As Rangers coach, John Tortorella was a creature of certitude — opinionated, volatile and confident to the point of arrogance. He drove his players to throw themselves in front of shots, occasionally criticized them in public and often insulted members of the news media. On Monday, as the Rangers packed up their locker room at the end of another season without a Stanley Cup, Tortorella spoke like a man certain he would be around to fix the team. He even said he was looking forward to training camp in the fall.

But on Wednesday, Tortorella was caught by surprise, fired four days after the Rangers were eliminated by the Boston Bruins in the second round of the N.H.L. playoffs.

Tortorella had one year left on his contract, and was expected to be back next season. But a sixth-place finish in the Eastern Conference and a disappointing postseason proved to be Tortorella’s undoing. The Rangers were the top team in the Eastern Conference last season and reached the conference finals. After acquiring the star scorer Rick Nash in the off-season, they were considered a Stanley Cup contender, but they struggled to find their identity until late in the lockout-shortened 48-game season.

There were also indications that Tortorella’s outbursts and tough-love stance with his players may have alienated the team. The most recent example was during the Bruins series, when he repeatedly told reporters that Carl Hagelin, one of his favorite players, “stinks on the power play.”