Following John Tortorella`s departure as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers, details are emerging about the circumstances surrounding his firing.
According to Kevin Kurz of The Athletic, a post-game disagreement between Tortorella and Flyers defenseman Cam York contributed to the decision to let the coach go.
In Tuesday`s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, York was notably benched for the majority of the game, sitting out the final 50 minutes.
Kurz indicates that after this game, a verbal altercation, not physical, occurred between York and Tortorella, with sources suggesting that both individuals may have overstepped boundaries during the exchange.
Tortorella`s firing was announced on Thursday. Interestingly, York was also held out of Thursday`s game against the Montreal Canadiens, officially listed as a `scratch`. While dressed for the game, York remained on the bench due to the team`s limited player availability.
When questioned on Friday about being benched on Thursday, York avoided going into specifics about the situation.
York stated, “I’m not going to get into the details of it. I will say this, I take full responsibility for my actions. It’s been addressed here in the locker room. It’s something that I’m going to put behind me and move on from. We’ve got eight games left here and that’s my focus right now. We’ll leave it at that.”
Regarding his relationship with Tortorella, York spoke positively of his former coach.
York commented to reporters, `I have nothing bad to say. He taught me a lot of really good things and was a really good coach for me. I’m going to use a lot of the things that he taught me down the road in my career. He’s a really good coach, and I wish him the best of luck down the road.”
According to Kurz`s report, this verbal exchange, along with Tortorella`s post-game remarks after the 7-2 loss to Toronto, influenced the Flyers` organization to part ways with the experienced coach.
Tristan Blackwood