John Tortorella walked off the John Wayne Airport tarmac without saying a word. The Vegas Knights bench boss skipped media availability Thursday night after eliminating the Ducks in Game 6.
The decision raised eyebrows. It also had a very logistical explanation that nobody wanted to say out loud.
John Wayne Airport runs one of the strictest noise curfews in North America. Wheels up by 10 p.m. local, or your plane sits until morning. Teams have been racing that clock for years.
The Knights had just finished a 5-1 road win to close out the series. Add the handshake line, the dressing room, the showers, the bus ride, and 10 p.m. arrives fast.
So the visitors slammed the door. Tortorella declined his presser. The locker room stayed closed. One player was pulled into a side room for a quick word, then it was straight to the bus.
Reporter Jesse Granger flagged it first. Then Jesse Montano added the context that explains why teams rush out of Orange County in the playoffs.
"John Tortorella declined to speak with the media after advancing to the Western Conference finals.
The Golden Knights also didn't open the dressing room after the game. They brought 1 player into a side room to speak, along with the two who spoke at the podium.
I've been covering the NHL for nine years and never seen either of those happen once."
- Jesse Granger
Why Vegas leaned on the curfew to dodge the cameras
The optics are still rough. Tortorella has been at this since March 29, when Vegas Knights brought him in to take over the bench mid-season. Reporters were waiting on his read of the series.
Instead, they got silence and an empty stall. The curfew is real, but skipping media after closing out a second-round series? That choice belongs to the coach.
And it lands differently when the team has been searching all spring. The Knights finished 39-26-17 in the regular season.
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Skipping the cameras isn't a hanging offense. But Tortorella has built a reputation for picking his media battles, and this one will follow him into the next round whether he answers for it or not.
The bigger question now is what version of the Knights flies into the conference final. Kelly McCrimmon's group has won six of its last eight playoff games. The next opponent will not be as patient as the curfew.
Was John Tortorella right to skip media availability after Game 7?
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