New York Rangers let veteran coach John Tortorella go after Playoff Disappointment – NHL Update
Putting up a fight would probably not have led the New York Rangers to this situation but after an embarrassing 4-1 defeat in the 2013 National Hockey League (NHL) Eastern Conference Playoff Semifinals series against Boston Bruins, the club led go of veteran
coach, John Tortorella.
Rangers’ general manager, Glen Sather, made the announcement on Wednesday, which is just four days after New York lost against Boston in just five games.
“What we dealt with this year was a shortened season; we dealt with a lot of injuries,” Sather said. “I thought the team, under the conditions, played well. Did they play up to the expectations that we had for them? No.”
New York managed to finish at number six in the Eastern Conference with 56 points and were tied with the Ottawa Senators, but could not put up anything a team like Boston, which was just two places above them.
There is no news about who may take over the position, but GM Glen Sather has said that he will begin conducting interviews and making the right decision for the team from now onwards without wasting any more time.
“We're going to put some interviews together with a number of different people and try to find the best candidate that's going to serve the needs of the New York Rangers,” Sather added. “I'm sure we're going to find the right person and we're going to move
in the right direction. We'll find the right guy.”
Like many would have thought, the decision was not solely made by Sather as he termed it to be something that most executives in the New York Rangers franchise thought that the time was right for a change.
After nearly being wiped out by the Washington Capitals in the first round and being eliminated by Boston in the next, Tortorella at the time frankly discussed how the club was not mentally capable of going on for another series.
“I don't think our mindset was ready for another series and to the level you need to be at,” he said Monday.
For Tortorella, this was his fourth and final season with the New York Rangers.
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