John Tortorella may at some point want to move up to a front-office position but not yet
Kevin Kurz of The Athletic: There has been some recent speculation that John Tortorella could be interested in moving into a front-office position at some point.
Doug MacLean said on March 22nd that when John Tortorella and the Columbus Blue Jackets parted ways, Tortorella wanted to leave coach and move into management but then GM Jarmo Kekalainen wanted him to coach. MacLean speculated it wouldn’t be surprised if Tortorella moved into Flyers management as early as this offseason.
There have been a few signs that Tortorella could be looking for another role. During his time as Flyers coach, he’s wanted a game from the press box or on a TV. He was involved in the trade for defenseman Jamie Drysdale, watching tape on him and a few other potential targets.
If Tortorella moves up at some point, assistants Brad Shaw and Rocky Thompson would be internal coaching candidates. Craig Berube is good friends with Keith Jones and has regularly been at Flyers games after being fired from the St. Louis Blues.
Darren Dreger: “We can all appreciate the speculation. And when it comes to John Tortorella and the stories that follow, there’s always speculation. As for his future as head coach…a Flyers management source says “Torts is not leaving the bench”. He still has the fire…no question about that.”
TSN: John Tortorella has two years left on his contract, he wants to be back behind the bench and the Philadelphia Flyers want him back behind the bench according to Pierre LeBrun.
“Flyers management absolutely wants Tortorella back behind the bench and I get it. It’s been a late-season collapse and a lot of drama. But in the bigger picture, which matters more to Flyers management, they view Tortorella as a huge impact on developing their younger players and that’s why they want him back.
But the real question was at 65 years old, how much gas is left in the tank for Tortorella to want to keep coaching? And the answer I got this week was that he absolutely feels energized.”