USA Hockey Magazine

40 // SEPTEMBER 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM He just wanted them to enjoy the game that he played. Still, he marvels at his three grandsons—a second generation of Cullens loving the game as much as Gramps ever did. "I'm just thrilled to be along for the ride," Terry said. "I'm so proud of what they've all accomplished, as a dad, as a grandparent." That Matt's three boys grew up to become high-level players and serious NHL prospects was almost preordained. Of course, it started back at the home Matt grew up in, in Moorhead. Typical of any hockey home, the house was strewn with skates and pads, puck marks on the basement walls. Terry added boards and flood lights to his backyard rink. He spent hours in the car driving to games and tour- naments and coached all three of his sons at Moorhead High School. Family dinners were often paused for Terry to pull out a pen and diagram plays on napkins. Matt, Mark and Joe were so into hockey they started working out together, for hours, always trying to outdo each other. At one point, they video-taped each other to improve their skating strides — back in an era when video recorders were rare and usually the size of a microwave. " We pulled each other with tow ropes, just finding ways to get faster and improve our strides," Matt recalled. That same type of environment—crazy hockey house, gear all over the place, rink out back, a desire to improve— developed in the home Matt and his wife, Bridget, created for Brooks, Wyatt, and Joey. But this time, it was on an NHL scale. The three boys were around NHL players and rinks from the time they could walk. Matt was playing in Pittsburgh, Bridget hired a teacher and had the boys schooled at the Pens' practice facility, so they could get more time with both mom and dad. They were on the ice almost every day, often under the direction of NHL club's skills coach, sometimes with a guy named Crosby. During the playoffs, Matt would pull out the Penguins' scouting reports and he, Bridget, and the boys would study goalie tendencies and power-play schemes. Without being tied to a local school, they were free to join Matt on road trips. And twice they got to be on the ice when their father lifted the Cup with his Pittsburgh teammates. PHOTOS BY Getty Images; Images On Ice We just loved hockey. Our dad loved it. We were on the ice all the time. We played together all the time. We just had a great childhood." — M A T T C U L L E N WYATT CULLEN Wyatt Cullen recorded 45 points (16G, 29A) with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program in 2025-26. WATCH: Wyatt Cullen joins NHL Tonight to talk NHL Draft, his season with the USNTDP and more sK6d6QVDJ_Y

• Cover