The double standard by which John Tortorella is judged can be maddening.
On one hand, we have folks who only know the man from a YouTube compilation of him getting pissed off and snapping at reporters. There’s a “greatest hits” of Tortorella, so, obviously his career accomplishments get slightly overshadowed.
This is a guy who is approaching the top-20 wins list ALL TIME in the NHL, has won a Stanley Cup, coached an Olympic team and a World Cup team and is the winningest American-born coach in league history.
But! (There’s always a but)…
Most people only seem to cook up an opinion on Tortorella when he says something they don’t agree with or has an outburst that reminds you of the guy from YouTube. The reality is that he’s not that guy, and on most days is actually a pleasure to work with; he’s (quite) honest, will be fair and open in saying he won’t discuss certain topics, and responds favorably to good questions.
Crazy, isn’t it?
On the other hand, there’s this notion that his 12-second press conference on Tuesday night was disrespectful. Let’s dig into this.
1. If he’s short with the media or things get tense, he’s a jerk.
2. If he respectfully abstains so things don’t get tense or he doesn’t say something he shouldn’t, he’s a jerk.
Story checks out. But that’s where we are.
He’s damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t, but I don’t think he cares all that much. He knows he’s screwed up in the past, and since he arrived in Columbus, there haven’t been any outbursts or incidents that end up on YouTube (save for perhaps Tuesday).
Here’s another thing to consider: did any of the local media complain or make a stink about Tortorella declining to answer questions about the game? No. Not a peep.
Sure enough, he spent nearly 10 minutes with the media on Wednesday covering the game, the Brandon Dubinsky injury, the underperformance of his top players, how to recover from a drubbing like they took from the Oilers, and a shit ton more. He spent 20 minutes on 97.1 The Fan talking with Anthony Rothman and Dave Biddle about the same topics.
Are we missing something here?
It’s not that he can’t stomach answering questions about a 7-2 loss. It’s more about the fact that, better than anyone, Tortorella knows himself – and after a performance in which his team completely no-showed, the 15-minute cool-off period wasn’t nearly enough.
He’d rather say nothing than say something he would regret. Apparently, that makes him something other than reasonable.
START THE CLOCK
We’re just about 12 hours away from yours truly entering the movie theater and watching The Last Jedi for the first time. How do I feel?
A. Nervous
B. Scared
C. Insanely Excited
The answer is “all of the above.”
I’m nervous because I’ve glanced over a few reviews, but only on Twitter – nothing in-depth that could possibly go to the stupid lengths that Variety allegedly went to. Whatever you do, don’t read their review if you haven’t seen the movie (so I’m told). Because I’ve already been down the Star Wars rabbit hole for months leading up to this movie, I’ve already got a few ideas or opinions before seeing it but I’ll let the film itself confirm whether those were valid.
I’m scared because I don’t know what to expect. But that’s good. Rian Johnson checks all the boxes on the “badass” checklist.
And I’m insanely excited because the second chapter in the saga must be the most compelling; the characters are developed and our theories are either confirmed or debunked. We know more about who they are and where they’re going, and we figure out exactly what they’re fighting for. Johnson has said many times that his goal with this movie was to challenge the characters and take them to places he thought would best develop the story.
I can’t wait to figure out where it goes. Let’s gather back and talk about it, ASAP.
YOU SHOULD BE READING
- Brandon Dubinsky will be out 6-8 weeks due to a fractured orbital bone. That sounds painful.
- This week's SvoNotes from Jeff Svoboda recounts some memorable individual efforts in Blue Jackets franchise history.
- In the latest Three Boomers column, Sam Blazer looks at the suddenly red-hot Artemi Panarin.
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