John Tortorella: It took 30 seconds before he found out he was losing his job

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John Tortorella: It took 30 seconds before he found out he was losing his job
Credit: YouTube

At the end of last regular season, the Golden Knights let Bruce Cassidy go. The team, which had been struggling to find its footing, decided to hire John Tortorella with just eight games left in the season.

The result? Tortorella… led his team to the Stanley Cup Final. Nothing less.

When he was hired, the Knights had made it clear that Tortorella was coming to town to finish out the season—and nothing more. But after seeing the team's run in the playoffs, people wondered if “Torts” would end up staying on.

In the end, however, the team chose to hire Ryan Craig… and Tortorella, in an exclusive interview with The Athletic, talked about how he found out the news.

The coach, who wanted to stay on, was summoned by his bosses after the season… and it took just 30 seconds before he learned that his time in Vegas was over.

Tortorella says there was a frank and honest conversation on both sides, and even though he really wanted to stay on, the club had already decided that Craig would get the job for the upcoming season. He'd cut his teeth in the AHL, and they wanted to give him the full-time job in the NHL.

But even though Tortorella is happy for Craig, he repeatedly says during the interview that he would have liked to stay.

It's worth noting that the coach also explained why he didn't speak to the media after his team's victory in Game 6 against the Ducks. Torts explains that he had agreed with Joel Quenneville before the series began that Quenneville would always speak first, but that after his team was eliminated, the Ducks' coach spoke to the media for a very long time.

And since he didn't want to keep his team waiting too long, he decided to leave with them. That ultimately cost him $100,000… and it also cost the Golden Knights a second-round draft pick.

You're free to believe this version of the story or not, but it's still interesting to learn a little about his (brief) stint in Vegas. It may have only lasted a few weeks, but it was quite eventful.

We'll see if he's able to find work in the NHL now.


Quick Thoughts

– Makes sense.

– Note.

– Great mentors for the Blues' young defensemen.

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