Canadiens’ HC Martin St. Louis makes his feelings known about John Tortorella's shock firing by Philadelphia Flyers

Montreal Canadiens' coach Martin St. Louis opened up about the Philadelphia Flyers firing John Tortorella. On Thursday, the Flyers released a statement announcing that Tortorella was being relieved of his duties with immediate effect.

Tortorella coached St. Louis when both joined the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2000-01 season. They both won the 2004 Stanley Cup with the Lightning. The low-lying Flyers will face off against St. Louis and the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday with interim coach Brad Shaw behind the bench.

Sportsnet reporter Eric Engels shared a post on X (formerly Twitter), which included St. Louis’ quotes on the news of Tortorella’s firing.

“For sure. Torts had a big impact on my career,” St. Louis said. He’s a good person, and it’s never fun to see anyone lose their job. Sometimes it hurts even more when you know the person.”

St. Louis also gave his take on Tortorella’s controversial comments to the press on Tuesday.

“Listen, Torts is a very honest guy,” St. Louis said. “He doesn’t hide, he’s very honest. But I don’t know everything, and we don’t know everything. I have a lot of respect for him.”

Following a 7-2 loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, Tortorella expressed his frustration with the team’s results.

"This falls on me," the former coach said. "I’m not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we’re at right now. But I have to do a better job. So this falls on me, getting the team prepared to play the proper way until we get to the end."

Tortorella’s remarks were criticized by analysts and fans, with the 66-year-old veteran coach later clarifying his statement.

Flyers GM Daniel Briere issues statement over firing John Tortorella

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Briere released an official statement via NHL.com on Thursday, thanking Tortorella for his service but stating that the franchise was looking to move forward to the next chapter with someone else.

“John played a vital role in our rebuild. He set a standard of play and re-established what it means to be a Philadelphia Flyer,” Briere said. “John's passion on the bench was only equaled by his charitable work in our community. As we move into the next chapter of this rebuild, I felt this was the best for our team to move forward. I'd like to thank John for his tireless work and commitment to the Flyers.”

Tuesday’s game was the sixth consecutive loss for the Flyers, who are now 1-10-1 in their previous 12 games.