When you watch the Bruins take on the Flyers on Thursday night in Boston, you may notice a nasty bruise on Philadelphia coach John Tortorella's face. You can thank his horse for that.
Tortorella, a long-time NHL coach and passionate animal advocate, was involved in a horse-kicking incident following the Flyers' loss to the Dallas Stars on Sunday. The horse-on-human assault was explained by ESPN analyst and former Flyers goalie Brian Boucher during Philadelphia's Tuesday loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.
"It was a horse-kicking incident," Boucher said on ESPN's broadcast, per phillyhockeynow.com. "... He said he was awfully lucky -- it could have been a lot worse."
That explanation wasn't quite enough though, forcing the Flyers coach to address the situation Thursday.
"John Tortorella said he was feeding the horses with his wife and brought out the goodies," Philadelphia Inquirer's Giana Han tweeted Thursday. "Rose, who's 'the boss' wanted to get to the apples first and he ended up getting kicked while he was brushing down Chevy. Look up how fast a horse can kick, he said."
Perhaps the incident can help explain why Tortorella was so honest when asked about his team's performance on Tuesday.
Rose's owner will look to help the Flyers take down the surging Bruins at TD Garden on Thursday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, and you can catch the action live on NESN.
