The NHL upheld the Golden Knights’ punishment for skipping media after Game 6 versus the Anaheim Ducks, keeping the $100,000 fine for coach John Tortorella and a second-round pick loss in place.
For a team already trying to push through the pressure of the playoffs, the Golden Knights walked straight into another kind of penalty: one tied not to the game on the ice, but to what happened afterward.
Tuesday brought the ruling that matters most for Vegas—after appealing to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. the punishment stemming from a media violation after Game 6 against the Anaheim Ducks was upheld. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the NHL kept the $100. 000 fine assessed to coach John Tortorella. along with the loss of a second-round draft pick.
Vegas had hoped there would be a path back. Friedman’s report suggested that while some room for adjustment could exist later, it is unlikely the draft pick would ever be restored to the Golden Knights.
The incident itself came after last Thursday’s win over the Ducks. Tortorella did not make himself available to media. The Golden Knights also did not open their locker room to reporters. At the podium. Mitch Marner and Brett Howden took questions. as the players joked that the team bus was leaving in 10 minutes.
Neither the Golden Knights nor Tortorella offered an official explanation for why they ducked reporters.
What has surrounded the decision is the friction within the series. Friedman reported that Vegas was frustrated by Brayden McNabb’s one-game suspension for interference earlier in the series. For a franchise already feeling hard done by. this new slap from the league only adds to the sense of being stuck in a cycle of consequences—on top of the usual playoff stress.
The timing is especially sharp because Vegas is not getting long to dwell on it. The Golden Knights return to the ice Wednesday when it opens its West Final against the Colorado Avalanche. The matchup is set for 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT (Sportsnet, Sportsnet+).
Golden Knights John Tortorella Gary Bettman media violation $100 000 fine second-round pick Brayden McNabb Anaheim Ducks West Final Colorado Avalanche