Pittsburgh Penguins Are Whiners? The Five Biggest Tantrums Of John Tortorella’s Career

Recently John Tortorella stated that the Pittsburgh Penguins are whiners.

The Columbus Blue Jackets head coach argued that the Pittsburgh Penguins’ players and staff complain so often that no one else in the league can get a word in edge-wise because of it.

The thing is, I don’t know why anyone doubts his point of view.

After all, Tortorella has shown time and again that he is capable of being a world class complainer and tantrum thrower. I don’t feel like I’m stepping too far off base by saying that you could even call Torts an expert in the field.

Dare I say he is elite?

Let’s take a look at a few of Tortorella’s greatest tantrums ahead of the Blue Jackets’ visit to CONSOL Energy Center.

Next: It Wasn't Tortorella's First Volley At The Penguins

It’s not the first time Torts has levied these accusations against the Pens.

“It’s one of the most arrogant organizations in the league,” said Tortorella. “They whine about this stuff all the time and then look what happens.”

Tortorella was referring to former Pittsburgh Penguins Brooks Orpik‘s knee-to-knee hit on Derek Stepan.

“It’s a cheap, dirty hit. I wonder what would happen if we did it to their two whining stars over there. I wonder what would happen,” Tortorella said.

While the hit was certainly pretty brutal looking, it’s not like John Tortorella’s Rangers teams were never caught hitting someone illegally during his tenure.

That Carl Hagelin elbow occurred a mere week and two days after Tortorella’s complaints.

Next: Tortorella Attacks Capitals Fans Behind The Bench

It wouldn’t be a Tortorella retrospective without a look into his own complaints about refereeing, such as his tongue-in-cheek conspiracy theorizing regarding some referee decisions that occurred late in 2012 Winter Classic.

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While John Tortorella ponders if the NHL and NBC cooked up an officiating scheme to create an exciting conclusion to the Winter Classic, I must wonder if the NHL script writers cook up a scheme to make the end of Torts’ reign at each of his head coaching jobs as fiery as possible. Do they?

Nope. It’s just how he is.

He was fined a cool $30,000 for his “theorizing.” He did apologize profusely afterward for what it’s worth.

Next: Tortorella Versus The Flames And Bob Hartley

Then there is the infamous attempt by John Tortorella, who was the Vancouver Canucks head coach at that time, to enter the Calgary Flames locker room for mano a mano action with Flames head coach Bob Hartley. 

Puck Prose

This all stemmed from the fact that Torts took umbrage with Hartley’s questionable starting lineup and responded in kind.

Five simultaneous fights weren’t enough to quell Tortorella’s rage, however, so he upped the ante by attempting to get at Hartley off the ice near the Flames’ locker room.

What would’ve happened if Torts had gotten face-to-face with Hartley, or Flames goalie coach Clint Malarchuk had gotten to Torts? It would have been mighty ugly for the league. As it stands, it’s a pretty sore spot to begin with.

That escalation cost John Tortorella a fifteen game suspension. It may have cost the Canucks their season and ultimately lost Torts his job in Vancouver.

Next: Tortorella Calls Out The Penguins...Again

Then there’s Tortorella’s most recent complaint after forward Brandon Dubinsky was suspended by the NHL for one game for this cross-check on Sidney Crosby.

“You know what? It is, what it is,” Tortorella told reporters. “We’re not going to whine here. Pittsburgh can whine. Pittsburgh whines enough for the whole league, so there’s no room for any other team to whine.”

That is a pretty forthright statement. Very interesting.

Mike Johnston, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ head coach at the time, also commented on the situation.

“When you look at it again, it looked bad to me when I saw it in-between periods,” he said.

He also gave his take again after Dubinsky’s suspension was announced. “I didn’t like the hit. I didn’t like the cross-check in the back of the [neck]. I think anytime you target the head, it should be a suspension. He got suspended, so I presume it was for the right time.”

That doesn’t sound very whiny to me. Perhaps it was a misunderstanding?

Next: Humble Tortorella Just Sharing THe Spotlight

As you can see from his resume, John Robert Tortorella knows a thing or two about complaining. He’s made a career of it. A Stanley Cup winning career in fact.

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He’s had numerous run-ins with coaches, players, staff, and the NHL officials in general. He’s very experienced at taking a cause and arguing it in an abrasive way.

When he says that the Penguins are whiners, Pens fans shouldn’t be angry with him. He knows his business.

Maybe he’s just trying to share the spotlight.