John Tortorella Scratches Rookie in Front of his Parents, Explains that he Doesn't Care and Why

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TJ Tucker
January 12, 2024 (2:51 PM)

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A native of Minnesota will not be playing in front of his hometown crowd tonight and John Tortorella explains why he doesn't care.

Regardless of the logo on the front of your sweater, it's always going to be a big deal when you get to play in front of your hometown crowd. It usually means getting tickets for parents, other family members, and friends so they can come and see you play. Unfortunately for rookie Bobby Brink of the Philadelphia Flyers, he'll be sitting on the sidelines tonight when his team takes on the Wild in Minnesota, the state he grew up in. Flyers head coach John Tortorella has produced another classic Torts moment when asked why.

Tortorella began by praising Brink, but saying he hasn't been playing well lately.

"Other players are playing better. This is all part of the process for Bobby. He's going to be a really good player, but there are a lot of things he needs to work on, and I think he's been a little inconsistent. Bobby Brink doesn't have a cemented spot in the National Hockey League. He has a ways to go as far as to find that. But that's to be expected. I think he's going to be a really good player for us."

Asked if it was tough to pull a kid from Minnesota out of the lineup when playing the Wild, Tortorella said not in any way, shape, for form.

"Absolutely not, and don't start with all the hugging, and that stuff, because I heard it last year. It's the National Hockey League. I can't get itineraries from players when their parents are coming in to decide what a lineup is. I can't. I knew that would come up. You're in the wrong game. If we're going to play inter-mural and all that stuff, whatever you want to call the fun stuff, this is the National Hockey League. These are part of the things that kids have to go
through."

"Having said that, yeah, I'd love for his parents to see him play. It just didn't work out that way."

That's about as logical an answer as you'll ever get from Tortorella and, of course, he's right. Coaches are there to give the team the best possible chance of winning. Doing it any other way would be a great way to get yourself fired. Brink, 22 and with 46 career NHL games under his belt, will have plenty of time to ensure he gets his family to a game to see him play.