Though you may have forgotten about it, or not known it existed at all, the World Cup of Hockey gets underway in less than two weeks. Since it is one of the first major international sporting events since Colin Kaepernick’s anthem protest, naturally, US head coach and proud patriot John Tortorella was asked what would happen if one of his players sat during the anthem.
His response was pretty obvious:
When I asked Team USA coach John Tortorella about Kaepernick protest he told me "If any of my players sit on… https://t.co/CTEDYRG0zm
— Linda Cohn (@lindacohn) September 6, 2016
The full quote:
“When I asked Team USA coach John Tortorella about Kaepernick protest he told me ‘If any of my players sit on the bench for the national anthem, they will sit there the rest of the game.'”
Tortorella is notable for his outbursts on the bench and during postgame press conferences. Considering how he acts as a coach, he’d probably make good on those comments. And even if he doesn’t, he’d probably even make his biggest stars drop down and block shots at a clip that no player should ever do out of fear for their own safety.
Because hockey players are usually trained to avoid “distractions” by any means possible, it’s highly doubtful any player would sit during the national anthem at the World Cup. But if there was a hint of a thought about it from anyone, now they know what’s coming if they do.
