He’s a bit of a fox, that John Tortorella. Capitals fans and media got a full dose of the combative New York Rangers coach during a second-round series, which ended last weekend. You may have seen him again after Wednesday’s loss to the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference finals with a curt news conference that lasted all of 1 minute, 17 seconds. That’s nothing new this postseason. During the Caps series, Tortorella routinely ended media gatherings after a few questions. He made taciturn Washington coach Dale Hunter seem long winded. The news conferences for games at Verizon Center were held on the Wizards’ practice court to accommodate the large gathering. Reporters were asked to hold their questions until they were handed a microphone so live television could pick them up.
“Just ask the question — please,” a frustrated Tortorella snapped as the microphone made its ponderous way to the back of the room.
Earlier this week, a cell phone went off during a news conference — to be fair, it had a really loud, old-school ringer — and Tortorella pointed at the offending reporter and said, “That’s ridiculous. That’s just ridiculous. You guys giving me [expletive] about it.”
It’s a comedy routine at this point, though the NHL can’t be happy that one of its coaches is essentially doing shtick on stage during the time of year when the league tries to sell itself to casual fans. Make no mistake — Tortorella is a fine hockey mind and able to share that with the audience at home. He’s also reportedly not a bad guy, as HBO showed on its 24/7 Winter Classic documentary last winter when Tortorella befriended a 10-year-old kid with cerebral palsy. He chooses not to display that in a way that might help take pressure off his team, but at a cost to his own reputation. It’s a price he’s more than willing to pay.
Do fans care if the media gets dissed in such a public forum? Not at all. Some may like it. But when even legitimate questions bring about a rebuke — Tortorella advised the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard to “stop coaching, Pat” at one of the games in Washington this month — things have gotten out of hand. So during Thursday’s conference call, Tortorella actually spoke for 13 minutes. It’s a step.
– Brian McNally
