John Tortorella is prepared to make a comeback at coaching hockey – on a temporary basis, at least.
A person familiar with the decision confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday that Tortorella has been selected to coach the United States national team competing in the World Cup of Hockey tournament next year. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because USA Hockey is scheduled to make the announcement following ESPN’s Monday Night Football broadcast.
Canada’s TSN sports network first reported the news.
The 57-year-old, Boston-born Tortorella – renowned for his combative personality – has been out of the NHL since May 2014, when he was fired after one season of coaching the Vancouver Canucks. He has 14 seasons of NHL experience and was the league’s coach of the year in 2004, when he also won a Stanley Cup championship with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tortorella has a 446-375-115 career record, which makes him the winningest U.S.-born NHL coach. He also coached the New York Rangers, and has ties to USA Hockey.
Tortorella previously coached the U.S. team to a sixth-place finish at the 2008 World Championships. He was also a two-time assistant, most recently serving under Ron Wilson on the U.S. team that won a silver medal at the 2010 Vancouver Games.
The NHL and NHL Players’ Association are jointly organizing the World Cup, which will be played at Toronto before the start of the 2016-17 season. The tournament will feature eight teams representing the U.S., Canada, Russia, Sweden, Czech Republic and Finland. The two remaining teams will be made of a mix of players. One will consist of North Americans 23 and younger, and the other made up of European-born players whose countries aren’t represented.