Breaking: Tortorella hit with historic fine from NHL for his comments on officiating Happy New Year, Torts!

In case you missed it this past weekend, Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella absoultely WENT OFF on the NHL and its officials for a blown call in his team's game against the Chicago Blackhawks.

For a full account of that story, check out our report from this past weekend further down below.

Today, however, the NHL came down HARD on Torts, issuing him a $20,000 fine and an additional $25,000 fine should he make similar comments between now and December, 2020.

Check it out:

I mean... was Torts wrong? He gets fined 20 large for telling it like it is? Welcome to 2020, folks...

The Blue Jackets bench boss was outraged after a shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night and he was outraged not at his players, not at the Chicago Blackhawks, but at the National Hockey League and the work done by its officiating crews. Tortorella was upset that the game clock was not properly reset by the officials after the whistle was blown late in the game, a decision that he believes led to a chain of events including the loss of the game for his team, as well as an injury to his goaltender Joonas Korpisalo.



"The whistle is blown at 19.2 on the clock," began Tortorella. "For some reason the clock is run down a second and a tenth to 18.1. Whatever reason, I have no goddamn idea. So instead of resetting the clock, we have them tell our captain we're not going to do it. Toronto doesn't step in, refs don't do their freaking job, and now we lose a game, and we lose our goalie. So the chain of events, if it was done right, we don't lose our goalie we win the hockey game. So all of this goddamn technology, right? The technology and getting things right... the stubbornness tonight, by the officials, and by the league, and by Toronto, however it's supposed to goddamn work, screws us. It's ridiculous. I'm not taking any goddamn questions."

Korpisalo was of course injured after a deke from Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews in the shootout, and no doubt that proved to be the match that lit the fuse this evening for Tortorella. If you would like to hear it in his own words, Tortorella smashing his fist into the podium and all, check out the short video clip below.