John Tortorella Is Pissed Off At Pittsburgh And "Their Two Whining Stars"

Late in last night's Penguins win, defenseman Brooks Orpik laid a knee-on-knee hit on the Rangers' Derek Stepan. Stepan was able to leave the ice under his own power, but Torts was not a happy man after the game.

"It's a cheap, dirty hit. I wonder what would happen if we did it to their two whining stars over there?"

"It's one of the most arrogant organizations in the league. They whine about this stuff all the time, and look what happens."

"But they'll whine about something else over there, won't they? Starting with their two fucking stars."

The Eastern Conference playoffs may be less a measure of skill than an Atlantic Division survivor series. Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are locked in to the 4-5 matchup, after a game last Sunday that saw 68 penalties minutes, fines, injuries, a line brawl, and opposing coaches yelling at each other on the bench. The winner of that could get the top-seeded Rangers, who have no love lost for the Flyers or Pens. The enemy of my enemy is my enemy.

NY Rangers coach John Tortorella fumes at Pittsburgh Penguins after hit on Derek Stepan [NY Daily News]