"He told you so. Alain Vigneault was dismissive about the notion of a short summer hurting physical preparation for another National Hockey League endurance test, and now the Vancouver Canucks' coach has evidence to support his case.

Led by superhuman Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Canucks veterans arrived at training camp in even better physical condition than a year ago.

"So there goes that theory about the short summer," Vigneault crowed Saturday after getting test results from Canucks conditioning guru Roger Takahashi.

The twins are fitness freaks, guys who beat the gondola up Vancouver's Grouse Mountain and spend their summers challenging each other to things like uphill sprints on rollerblades while carrying free weights the size of manhole covers. Most National Hockey League players are fitness freaks. The competition for jobs, financial stakes and evermore vigilant and demanding employers force players to work almost as hard in summer as they do in winter."