BOSTON — The opening of training camp is a day celebrated by hockey fans, the annual signal that the sport is finally about to return from its summer hiatus.
But for the players, the first day of camp is the most dreaded. Before they can go back on the ice, they first have to go through a rigorous series of fitness tests, the knowledge of which hangs over their offseason like a dark cloud.
"It's funny, before you do it, you're thinking it's the worst thing ever and you kind of get anxious about it," said Bruins defenseman Mark Stuart after Friday's fitness testing. "But once it's over, you like, 'Oh, that wasn't too bad.' Then it seems like you forget that until next year and you get all anxious and nervous about it all over again."
This year's testing was a bit harder than past seasons. The grueling shuttle runs have been changed slightly, as players now have to have qualifying times in all three runs rather than just an average time under the minimum.
"It wasn't too much harder," said Stuart. "You just have to think a little differently. You can't just kill the first one and take it easy on the other two because of the average. This one you had to be under on every single one, so you have to pace yourself a little bit more. But it wasn't too bad."
It also helps to have gone through the testing a few times before, though even the veterans don't look forward to the process.
"It's a little easier to have that experience, but I still get butterflies beforehand," said Stuart. "I don't know why, I think it's just one of those things. But it's good to be done."
And most of the Bruins managed to get through the testing without any major problems, faring better than their rookie counterparts last weekend.
"They went well," said Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli. "I mentioned this earlier with the rookies, we tweaked the testing a little bit, and the guys all performed. Pretty much all of them passed. We didn’t have as high of a pass ratio with the rookies, but that’s to be understood. It was good."
As for the veterans who didn't pass?
"That stuff stays with us," said Chiarelli. "And internally they are disciplined."
Guess that's why the veterans still get a little apprehensive on the first day of camp every year.
