The Vegas Golden Knights are seemingly going to have to live with the consequences of their poor behavior.
According to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, the Golden Knights failed to get the NHL to budge on recently imposed sanctions, which included the loss of a 2026 second-round draft pick, for what the league called a “flagrant violation” of media policy last week. The team appealed those punishments in an in-person hearing with league officials on Tuesday morning.
After Vegas eliminated the Anaheim Ducks from the second round of this year’s playoffs, head coach John Tortorella spurned his postgame media responsibilities, and the team didn’t open up their locker room to reporters. Soon after, the NHL stripped the Golden Knights of their draft pick and fined Tortorella $100,000, citing previous unheeded warnings.
According to SinBinVegas’ Ken Boehlke, some of the prior transgressions the NHL could have been referring to included the team canceling a press conference in Utah just 30 minutes before it was supposed to happen during the first round of the playoffs, refusing to make captain Mark Stone available to the media after his return from injury earlier this year, the lack of a press conference to address signing goaltender Carter Hart, and a reporter from The Athletic getting his press pass revoked for asking defenseman Noah Hanifin his opinion on the team signing Hart.
Hart was one of the “Hockey Canada Five,” who were subjects of a high-profile sexual assault case stemming from a 2018 incident in London, Ontario, after Team Canada’s gold medal win at the 2018 World Junior Championship. The Golden Knights signed Hart to a two-year contract in October, and he is currently the team’s number-one goaltender as they head into this year’s Western Conference Finals.
Tortorella has spoken to the media since the NHL levied its sanctions, but refused to comment on the proceedings. The Golden Knights are set for Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night.
The Golden Knights are also wrapped up in another controversy, as they continue to refuse teams’ permission to speak with former head coach Bruce Cassidy, the bench boss they fired this past March, as he seeks his next job. According to hockey insider Elliotte Friedman, Cassidy’s case was not broached during Tuesday’s meeting with the league.
“[Cassidy’s] status is unchanged as of this morning,” Friedman tweeted. “Vegas is not inclined to give permission to Edmonton or LA. We will see about Toronto.”
Cassidy has one year remaining on the original five-year contract that he signed with the Golden Knights. Given that, he is still bound by the contract and continues to receive payment from Vegas despite being fired. Until his contract formally ends, any team wishing to interview him must submit a formal request.
