John Tortorella behind the New York Rangers bench during the 2011-12 regular season. (Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/f596757b-3a6c-4567-bfef-c6036e4b3277.jpeg] John Tortorella behind the New York Rangers bench during the 2011-12 regular season. (Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images) With the New York Rangers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-rangers] on the verge of missing the Stanley Cup playoffs entirely, the already deafening noise around head coach Peter Laviolette is beginning to reach a fever pitch. Is it odd that Peter Laviolette didn't talk to the Rangers after their loss to the Lightning? Laviolette’s Rangers had led the Philadelphia Flyers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers] 1-0 and 4-3 on Wednesday night before eventually falling 8-5, virtually eliminating them from playoff contention. One individual, a name that the Rangers are already intimately familiar with, appears to be gaining traction as a potential Laviolette replacement. When on the topic of Flyers interim head coach Brad Shaw, with just over a minute left in the first period of Wednesday night’s Rangers game, broadcaster John Davidson subtly dropped a key piece of information regarding former Flyers head coach John Tortorella, who was relieved of his duties [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/top-5-candidates-to-replace-john-tortorella-as-flyers-coach] on March 27. “By the way, John Tortorella said he wants to coach again because he’s got energy, he loves teaching,” Davidson said. “So, good luck, Torts! We had him in Columbus, and he did a great job for us.” When Tortorella first took the Flyers’ head coaching job in 2022, he claimed that Philadelphia would be his last stop as an NHL head coach. But, the 66-year-old likely did not have getting axed with less than a dozen games remaining in his third season on his bingo card. That was sure to leave a sour taste in Tortorella’s mouth, especially knowing the amount of pride he has in his work. Taking Davidson’s comments one step further, one NHL insider already believes that a Rangers reunion makes the most sense for both Tortorella and the team. Making a guest appearance on the FlamesNation podcast [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7JT8BTMqgo&ab_channel=Flamesnation], TSN NHL insider Darren Dreger says he feels the Rangers are the only logical option for the stoic American coach. "For me, the New York Rangers are the only team that, right now, makes sense. And the reason I feel like that, and no disrespect to Peter Laviolette, it's because I know that James Dolan, the owner of the New York Rangers, loves John Tortorella,” Dreger postulated. "That owner has a ton of clout. Let's see what happens. If they miss the playoffs in New York, all bets are off. Maybe Chris Drury has some vote of confidence that he's coming back as general manager, but I can't be sure of that. I don't know that to be certain. "What I do know is you've got a very hands-on, volatile owner who is not going to sit back and say 'Yeah, okay, status quo, that works. I'm comfortable with the way things are.' He does like John Tortorella, so that would be a scenario that does make some sense." Tortorella, of course, began his NHL head coaching career with a four-game stint as an interim head coach with the Rangers in 2000, and previously coached parts of five seasons [https://www.eliteprospects.com/staff/334/john-tortorella] in New York as a full-time head coach, guiding the Rangers to a 171-118-1-29 regular-season record and an Eastern Conference Finals appearance during his time. If the two-time Jack Adams Award winner is looking for a veteran team with established stars and a full-circle moment to close out his career, there’s no better place to do it than in New York with the Rangers. Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
