VOORHEES, N.J. – In the final days of the John Tortorella regime, things apparently got pretty testy between coach and at least one Flyers player.
Cam York, who was benched early in the Toronto game on Tuesday after multiple misplays in Sunday’s 7-2 loss, reportedly had it out in a heated exchange.
Two days later, the coach was gone.
How much of the dismissal had to do with this incident remains to be seen. But it might have been the proverbial “straw” which broke the coach-team relationship’s back.
Interim head coach Brad Shaw allowed York to dress for Thursday night’s game against Montreal but chose not to let him play. The Flyers had run out of callup options from Lehigh Valley, so they went with five defensemen.
After Friday morning’s practice at the Flyers Training Center, York spoke to an unusually large gathering of media in the locker room to explain his side of the story.
“I’m not going to get into the details of it,” York said. “I will say this, I take full responsibility for my actions. It’s been addressed here in the locker room.
“I’m going to put it behind me and move on. We have eight games left here and that’s my focus right now. We’ll leave it at that.”
Shaw said he expects to have York back in the lineup for Saturday afternoon’s home game against Buffalo.
York was asked about his level of frustration at Toronto.
“Obviously sitting on the bench there in that type of game is never fun,” York said. “It (just five defensemen) is a tough thing to do. You never want to put your teammates in a situation like that.”
After learning that York had taken full responsibility for the incident in Toronto, did Shaw get the sense of York’s developing maturity?
“Yeah, I mean that’s a process,” the interim coach said. “You know we have lots of young guys that are sort of on different tracks as far as how mature they are. You learn through the good and the bad. Hopefully at the end of the day he’s a better person for what happened.
“It’s over now. We’ve dealt with it and we’ll move forward.”
York said he’s been getting encouragement from his teammates.
“The support’s been great,” he said. “Our locker room has always been great. They’re huge in a situation like this.”
As for working with Tortorella for the better part of three seasons, York had pretty much all positive comments.
“I have nothing bad to say,” York said. “He taught me a lot of really good things, he was a really good coach for me. I’m going to use a lot of the things he taught me down the road in my career. So, he’s a really good coach. I wish him the best of what’s down the road.”
Tortorella’s demanding coaching style should pay off for a player such as York as his career progresses. He’s been on a No. 1 unit with Travis Sanheim, so the future certainly holds promise.
“He’s a good coach, gets a lot out of his players,” said York. “I learned a lot from him.”
When discussing Shaw’s coaching style compared to Tortorella’s, York didn’t have a definitive answer.
“It’s a small sample size,” York said, referring to Thursday night’s game at the Wells Fargo Center. “Not really sure yet but as games go on here we’ll get a better taste of that. He’s a great coach. Looking forward to seeing what he can do for us.
“And it’s just his knowledge of the game. He’s a really detailed coach. I think that’s what is going to help me in my game. His film sessions, the things that he goes over with guys, that benefits me a lot. I would say he’s a really good fit for me.”
With Tortorella gone and young players probably asked to take a greater role in leadership, York looks like a prime candidate.
“I’ve been here a pretty good amount of time,” he said. “I feel like I’m well respected in the room. Guys listen to what I have to say. Everybody in this room is a leader in different ways. That’s what makes it special.”
York’s contract is up for renewal. He emphasized this is where he wants to stay.
“I love what’s going on here,” he said. “I love what we’re building. It hasn’t been the best of years but this is where I want to be. I’m looking forward to the future.”
Shaw expects York to get back to business as soon as possible.
“I expect he will play really well,” Shaw said. “We’re going to need a good player because the rest of our ‘D’ are a little tired.”
