It's Torts Time In Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Flyers have become a joke of an organization. This is a team that once had a proud and rich history of being one of the toughest opponents to play against. That all went out the window the day that Ed Snider died and the soulless, gutless corporation Comcast took over the team. Now the only thing the team is known for is a fucking mascot. Great job, Comcast!
But if there's one person out there who can match the intensity that this organization used to be known for? One person who can whip these sorry ass losers back into shape and at least become a difficult team to play against? One person who will literally murder Gritty if he has to? It's Torts.
Are they going to immediately turn into Stanley Cup contenders? For sure not. But I can't tell you how many games over the past 2 seasons I've had to turn off after the first 5 minutes because you know the Flyers just didn't give a shit about winning. You could tell right away when this team was checked out of games. Won't be the case with Torts in charge because if you're not bringing it every night he'll ship your ass off to Siberia and motherfuck you on the way out.
The biggest thing to keep in mind here is that the Flyers aren't in a position where they need a coach to put them over the hump when it comes to contending for a Cup. As much as I would love Barry Trotz, that's not the type of guy who is going to make any significant impact with this team right now. You need a guy who is going to come in and re-establish a culture. Because aside from skill, that's the biggest thing that is lacking in the Flyers organization right now. Culture, identity, all that cliche shit becomes cliche for a reason.
And it's not like John Tortorella isn't a great hockey coach in his own regard. The man has won the Jack Adams twice and led the Lightning to a Stanley Cup in '04. Plus he's going to coach his ass off in Philly because there's no shot in hell Torts wants to end up back at ESPN anytime soon. I'm sure he'll wear out his welcome at one point or another but in the meanwhile? It's Torts Time, bitch.
Oh and clearly the news has made its way up to Calgary. Johnny knows that Torts will lead the boys to the promised land. No chance is he wasting the rest of his career in Alberta. He's coming home.