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First Posted: 8/14/2014 Anton Zlobin didn&#8217;t sit around much this summer.
In fact, he didn&#8217;t really stay put in one place for long.
A week after the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins were eliminated from the playoffs, Zlobin headed back to Moscow to visit friends and family. While there, he also finished his training at a university to be able to coach.
University training is something you have to do in Russia if you ever want to coach, the 21-year-old Zlobin said.
With his training complete, Zlobin flew to Switzerland where he received some on-ice practice from legendary Russian coach Vladimir Yurzinov. While in Switzerland, Zlobin also worked with Pittsburgh Penguin blueliner Darius Kasparaitis and former NHL player Maxim Afinogenov.
Then it was back to Moscow for 10 more days before leaving for Pittsburgh&#8217;s development camp in mid-July.
And there&#8217;s more.
After development camp ended, Zlobin flew to Shawinigan, Quebec, where he practiced with his old junior team, the Cataractes, and visit his former billet family.
And now, Zlobin finds himself in Wilkes-Barre where he&#8217;s skating daily at the Toyota Sportsplex and working out with Penguins strength and conditioning coach Joe Lorincz.
&#8220;It was a pretty short summer for me,&#8221; Zlobin said on Thursday. &#8220;It&#8217;s always great to come back here. This is a good place to live and a good place to grow as a player.&#8221;
Considering Zlobin spent most of the summer skating - no matter which country he was in, he&#8217;s had plenty of time to improve some areas of his game, specifically one-timers and skating.
And from every stop he made this summer. Zlobin said he gained something that will make him a better hockey player.
Kasparaitis, for example, helped him with his turns and defense. In Shawinigan, Zlobin got to play the role of mentor to Ilya Zinoviev - the lone Russian player on the Cataractes.
And back in Moscow, Zlobin not only trained to be a coach, but he also got on the ice for some pick-up hockey with his old friends.
&#8220;The whole summer has been a good experience. It was good to see my family and play hockey with my friends, and it helped me to work with the guys in Switzerland,&#8221; Zlobin said. &#8220;I want to improve and I hope it all gives me a chance this year to play in the NHL.&#8221;
Zlobin helped those chances with a remarkable playoff run that saw him score 6 goals and 10 points in 15 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. He credits teammates Andrew Ebbett, Chuck Kobasew, Tom Kostopoulos and Jayson Megna for helping him achieve that success, and now Zlobin&#8217;s ready for the next step.
&#8220;Last year was my first in professional hockey, and now I understand it a lot more,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It will only be a few weeks and I&#8217;ll be headed back to Pittsburgh (for training camp), which I&#8217;m excited about. It&#8217;s big to have the chance to skate with guys like (Sidney) Crosby and (Evgeni) Malkin and see how they practice and take care of themselves off the ice.&#8221;

Zlobin travels the world