Head coach John Tortorella has never shied away from controversy during his 24 year coaching career in the NHL, but his latest antics in Philadelphia have been questionable at best, with the fan base beginning to turn on the one-time Stanley Cup winning bench boss.
Tortorella was recently fined $50k for unprofessional conduct after refusing to leave the bench, a moment that went viral amongst the fanbase, This week he is causing a stir by punishing his captain Sean Couturier for his mediocre season and poor recent stretch of play. Couturier was scratched for the team's 4-3 win on March 19th, against the Toronto Maple Leafs and was held out again last night against the division rival Carolina Hurricanes.
Philadelphia played a very good game but ultimately came up short, losing in overtime 3-2 to the Hurricanes. Couturier could have proven useful to match up against a Carolina squad who boosts a wealth down the middle of Sebastian Aho, Evegeny Kuznetsov and Jordan Staal.
Tortorella conveniently decided to not face the media after the loss last night, sending associate coach Brad Shaw to do the post game. Once again, Tortorella is not taking any accountability for his questionable decisions.
In the end, the Flyers were able to salvage a point against a great Carolina squad to pad their lead on the final Wild Card position. If Philadelphia were to falter in their final twelve games and miss, it could be a could opportunity for General Manager Daniel Briere to cut ties with the veteran head coach. The players seemed to be growing tired of Tortorella's contentious ways.
