After he refused to leave the bench following his dismissal, NHL suspends Flyers coach John Tortorella for two games.
Following his dismissal from Saturday’s 7-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, head coach John Tortorella of the Philadelphia Flyers refused to come off the bench. As a result, the NHL suspended him for two games.
The league cited Tortorella’s “unprofessional conduct directed at the referees by refusing to leave the bench area after being issued a game misconduct” as justification for the suspension, which came with a $50,000 fine.
Less than eleven minutes into the game, Tampa Bay had taken a 4-0 lead. The event happened during the first period on Saturday. Following Tampa Bay’s fourth goal, referee Wes McCauley called a game misconduct against Tortorella, which carries an automatic ejection. Before the Lightning’s power, Tortorella had contested a tripping penalty.
I am not,” Tortorella seemed to say to McCauley, muttering a few expletives. He refused to get off the bench and kept talking to the referees. He eventually gave up after almost two minutes and headed back into the tunnel.
The event happened in Tampa during the Lightning’s celebration of their Stanley Cup-winning squad from 2003–04, which Tortorella coached. Players from that championship team who were present laughed and watched from their box while their former coach scolded officials.
Tortorella will not play on Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks and on Thursday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. With 17 games left on their schedule, the 33-24-8 Flyers are in third place in the Metropolitan Division and in position to make the playoffs.
