Staff file photo / Brian Yauger Youngstown Phantoms defenseman Tory Pitner (17) makes a play on the puck during a 2023 contest against Tri-City.

While injuries derailed much of his sophomore season, former Youngstown Phantoms defenseman Tory Pitner was cleared for his third collegiate season.

His 2026-27 campaign officially kicked off last week as the blueliner participated at the Colorado Avalanche’s development camp. It was the first time he’s skated without a no-contact jersey since suffering his second injury of the season back in February.

“It was the first time that I skated full-contact since getting hurt the second time this year, so it was super cool for me to be back out there and, I guess, feel like a normal player again without having a no-contact jersey on,” Pitner said. “So it was super cool. I enjoyed the experience. Colorado does a great job, and they have great development staff, so did a lot of good stuff. Definitely a hard week, had some hard skates and some other stuff, but it was good. I really enjoyed it.”

Even though Pitner wasn’t on the ice much for Denver’s national championship, there’s plenty to learn from being around a championship group. His time in Youngstown and now in Denver taught him a lot about winning when it counts.

“I feel like it’s definitely been a great experience. We’ve gone on deep runs both years I’ve been here, and you get to see what it looks like to be at those stages,” Pitner said. “You get to feel what the pressure of those games feels like, and I feel like it’s just a great experience for later in my career, when I am healthy. Being able to be in those situations myself, and know what it feels like to you, the moment doesn’t feel too big, so it’s just great to kind of get that experience and go through it. Whether it’s as a younger guy or as someone that’s injured, but obviously, you always want to win, but being able to do that at any level is great.”

Pitner has the benefit of learning from one of the best minds in hockey. Denver coach David Carle, who also was a defenseman during his playing days, has one of the strongest resumes in coaching. With three national titles and a pair of World Junior gold medals to his name, Pitner is thrilled to have Carle to learn under.

Trusting the “proscess” — referencing Carle’s misspelling of “process” — has become the team’s mantra. With the ups and downs of Pitner’s college career so far, there may be no better coach to grow under.

“Obviously, I haven’t been able to show as much (of what I’ve learned) in the games, but I feel like he’s a great guy to learn from. Obviously, an unbelievable hockey mind, one of the best outside the NHL right now,” Pitner said of his coach. “I’ve just been taking different things from him, whether it’s in practice or different pre-scouts of different teams, and seeing the way his brain thinks, and trying to pick up tips and tricks from that. He’s always been good for me to learn from and listen to.”

Being located in the same city as the NHL team that drafted you has its perks.

In addition to not having to commute to development camp, Pitner is also in close proximity to the NHL players who stay in the city. Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews is one of those players. Toews trains at the university and has connected with the Pioneers players.

“He works out down at DU as well, so we see him here sometimes,” Pitner said. “Just getting to pick up different things from him, or getting a text from him saying ‘congratulations’ or just different advice here and there. He’s been great to have here, obviously. He’s an Olympic and NHL-caliber defenseman, so it’s super cool to be able to pick his brain. Watching him skate, watching him workout, seeing the way he goes about his business and kind of just picking up anything I can from him. He’s been awesome.”

As an upperclassman, the question of Pitner’s path post-college has begun. Due to missing much of his sophomore season, however, development at the college level is still at the forefront.

“We have talked about it a little bit (at development camp), about what the next step looks like. I feel like that’d be after my senior year,” Pitner said. “Mostly it’s just kind of focusing on development, getting healthy and getting some games in under my belt to kind of focus on that development side. All the stuff that I learned from camp, all the stuff that I learned from David Carle and Dallas Ferguson, our defense coach, just being able to put all that practice into action. I’m really just looking forward to getting (to play) games this year, and kind of just focusing on that right now.”

Pitner and the Pioneers start the season off with a road trip. Denver is scheduled to face the University of Alaska Anchorage in a two game series starting on Oct. 2.

If Pitner has two goals this year, they’re simple. Win and stay healthy.

“The main goal, obviously, is to go back-to-back as national champions. Being at Denver, that’s the standard, and that’s the expectation that when you come here. You’re coming here to win,” Pitner said. “That’s a big thing for us as a team. I think, for me personally, just being able to put some of that development into action, playing in some of the games, feeling healthy again and getting out there and really showing what I can do on the ice again, something that I haven’t really gotten the opportunity to do a lot of. I’m really just looking forward to that. Having a good season and winning another national championship, that’d be pretty ideal for me.”