ATLANTA — It’s not personal to John Tortorella. It’s business. The coaching business. Which is why the Rangers coach stopped minding his own to jump to the defense of John MacLean, fired after just 33 games on the job behind the Devils’ bench.
Tortorella’s unsolicited support of MacLean, who was replaced by Jacques Lemaire on Dec. 23 with the Devils at 9-22-2, came in the wake of comments from Lightning coach Guy Boucher, who was quoted last week saying: “I think if Jacques had been there since the beginning, they would be [up] there again.”
Boucher, a long-time friend of Lemaire’s son, Danyk, made the observation that Tortorella interpreted as disrespecting MacLean on Jan. 14, after the Devils completed a home-and-home sweep of Tampa Bay.
“It’s none of my business, but coaching is tough enough without comments like these coming from people who should know better,” Tortorella told Slap Shots on Friday. “I’m sure that Guy was trying to pay Jacques a compliment, but it comes off as a back-hand slap at Johnny MacLean, who certainly doesn’t deserve that.
“Johnny worked his [butt] off over there in Jersey under what weren’t the greatest circumstances at all with the [Ilya] Kovalchuk situation, Zach Parise getting injured right at the start, and he lost his job, lost the job he’d always wanted, and now there are these comments coming from another NHL head coach.
“This is a tough enough job. Stay in your own business. Coach your own team,” Tortorella said in reference to Boucher, in his first year behind an NHL bench. “Don’t shoot your mouth off about another situation you don’t know anything about.
“If you want to compliment Jacques, fine, but it comes across as a backhand slap at a good guy in Johnny MacLean who was trying to do the best job he could, and that bothers me.”
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The more information that dribbles out regarding Sidney Crosby‘s concussion, the more the focus should be on the way the Penguins initially handled the injury to No. 87 and less on Rule 48 that deals with blows to the head.
It’s astonishing an obviously wobbly and disoriented Crosby was not only allowed to continue playing in the Winter Classic after his collision with the Caps’ David Steckel, but even more shocking he was permitted to play four days later against Tampa Bay even though he’d suggested he hadn’t been feeling 100 percent. After taking a hit in that match from Victor Hedman, Crosby was then diagnosed with a concussion.
That has nothing to do with Rule 48.
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Wayne Gretzky is not only celebrating his 50th birthday on Wednesday, he was in New York last week to celebrate Mark Messier‘s 50th on the 18th.
“Mess’ wife [Kim] threw a surprise party and it was great,” Gretzky said. “I’m telling you, he looks like he can still play. He looks the same at 50 as he did at 30.
“He always stayed healthy. I don’t think Mess has ever had an In-N-Out Burger in his life.”