Jack Adams Award winner and current Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella has been around the league coaching the Lightning, Rangers and Canucks previously, so we took a look at how he has done against his past teams.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The current Columbus Blue Jackets coach had a heck of a run with the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2001-2008. Tortorella was able to bring a championship to Tampa in 2004, but it was not a perfect tenure with the fiery American (it never is for Torts).
With the Columbus Blue Jackets, Tortorella has a record of 3-4 against the Lightning. The Tampa Bay Lightning got the series breaker on Thursday with a 2-0 win against the CBJ. The Jackets head to Tampa on November 4th, and the Lightning and Jackets will face off for their third and final time on New Year’s Eve in Columbus.
New York Rangers
The Rangers being a divisional foe that happens to have the former Blue Jackets golden boy Rick Nash is just one of the many storylines that come to mind, and John Tortorella being a former coach just adds more fuel to the fire.
During his time with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Tortorella’s Jackets have had an even record of 4-4 against the Rangers in some heated contests against their Metropolitan rivals. The Rangers are looking down this year and the Jackets need to take advantage of their three remaining games against them.
Vancouver Canucks
John Tortorella only coached one season with the Canucks, but that year was one that included many storylines. Torts had a few run-ins, including his attempt to go into the Flames locker room or the controversy of starting Lack over Luongo in the Heritage Classic. While Tortorella’s tenure was short, he did give the Canucks a 2nd-round pick as compensation for signing with Columbus.
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Torts’ record against the Canucks is similar to his record against the Rangers and Lightning. The Blue Jackets are 2-2 in his time, but they are trending up while the Canucks seem to continue to trend downwards. The Blue Jackets and Canucks have yet to face off this year but will meet twice. Once in Columbus on January 12th and once up north on March 31st.
Conclusion
The Columbus Blue Jackets have been trending upwards since the arrival of John Tortorella. The coach would say if asked that the Lightning, Rangers, and Canucks would be another game on the schedule, but one would have to imagine that there is a little more fire in the coach when he faces off against his former teams.