Vegas and John Tortorella face another harsh NHL ruling
John Tortorella and the Vegas Golden Knights got no relief Tuesday, as the NHL left every part of the punishment in place.
That makes this more than a playoff sideshow.
It's now a league office message, and Vegas just learned the message isn't changing.
The Golden Knights went to New York on Tuesday morning hoping to trim the damage.
Instead, the appeal was denied and the penalties stayed exactly where they were.
Tortorella remains on the hook for a $100,000 fine. Vegas also still loses its 2026 second-round draft pick after what the NHL called flagrant violations of playoff media rules.
The original issue came after Vegas closed out Anaheim 5-1 in Game 6 of the second round.
The dressing room did not open to reporters, and Tortorella also skipped his postgame availability.
What pushed this over the top was the pattern. Reports indicated the league had already issued repeated warnings before it dropped a punishment this heavy.
The NHL just told Vegas the rules still apply
That's the real story here.
Not the fine by itself, and not even Tortorella's latest stare-down with the media. It's the draft pick, because that reaches past one night and hits roster building.
As things stand now, Vegas will not pick until the third round in Buffalo on June 26.
It was determined that the penalties - a $100,000 fine for John Tortorella and loss of a second round draft pick - will remain as assessed."
- Emily Kaplan
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The club already moved its first-rounder in the Noah Hanifin deal, which makes this hit even sharper.
That's a steep price for a contender about to open the Western Conference Final against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.
It's also a bad look for a team making its fifth conference final in nine years.
Tortorella was hired on March 30 after Vegas fired Bruce Cassidy with the club still in playoff position.
Since then, he's brought edge and noise, and now some of that noise is landing on the organization itself.
The NHL didn't leave much gray area Tuesday. Vegas showed up, argued its case, and got turned back.
There may still be talk later about future compliance, but right now the league smacked down the Golden Knights again.
And this time, Vegas knows the bill is already due.
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YESTERDAY
MAY 18, 2026
| ||||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Zachary Bolduc | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rasmus Dahlin | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Phillip Danault | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jordan Greenway | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Alex Newhook | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Alexandre Carrier | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Kaiden Guhle | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Lane Hutson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Beck Malenstyn | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ryan McLeod | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Owen Power | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mattias Samuelsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nick Suzuki | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Alexandre Texier | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Anderson | - | - | - | |
| Zach Benson | - | - | - | |
| Bowen Byram | - | - | - | |
| Cole Caufield | - | - | - | |
| Kirby Dach | - | - | - | |
| Ivan Demidov | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||