"I hope he jams it to you all": Tortorella tees off on Toronto media over treatment of Leafs coach Keefe
John Tortorella isn’t about to pin the struggles of the Toronto Maple Leafs on colleague Sheldon Keefe.
Tortorella, whose Philadelphia Flyers take on the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday night, both praised the Toronto coach and chastised the local media for the treatment of the man he’ll manage opposite of in a head-to-head meeting with the Eastern Conference opponent.
“I coach against Sheldon and I think coaches know other coaches. You guys don’t know what he’s done for that team,” Tortorella told a gathering of media afternoon.
“I have to admit. I coached him and we’ve had conversations as a young coach in this league…you guys chuck darts at him because you want some results. I guess it is, it’s always the coach that gets the darts chucked at him. But I know in watching him and coaching against him, I think he’s a terrific coach.
“I hope he jams it to you all, quite honestly. Not tonight. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him.”
Flyers head coach John Tortorella meets with the media prior to tonight’s #PHIvsTOR matchup at 7PM. #FueledByPhilly
https://t.co/QohNgzh8QU— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) November 2, 2022
Toronto has had a subpar start to the season with a dismal 4-4-2 record that places the Maple Leafs seventh in the Atlantic Division and 23rd overall in the NHL standings.
The slumping start had Keefe calling out key players two weeks ago, with a closed-door meeting between him and some of the team’s stars following a day later.
The roster has seemingly been in flux, too, with a variety of lineup looks all yielding similar results.
“A lot of shit going on around the city here about this club,” Tortorella said.
Still, Toronto has lost four straight. And the heat is squarely on Keefe.
“It is what it is,” Tortorella said. “It’s part of our being. I’m not complaining about it, but I think he is a really good coach.
“You guys don’t have a clue what he does for that team.”
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