“What was the one thing I didn’t really do? I only got one shot on goal and it was off my face,” Krebs joked over the phone last week with
The Athletic. “So I said to myself, ‘OK, who has one of the best shots in the NHL? Well,
Max Pacioretty. OK, well, I want to go work with Patches. I want to learn what he does with his shot, and how he works with his stick.’”
Krebs skipped returning home to Alberta for the summer and instead spent his entire offseason in Las Vegas. He worked regularly with Pacioretty, who led the Golden Knights in goals in each of the last two seasons.
“It’s been unreal to be around him and watch how he works,” Krebs said. “This has been my best summer of training in my whole career, so I’m excited to get things rolling.”
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“He’s probably the most driven player I’ve ever been around,” James Patrick, Krebs’ coach with the junior-level Winnipeg Ice, said, “as far as wanting to be better, wanting to be the best, and wanting to play in high-end situations with no fear. He’s confident, but he’s so driven. He puts in the work. In all the years that I had him, there was not a rep of a drill that he ever took off.”
Most mornings this summer, Krebs and Pacioretty began their day with a workout over Zoom with Pacioretty’s personal trainer, Ben Prentiss. After that, the two would meet at City National Arena for on-ice work.
“It’s been unbelievable,” Krebs said. “I can’t thank (Pacioretty) enough for offering to do that. I’ve just been so dialed in. Ben (Prentiss) is an unbelievable trainer, and we’ve been working on some different things that I’ve never done before.”
Not only has Prentiss helped Krebs with daily workouts, but he also designed a personalized diet for the Golden Knights’ top prospect, cutting out things like dairy and gluten.
“I switched my whole diet,” Krebs said. “It hasn’t been easy but I’ve been on it for about a month now and I feel so great.”
