Post by Fugazi on Apr 24, 2021 10:36:06 GMT -8
MICHAEL TRAIKOS: With Blue Jackets' losses piling up, why hasn't John Tortorella been fired yet?
I still cannot believe John Tortorella hasn’t been fired yet.
This is what I was thinking as I watched Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins talk about how “sad” and “painful” and “embarrassing” it is to be playing for a team that has become one of the biggest disappointments in the National Hockey League this season.
Mike Babcock, Gerard Gallant and Bruce Boudreau are currently out of work. But Tortorella, who chased Pierre-Luc Dubois out of Columbus and is now ruining Patrik Laine’s career, is still being paid to coach. He’s still in a position in which he gets to bench Max Domi and make roster decisions. He’s still given a platform in which he gets to refuse to answer reporters’ questions.
To borrow a favourite phrase from ex-Leafs coach Randy Carlyle, it’s mind-boggling — especially considering who else has lost their job this year.
Claude Julien was fired in February after the Habs went 9-5-4. The following month, Calgary replaced Geoff Ward (11-11-2) with Darryl Sutter, while Buffalo let go of Ralph Krueger (6-18-4). And yet, with the losses piling up, Tortorella (15-25-9) continues to pick up a paycheque in Columbus.
In some ways, he’s become that tub of spoiled yogurt tucked in the back of your fridge, the one you forgot about and whose shelf life expired months ago. He should have been thrown out in January or February or even March. But now, with the season coming to a close, what’s the point?
Then again, it’s worth asking what could have been had the Blue Jackets cut him loose when the season was still worth salvaging.
After all, it’s not like Tortorella didn’t have the pieces to challenge for a playoff spot. This isn’t a rebuilding team. Two years ago, the Blue Jackets stunned the hockey world when they upset the Tampa Bay Lightning, the No. 1 team in the NHL, in the opening round of the playoffs. Last year, despite saying goodbye to Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky, they still managed to beat the Leafs in the qualification round.
The thinking was they would build on that minor success. But despite acquiring Domi, Laine and Jack Roslovic in trades that should have made them better, they have become worse. After losing eight straight games, they are now last in the Central Division. Even Ottawa and Detroit have more wins.
And while Tortorella’s message to his players following a 3-1 loss on Thursday to Tampa was to “keep on playing,” it’s becoming clear the players cannot wait for this nightmare to end.
“It’s really such a bad year. I just want to finish the year and not think about it,” said Merzlikins, whose .911 save percentage has been one of the team’s bright spots. “What is there left, six or seven games maybe? We’re not going to the playoffs, so it’s not going to change anything. It’s just embarrassing for us and for our organization … I don’t know, like, I don’t want to get to Buffalo. I don’t want to get to that point like Buffalo.”
When you’re comparing yourself to the Sabres, who lost 18 straight games earlier this season, you know it’s been a particularly bad year. But at least the Sabres eventually replaced their coach, a move that spurred the team into snapping its losing streak and going on a 6-5-1 run that has allowed their players to finish the season with some semblance of dignity.
Why that hasn’t happened in Columbus is anyone’s guess. Instead, the team traded away Nick Foligno, David Savard and Riley Nash at the deadline. As for Tortorella, whose contract expires at the end of the year, the thinking is he and GM Jarmo Kekalainen could both be gone after the season.
By then, it could be too late.
It’s not just the losses that have hurt the Blue Jackets. It’s the way they are losing — and what it’s doing to the players.
Tortorella can be a polarizing coach to play for at the best of times. But with the team struggling, he has become particularly so this year. He basically forced the organization into trading Dubois to Winnipeg after benching and berating Dubois so many times that he wanted out. Since that trade for Laine and Roslovic, Dubois has eight goals and 19 points in 31 games.
While Roslovic is having a career sort of year with 10 goals and 30 points, it’s what’s happened to Laine that’s most concerning.
The 22-year-old no longer looks like the player who was once a runner-up for the Rocket Richard Trophy. Under Tortorella, who has tried to transform the sniper into a third-line checker, he looks more like someone whose confidence with the puck is being choked away.
Laine, who has gone without scoring goals in 19 of the past 21 games, has just 10 goals and 18 points this season. Domi, who was recently a healthy scratch for two straight games, has just seven goals and 19 points.
Those are career-low numbers for both players. Meanwhile, Josh Anderson, who was traded to Montreal in exchange for Domi, is enjoying his best season in the NHL.
Coincidence? Not if you read between the lines of what Merzlikins is saying.
“I’m tired,” said the 26-year-old goalie. “Like, I’m tired of losing the games. I know we are trying, but this is getting embarrassing … It’s painful.”
Until Tortorella is gone, don’t expect any relief.
I still cannot believe John Tortorella hasn’t been fired yet.
This is what I was thinking as I watched Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins talk about how “sad” and “painful” and “embarrassing” it is to be playing for a team that has become one of the biggest disappointments in the National Hockey League this season.
Mike Babcock, Gerard Gallant and Bruce Boudreau are currently out of work. But Tortorella, who chased Pierre-Luc Dubois out of Columbus and is now ruining Patrik Laine’s career, is still being paid to coach. He’s still in a position in which he gets to bench Max Domi and make roster decisions. He’s still given a platform in which he gets to refuse to answer reporters’ questions.
To borrow a favourite phrase from ex-Leafs coach Randy Carlyle, it’s mind-boggling — especially considering who else has lost their job this year.
Claude Julien was fired in February after the Habs went 9-5-4. The following month, Calgary replaced Geoff Ward (11-11-2) with Darryl Sutter, while Buffalo let go of Ralph Krueger (6-18-4). And yet, with the losses piling up, Tortorella (15-25-9) continues to pick up a paycheque in Columbus.
In some ways, he’s become that tub of spoiled yogurt tucked in the back of your fridge, the one you forgot about and whose shelf life expired months ago. He should have been thrown out in January or February or even March. But now, with the season coming to a close, what’s the point?
Then again, it’s worth asking what could have been had the Blue Jackets cut him loose when the season was still worth salvaging.
After all, it’s not like Tortorella didn’t have the pieces to challenge for a playoff spot. This isn’t a rebuilding team. Two years ago, the Blue Jackets stunned the hockey world when they upset the Tampa Bay Lightning, the No. 1 team in the NHL, in the opening round of the playoffs. Last year, despite saying goodbye to Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky, they still managed to beat the Leafs in the qualification round.
The thinking was they would build on that minor success. But despite acquiring Domi, Laine and Jack Roslovic in trades that should have made them better, they have become worse. After losing eight straight games, they are now last in the Central Division. Even Ottawa and Detroit have more wins.
And while Tortorella’s message to his players following a 3-1 loss on Thursday to Tampa was to “keep on playing,” it’s becoming clear the players cannot wait for this nightmare to end.
“It’s really such a bad year. I just want to finish the year and not think about it,” said Merzlikins, whose .911 save percentage has been one of the team’s bright spots. “What is there left, six or seven games maybe? We’re not going to the playoffs, so it’s not going to change anything. It’s just embarrassing for us and for our organization … I don’t know, like, I don’t want to get to Buffalo. I don’t want to get to that point like Buffalo.”
When you’re comparing yourself to the Sabres, who lost 18 straight games earlier this season, you know it’s been a particularly bad year. But at least the Sabres eventually replaced their coach, a move that spurred the team into snapping its losing streak and going on a 6-5-1 run that has allowed their players to finish the season with some semblance of dignity.
Why that hasn’t happened in Columbus is anyone’s guess. Instead, the team traded away Nick Foligno, David Savard and Riley Nash at the deadline. As for Tortorella, whose contract expires at the end of the year, the thinking is he and GM Jarmo Kekalainen could both be gone after the season.
By then, it could be too late.
It’s not just the losses that have hurt the Blue Jackets. It’s the way they are losing — and what it’s doing to the players.
Tortorella can be a polarizing coach to play for at the best of times. But with the team struggling, he has become particularly so this year. He basically forced the organization into trading Dubois to Winnipeg after benching and berating Dubois so many times that he wanted out. Since that trade for Laine and Roslovic, Dubois has eight goals and 19 points in 31 games.
While Roslovic is having a career sort of year with 10 goals and 30 points, it’s what’s happened to Laine that’s most concerning.
The 22-year-old no longer looks like the player who was once a runner-up for the Rocket Richard Trophy. Under Tortorella, who has tried to transform the sniper into a third-line checker, he looks more like someone whose confidence with the puck is being choked away.
Laine, who has gone without scoring goals in 19 of the past 21 games, has just 10 goals and 18 points this season. Domi, who was recently a healthy scratch for two straight games, has just seven goals and 19 points.
Those are career-low numbers for both players. Meanwhile, Josh Anderson, who was traded to Montreal in exchange for Domi, is enjoying his best season in the NHL.
Coincidence? Not if you read between the lines of what Merzlikins is saying.
“I’m tired,” said the 26-year-old goalie. “Like, I’m tired of losing the games. I know we are trying, but this is getting embarrassing … It’s painful.”
Until Tortorella is gone, don’t expect any relief.
