BostonBruins.com – Boston Bruins defenseman Dennis Seidenberg no longer has to worry about shutting down opposing forwards, but that doesn’t mean his work is getting any easier.

Seidenberg

Seidenberg and his wife, Rebecca, just recently added a baby boy, Breaker, to a family that already includes daughters Story and Noah Grace. The new addition adds a silver lining to the end of the Bruins season, but the Bruins defenseman hinted that he would still rather be on the ice.

“There’s been a lot of parenting going on on my part, which I haven’t been able to do throughout the season, so that’s a good thing,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun but, on the other hand, it would have been nicer to still be playing.”

Aside from parenting, Seidenberg’s summer plans also include some traveling with his wife and children.

“We as a family [are going] down to Florida for a month, which is going to be nice. We get to enjoy the water, the beach, and just get away from everything for a bit.”

Seidenberg also noted how strange it is to be away from his other family, his Bruins teammates. However, he has been able to catch up with a few teammates during the offseason to show support for the Celtics and Red Sox.

“We’ve gone to a couple basketball games, we’re going to baseball games, so we still hang out once in a while, but for the most part, we’re on our own.”

Known for his exceptional conditioning and training regimen, it comes as no surprise that Seidenberg is already fitting workouts into his offseason schedule. His goal this summer is to fine-tune all aspects of his game.

“Right now it’s just a matter of getting better and still getting faster, getting more explosive on the ice and getting better balance, stability,” he said. “It’s a whole lot of things I’m looking to get better in, and it’s always a challenge every summer.”

While his teammates may think his intense training seems reminiscent of Ivan Drago from Rocky IV, Seidenberg assures that his workouts are only aimed at improving his play on the ice.

“I’m not planning on becoming a boxer or fighter,” he joked. “It’s all hockey-related.”

The 30-year-old from Villingen, Germany says that watching the playoffs from home provides him with all the motivation he needs to step up his game.

“Sitting at home and not doing anything and just feeling lazy, you don’t want that to happen again,” he said. “It definitely helps getting hungry again, and I’m sure…that we are going to be better next year.”

Even with the motivation from the playoffs, Seidenberg isn’t focused on September, when the Bruins are set to open up training camp for the 2012-13 season.

“To be honest, I haven’t really thought about camp yet,” he said. “It’s still three or four months away and right now I’m just looking forward to [getting] back into the workout mode…and once that happens, I’m looking forward to camp.”

---Travis Basciotta