USA Hockey raised some eyebrows when it named John Tortorella head coach of its 2016 World Cup of Hockey team.
While the Boston-born coach carries a 446-375-115 record over parts of 14 NHL seasons, it’s his penchant for battling reporters in post-game press conferences and occasionally opposing teams in the hallway that stand out as some of his most memorable moments.
Tortorella has not coached in the NHL since the 2013-14 season when he was in his first campaign with the Vancouver Canucks. That marriage did not last long, although Tortorella continues to collect a handsome paycheque from the Canucks.
With the former Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers, and Canucks coach set to step behind a bench once again, one thing is certain… we shall be entertained. Here’s a collection of some of the mercurial 57-year-old’s most memorable quotes.
1. “I deserved to get fired.” – Tortorella in February of 2015 on his dismissal as Canucks head coach.
2. “I focus on the dumbness of Hagelin… He played a hell of a game but that’s all washed off from dumbness.” – Tortorella on former New York Rangers forward Carl Hagelin following a game in which he took a too-many-men on the ice penalty.
3. “Because he stinks on the power play. He stinks. I don’t know why. I wish I could put him on the power play, but every time I put him on, he stinks.” – Tortorella in 2013 on familiar target Hagelin and why he refrained from using him with a man-advantage.
4. “It’s a cheap, dirty hit. I wonder what would happen if we did it to their two whining stars over there. I wonder what would happen. So I’m anxious to see what happens with the league with this. Just not respect amongst players. None. It’s sickening.” – On Pittsbugh Penguins stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin following a 2012 game where Brooks Orpik delivered a knee-on-knee hit to Rangers forward Derek Stepan. Tortorella was fined $20,000 for his comments.
5. “I’m not Mike. You’re done. You are done. Go ahead, a–hole.” – Tortorella playfully responding to a reporter who mistakingly called him Mike during a Canucks locker clean out press conference.
6. “I’m not sure if NBC got together with the refs or what to turn this into an overtime game. For two good refs, I thought the game was reffed horribly. I’m not sure what happened there.” – On the officiating at the 2012 Winter Classic game between the Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers. Tortorella was fined $30,000 for his comments.
7. “This is a Conn Smythe winner, a guy I grew up with, a guy that I love as a person and a player. But I have to make that decision regarding this, so kiss my ass if you want to write something different.” – Tortorella defending Brad Richards, who he made a healthy scratch in the 2011 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Boston Bruins.
8. “Some of you [reporters] sit here and tell me I’m curt or whatever. I’m not going to have a staring contest. If you don’t ask me questions, I’ll just leave.” – Tortorella’s response when he was asked why his answers were so short following a Rangers’ playoff loss to the Washington Capitals in 2012.
9. “I thought that little [expletive] Benn Ferriero played well.” – On 5-foot-11 winger Benn Ferriero following a Canucks win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2013-14.
10. “You were probably beat up at the bus stop most of the time.” – Tortorella to New York Post reporter Larry Brooks in 2010. The two men infamously traded barbs in press conferences during Tortorella’s five-year tenure with the Rangers.
