grueling conditioning test during which skaters had to complete several laps around the rink under certain times.

The drills were no joke, but Boudreau made sure to keep the mood light even while barking encouragement to the participants.

''We're huffing and puffing,'' Coyle said, ''and he's still making us laugh.''

NHL training camps began about a week later than usual because of the World Cup of Hockey, and six Wild players were given a break for the first three days in their transition back home from competition: forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter from Team USA, forwards Mikko Koivu, Mikael Granlund and Erik Haula of Team Finland and forward Nino Niederreiter of Team Europe. Only Niederreiter's team is still alive in the tournament, so he could be delayed further.

The learning process won't wait, though.

''We want to ramp it up as quick as we can. We want to have a lot of pace in our practice. It's a real mixture, because we have to teach at the same time. It's not going to be like a practice in December,'' Boudreau said. ''At the same time, we don't want anything slow. We want a lot of moving parts.''

The first exhibition game is on Monday against Buffalo in State College, Pennsylvania, and the season opener is Oct. 13 at St. Louis. That's less than three weeks away. Hence the hard work on the first day, even though players train year-round these days and don't typically need to get back into shape.

''Everyone's just excited to get this thing going and start playing some real hockey,'' defenseman Matt Dumba said.

There will be differences in style, for sure.

''I think they're still trying to figure me out. `What's this guy like? He seems to be smiling a little too much.' Or, `He's joking around with me. Is he really joking or is he sarcastic?''' Boudreau said. ''I think it takes a little bit of time for guys to get to know me.''

Impressions are there to be made for the players, most of whom have never played for Boudreau before.

''Everyone's here to get a job and knock people out of their jobs, so everyone came prepared,'' Coyle said. ''It's good to see that intensity and that competition right away.''

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P.K. Subban will not be on the ice when the Nashville Predators begin the on-ice portion of training camp Saturday morning.

The dynamic defenseman is dealing with an upper-body injury, and will be re-evaluated when the team returns from its preseason opener in Florida on Tuesday night.

"I've just been a little bit sore lately, so we're just going to take our time and make sure," Subban said Friday, according to Adam Vingan of the Tennessean.

"I came in a couple days to skate early. Just a little bit sore, so we're going to see how I feel."

Subban, who came to the Predators in a stunning one-for-one swap involving former captain Shea Weber, missed the final 14 games last year with the Montreal Canadiens while nursing a neck injury.

Nashville will be in Columbus on Thursday for its second preseason game.

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TORONTO - Brooks Laich has seen top draft picks blossom in the NHL.

With the Washington Capitals, he watched Alex Ovechkin burst onto the scene in 2005. Now with the Toronto Maple Leafs some 11 years later, he has a ringside seat for Auston Matthews' debut.

The 19-year-old forward, the No. 1 overall pick this summer, turned heads at the World Cup of Hockey on a Team North American line with Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele.

''It puts a big smile on your face,'' Laich, a 12-year veteran, said about watching Matthews. ''I see a lot of little things in his game, habits that you don't generally see in young players.''

Those include his positioning, the way he competes for the puck and his shot release. From Scottsdale, Arizona, Matthews played last season in Switzerland.

Leafs center Nazem Kadri has also seen Matthews play from the Air Canada Centre stands.

''(He's) obviously high-level skill,'' he said. ''(He) can skate, he's big. So he's only going to get better. Obviously, with that 82-game season, it's going to be a little difficult but I think he's going to be more than ready for it.''

Leafs management already likes what it sees.

''There's no question he has a bright future,'' GM Lou Lamoriello said. ''It's just exciting to see him play. But I think the most exciting thing is to know he's ours.''

Laich reminded reporters asking about Matthews that the team comes first.

''This isn't an individual sport,'' he said. ''This isn't a tennis or a golf where everything comes down to one person. Auston's a great player from what I've seen. But there's also going to be 22 other great players in this room.

''So as a young guy, he's got enough pressure on himself. He puts, I'm sure, enough pressure on himself. You don't get to be where he is already without having an internal drive like that. So we don't need to put anything else on him. We want to make him a member of the team, we want to treat him like the other 22 guys.''

''The logo comes first. I'm sure Auston will tell you that.''

The Leafs begin on-ice activities at training camp Friday in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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TORONTO - Daniel Sedin knows the World Cup of Hockey may be his final chance to represent Sweden at a best-on-best tournament along with twin brother Henrik.

With that in mind, there's no shortage of motivation for the 35-year-old Vancouver Canucks forwards heading into Sunday's semifinal meeting with Team Europe.

''We realize as we get older there's not going to be a lot of these tournaments moving forward,'' Daniel Sedin said. ''We don't know about the (2018) Olympics yet, but we're enjoying this. We're having a lot of fun and getting a chance to play in the semifinals, it was tough getting here.

''We're enjoying every day and we'll have some fun on Sunday.''

The last time Sweden won gold at a best-on-best tournament was the 2006 Olympics in Turin. Sweden lost to Canada in the gold medal game at the 2014 Sochi Games.

Sweden won its round-robin opener at the World Cup 2-1 against Russia on Sunday and blanked Finland 2-0 on Wednesday before falling 4-3 in overtime to Team North America on Wednesday.

The Swedes are hoping to learn from their loss against the Under-23 team moving forward. They were thoroughly outplayed early, quickly going down 2-0 before rallying to force overtime.

''I think we can definitely learn (about) being ready when the puck drops, those first 10 minutes were pretty embarrassing from our part,'' said defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson. ''The Europeans have some speed in their lineup as well so we have to be ready when the puck drops. We weren't ready for Team North America, but somehow we managed to a big comeback there.''

After losing the first two pre-tournament games by a combined 11-4 score to the North Americans, Team Europe bounced back to defeat Sweden 6-2 in its final tune up game.

''They surprised us a little bit in the exhibition game, but they won't surprise us on Sunday,'' Sedin said. ''They wait for you to make mistakes, and then they create offence from that. We've got to be careful on Sunday. We can't just go on offence like we did in that pre-tournament game.

''I think our defense was jumping a little bit too much and got too involved in the offense. I think we have to respect their forwards.''

Team Europe, made up of players from eight different countries, stunned the Americans 3-0 in the tournament opener and defeated the Czechs 3-2 in overtime before falling 4-1 to the Canadians on Wednesday.

European captain Anze Kopitar pointed to the second period of the pre-tournament game against Team North America in Montreal as the turning point for the team of players unfamiliar with playing with one another.

''I think the first period in Montreal really opened our eyes and we really showed ourselves how we don't want to play,'' Kopitar said of the second pre-tournament game. ''After that, we kind of realized how we have to play: smart (and) with a lot of patience, there's no flash to it. We're playing a boring style of hockey, but it's turned out to be a pretty successful one so we're obviously proud in doing that and we're going to continue doing that.''

The winner of Saturday's Canada-Russia semifinal will play the winner of Sweden-Europe in a best-of-three final beginning on Tuesday.

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Ottawa Senators fans who appreciate a little contact can savor this.

Here's Christian Jaros, a fifth-round draft pick of Ottawa in 2015, absolutely obliterating a moving target with a bone-shattering hip check in a Swedish Hockey League contest Friday night.

That's ... wow.

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Tomas Fleischmann might not be in camp with the Minnesota Wild after all.

Fleischmann failed his physical, coach Bruce Boudreau confirmed Friday with Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

It's unknown if the failed test is related to the veteran forward's previous cardiovascular issues, and he's continuing to undergo testing, Boudreau said.

Fleischmann scored 14 goals and 25 points in 76 games last season split between the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks.

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Rick Nash has brought a rookie mentality to his 14th NHL training camp.

After a summer as the subject of trade rumors, but in the end no handshake between teams, Nash said Friday that he's treating camp as a proving ground, and an opportunity to convince the New York Rangers that he still belongs.

"As I get to the tail end of my career, especially after the year I had last year, I have to show I belong on this team," Nash said, according to Steve Zipay of Newsday.

"I can't speak for other guys, but I truly feel that way. You look at the numbers and you have so many forwards, you know there's going to be big moves that are going to be made. For me, I want to be a Ranger, I want to be in New York, so that's all I'm worried about."

Beset with injuries and battling inconsistencies, Nash followed up the 2014-15 season - in which he scored a league-best 29 even-strength goals - with the worst statistical campaign of his career, scoring 15 times and totaling 36 points.

Set to earn $7.8 million from New York for the next two seasons, it's possible that even a return to form won't necessarily save the veteran forward, though he does hold a protection clause. The Rangers have been taking steps to recycle their roster and alleviate cap pressures, most notably by trading Derick Brassard to the Ottawa Senators for Mika Zibanejad.

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On the Fly, theScore's NHL roundtable series, continues with another World Cup installment. Below are the five players that have impressed us the most.

Razor

Josh Gold-Smith: Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, and Johnny Gaudreau have garnered most of the attention for Team North America, but Nathan MacKinnon has unquestionably been one of the World Cup's most exciting players.

The 21-year-old forward scored a sublime overtime winner to stun Sweden on Wednesday, showing off his remarkable hands with a series of moves before roofing a backhand past Henrik Lundqvist.

Only Canada's Patrice Bergeron had more shots on goal than MacKinnon in round-robin play. The Colorado Avalanche star notched a pair of goals and an assist in three games, and he's proving he belongs among the game's elite playmakers.

Johnny Hockey

Justin Cuthbert: Everything the United States lacked at the World Cup, 23-year-old New Jersey native Gaudreau provided North America.

His outrageous skill, speed, and shiftiness pairing perfectly with MacKinnon's power brand, Gaudreau was the No. 1 option behind the McDavid unit, and responded with maximum impact.

The Calgary Flames most certainly wish they'd signed the superstar to a long-term contract before putting him on a flight to Toronto after Gaudreau scored twice in three games and tied for the team lead in points. What's more, he was responsible for so many spectacular moments, including his complete undressing of Lundqvist and the backcheck in 3-on-3 overtime that set MacKinnon up for a goal that was enough to validate the hybrid experiment by itself.

USA Hockey's in a rough spot, but there are splendid days ahead with Gaudreau on the come-up.

Auston 416

Navin Vaswani: Take a minute Friday to remember that Matthews deked the hell out of Victor Hedman from his knees. Victor Hedman! From his knees!

In his first competition against the NHL's best, Matthews finished his tournament with two goals and an assist in three games. Only five players had more points through round-robin play, and none had more than four. So, yes, Matthews did finish tied for second in tournament scoring.

Playing in Toronto for the first time and on the first line with McDavid, Matthews proved he's got no time for pressure - and that he has some hands on him. The Toronto Maple Leafs have something here. The only question is whether they screw it up.

Sid

Craig Hagerman: Sidney Crosby is doing something he hasn't done in almost six years: producing in a best-on-best tournament.

Not since he scored his iconic Golden Goal at the 2010 Olympics have we seen the best player in the world wreak havoc in best-on-best play. Crosby was limited to three points in six games in Sochi, a total he's already surpassed through three contests, and his four points are tied for most in the tournament.

Crosby has developed impeccable chemistry with his Boston Bruins linemates Bergeron and Brad Marchand, and together the trio has proven to be one of the more lethal lines in the tournament, combining for nine points.

The King

Sean O'Leary: Goalies need some love too.

New York Rangers fans ought to be excited about the way Lundqvist has started his season, as he's been the difference-maker in two starts for Sweden.

He kicked his tournament off with a 36-save shutout versus archrival Finland and, one day later, made 45 saves in an overtime loss to North America that guaranteed Sweden top spot in Group B.

The King, now 34, is in vintage form, and looks to have shaken off the rust from an uncharacteristic playoff performance. He's definitely not the flashiest player in the tournament, but he's simply getting it done - the way he always has.

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For Tyler Johnson, it was a helpless feeling.

The American forward watched as the United States went winless in the World Cup, and that was the problem - he was watching.

"I wish I could have been there," Johnson said, writes the Tampa Bay Times' Joe Smith. "I wish I could have played, but that's their decision."

The U.S. braintrust took a lot of heat this week for its roster decisions, emphasizing grit and intangibles over speed and talent, both which Johnson possesses in abundance.

Johnson pointed out that the World Cup is a short tournament, anything can happen, especially when the best players in the world are involved. Even though he wasn't on the team, he wanted the U.S. to succeed.

Now the focus shifts to the regular season, and Johnson's looking to bounce back. After breaking out in 2014-15 with 72 points, he scored only 14 goals last season, finishing with a career-low 38 points in 69 games.

Injuries played a part, but Johnson's looking to have a big 2016-17 and - if NHLers are involved - make a case for himself to be on the U.S. Olympic team in 2018.

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