Even at age 40, Matt Cullen was ready for coach Bruce Boudreau's infamous skate test Friday, on the first day of Wild practice.
"That's not easy," said Cullen, who won back-to-back Stanley Cup titles with Pittsburgh before re-signing with the Wild this offseason.
The test requires players to skate 4-1/2 lengths of the ice within a certain amount of time. They get about two minutes to rest and then must do it again. And then, they do it a third time. Those who don't "pass" are required to do the thing two more times.
That's a total of 22-1/2 lengths of the ice in about 10 minutes. It's seriously painful just to watch. (See the video above.)
Cullen was among those who passed, but several others including forward Chris Stewart had to do all five reps.
"It seems like every coach has their own little signature way of getting you, so to speak," Cullen said. "… I think I may have done this one years ago. I can't remember where. But this was a good one. This was a tough one."
