Blue Jackets fire Richards as coach, hire Tortorella
Wednesday, 10.21.2015 / 10:46 AM / News
NHL.com
John Tortorella was named the new coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday after the club fired Todd Richards.
The Blue Jackets are 0-7-0 after losing 4-0 at home to the New York Islanders on Tuesday.
Tortorella, 57, signed a three-year contract. He leads American-born coaches with 446 wins and is set to coach Team USA at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
"John Tortorella is an experienced National Hockey League coach with a proven track record of success," general manager Jarmo Kekalainen told the Blue Jackets website. "He is a Stanley Cup winner and we believe the right person to lead our team at this time."
Tortorella last coached in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks in the 2013-14 season. The Canucks, who fired him after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs, will receive a second-round draft pick from the Blue Jackets as compensation since Tortorella remained under contract there and was hired in-season.
He won the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004 and reached the Eastern Conference Final with the New York Rangers in 2012.
Richards has a career coaching record of 204-183-37 with the Minnesota Wild and Blue Jackets. Columbus made the playoffs in 2014 for the second time in their franchise history. They lost an Eastern Conference First Round series to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games, then fell to 11th in the conference last season.
"None of us saw our season unfolding the way it has and every one of us from management to coaches to players bears responsibility," Kekalainen said. "There is still a lot of hockey to be played and we believe this change was necessary to give our team the best chance to accomplish the goals we've set for this season."
The Blue Jackets, who start a road trip Thursday at the Minnesota Wild, are retaining assistant coachesCraig Hartsburg and Brad Larsen, according to Sportsnet.
Wednesday, 10.21.2015 / 10:46 AM / News
NHL.com
John Tortorella was named the new coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday after the club fired Todd Richards.
The Blue Jackets are 0-7-0 after losing 4-0 at home to the New York Islanders on Tuesday.
Tortorella, 57, signed a three-year contract. He leads American-born coaches with 446 wins and is set to coach Team USA at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
"John Tortorella is an experienced National Hockey League coach with a proven track record of success," general manager Jarmo Kekalainen told the Blue Jackets website. "He is a Stanley Cup winner and we believe the right person to lead our team at this time."
Tortorella last coached in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks in the 2013-14 season. The Canucks, who fired him after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs, will receive a second-round draft pick from the Blue Jackets as compensation since Tortorella remained under contract there and was hired in-season.
He won the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004 and reached the Eastern Conference Final with the New York Rangers in 2012.
Richards has a career coaching record of 204-183-37 with the Minnesota Wild and Blue Jackets. Columbus made the playoffs in 2014 for the second time in their franchise history. They lost an Eastern Conference First Round series to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games, then fell to 11th in the conference last season.
"None of us saw our season unfolding the way it has and every one of us from management to coaches to players bears responsibility," Kekalainen said. "There is still a lot of hockey to be played and we believe this change was necessary to give our team the best chance to accomplish the goals we've set for this season."
The Blue Jackets, who start a road trip Thursday at the Minnesota Wild, are retaining assistant coachesCraig Hartsburg and Brad Larsen, according to Sportsnet.
