John Tortorella Is Pissed at Me, You, Everyone
In an interview with NBC Sports Philly yesterday, John Tortorella let it be known that he’s pissed off at everyone for coming after Chuck Fletcher, his moves, and Tony DeAngelo:
“I’m a little pissed off about some of the things said about a couple of the players and Tony DeAngelo, at least some of the things I’ve read. I haven’t read them all, I don’t spend my day trying to listen to everybody, what they’re talking about.
“But everybody’s upset about Johnny G, that Johnny G wasn’t signed. Any general manager would be interested in a guy like that and I’m sure Chuck was. But there’s sometimes the lay of the land, where your contracts are at, where your cap’s at and where your team’s at, quite honestly. Is it time to sign a free agent like that? I think we have a little bit of building to do here and a little bit of growing.”
Flyers’ fans understand the lay of the land, they really do. But when your GM comes out and mentions it was “too hard” to move contracts or attach a 1st round pick to move JVR so he could sign one of the generations best scorers, people are going to be pissed off. Not to mention the “aggressive re-tool” comment, which now looks more like it’s trending towards an “aggressive re-build,” and fans aren’t going to be happy.
Torts then moved on to comment about things he’s read about DeAngelo:
“The thing that bothers me and some of the things I’ve read is people are upset about Tony DeAngelo,” Tortorella said. “Tony DeAngelo’s a hell of a player, Tony DeAngelo has personality. Is he going to say and do some stupid stuff? You’re damn right he is. But I’d rather have a guy doing stupid stuff than having a choir boy here just going about your business. You don’t win that way, you don’t win championships, you don’t build a team without any personality. Tony’s going to bring that and, plus, he’s a hell of a player.
“Nic Deslauriers, another one. A number of teams were after him and what he can bring. He can bring some toughness, he can kill penalties, he’s a good pro.
“It pisses me off, some of the things that have been said about those guys because I think everybody wanted the big splash. Well, we have to wait our turn for that big splash. We still have some things to do with our foundation of the team and maybe when our cap releases and contracts are moved or things are sorted out that way, maybe that’s when you look for that.”
Listen, is this mostly a coach sticking his neck out for his guys? Probably. He’s not an idiot. He sees the roster, the injuries, the lack of depth. But if we’re getting a pissed off Torts before training camp, just imagine what he’s going to deliver when the Flyers go on a losing streak this season.