NHL Rangers coach John Tortorella during yesterday's Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 2 against the Bruins dropped an expletive during a live interview with NBC's Pierre McGuire, according to Pat Leonard of the N.Y. DAILY NEWS. McGuire approached Tortorella "on the bench in the heat of the moment" following the team tying the game at 1-1. Tortorella said live on air, "That was a huge (GD) goal he just scored" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/20). AWFUL ANNOUNCING's Joe Lucia noted McGuire then "thanked Tortorella and immediately ended the interview, likely with the horror of realizing that New York's coach had sworn on national TV." There were "no immediate apologies from the NBC crew, and they essentially called Tortorella a wild card" (AWFULANNOUNCING.com, 5/19). Meanwhile, in Tampa, Tom Jones notes Tortorella "can be tough to deal with even when his team is playing well." McGuire "knows that, yet that didn't stop him from taking a pretty good (and deserved) shot at Tortorella" during yesterday's game. Tortorella prior to the game was asked why Rangers LW Carl Hagelin "wasn't playing more on the power play." Tortorella responded, "Because he stinks on the power play." McGuire said during the broadcast, "Throwing your player under the bus at this time of the year? No, I'm not buying that" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 5/20). In N.Y., Phil Mushnick writes, "It has come to this: John Tortorella is such an abrasive, unpleasant man in public that yesterday NBC’s publicly abrasive, unpleasant studio analyst, Mike Milbury, was moved to knock Tortorella’s conduct!" (N.Y. POST, 5/20).
WEEKEND RATINGS: NBC earned a 1.9 overnight Nielsen rating for Rangers-Bruins Game 2 yesterday, which aired from 3:00-6:00pm ET. The net on Saturday saw the Red Wings-Blackhawks Western Conference Semifinals Game 2 draw a 1.4 overnight. That aired from 1:00-4:30pm and was the lead-in to the net's Preakness Stakes coverage (THE DAILY).
