"He's got a new head coach and a healthy Zach Parise, but Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello seems most excited about the team's corps of defenseman as training camp is set to open.

Rookies report for physicals Thursday morning. Veterans take their medicals on Friday with the rookies having two on-ice sessions that day. Veterans hit the ice on Saturday.

There will be three groups on Saturday and Sunday, with the first intra-squad scrimmage on Monday.

"What I'm excited about is the defense, which was sort of an area we looked at last year," Lamoriello said at the team's annual golf tournament today at Upper Montclair Country Club. "(I look at) the young defenseman and also the veterans, and certainly Bryce Salvador has the potential of being healthy after what he's gone through this summer to get ready and how he looks now.

"You have (Anton) Volchenkov and (Henrik) Tallinder being here for a year now. Anton stayed here all summer. With Tallinder's play in the second half and Andy Greene it's stabilized with four veterans. (Matt) Taormina is healthy. We'll see where he is at. There's (Mark) Fayne and (Anton) Stralman made a decision to come to camp. He's an NHL player."