United States head coach John Tortorella is a fiery guy, and if any of his players don’t stand for the Star-Spangled Banner during the upcoming World Cup of Hockey tournament, he won’t let them play.
“If any of my players sit on the bench for the national anthem, they will sit there the rest of the game,” Tortorella told ESPN’s Linda Cohn on Tuesday.
This stems from the controversy involving San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who has received a lot of criticism for not standing during the national anthem before his team’s final two preseason games.
Tortorella’s temper has been well-documented — he once stormed the Calgary Flames’ locker room during an intermission — so he’s probably not kidding about benching players who don’t stand for the anthem.
The United States begins preliminary round play Saturday, Sept. 17 against Finland.
Thumbnail photo via John E. Sokolowski/USA TODAY Sports Images
