John Tortorella Has A Conditioning Drill So Notoriously Brutal The Flyers Made A Video About It

NHL camps got underway this week, and while for some players there's a real first-day-of-school feeling, the Philadelphia Flyers could probably think about only a giant piece of rope owned by their head coach John Tortorella.

That's because the conditioning drill that Tortorella has created using that rope has become infamous around the National Hockey League. So much so, that the Flyers made some sweet, sweet social media content about it.

Although, the genesis of the rope itself isn't as exciting as you'd think… even when you'd assume that a story about a rope would be a little dull in the first place.

"I needed something for them to skate around on the ice, so I put it between the nets," Torts explained. "That's how the rope came about."

The drill itself isn't too complicated either. The nets are tied together, starting close, and then are gradually pushed toward opposite ends of the ice as skaters complete laps. At the end, the rope is completely stretched while the nets are at the ends of the ice and the players are left lying on their backs, completely out of gas.

As you could see in that video, none of the Flyers veterans like forward Travis Konecny were too jazzed about having to complete the drill, and defenseman Jamie Drysdale — who was acquired in the middle of last season — didn't seem too pumped about getting a taste of the rope this year.

According to Torts, he makes the rope drill so excruciatingly difficult  that it makes players think about it during the summer, which would mean they keep up with training so they're not in agony come mid-September.

"That's the biggest reason for it," Tortorella said, adding that he also uses it to gauge how players handle tough situations.

The Flyers open their preseason slate on Sunday against the Washington Capitals, while their regular season begins with a West Coast road trip that kicks off in Vancouver on October 11.