"Wow, that's some kind of misogyny" - NHL fans accuse Jon Cooper of misogynistic and sexist comments made during post-game rant 

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper didn't hold his back in the media interaction following a 6-1 loss to the Florida Panthers in Game 5, resulting in the Lightning's exit from the playoffs on Monday.

Cooper fumed about two Lightning goals being disallowed due to goalie interference calls. He argued that neither of the plays should have been overturned based on the league's criteria for goalie interference.

"We might as well put skirts on them then... I think we're letting the goalies off the hook," Cooper said.

Cooper's comments about putting skirts on players stirred controversy among fans online.

Some NHL fans on X labeled Cooper's remarks as misogynistic and sexist, with one tweeting:

"Put skirts on them? Wow, that's some kind of misogyny. Coach, you should be better. Gross."

Another wrote:

"The open sexism here just can’t be part of a head coach’s vernacular."

"Jon Cooper is a classless bigot for this comment," one disgruntled fan responded.

"Oof sexist much," one fan posted.

Here are some of the other reactions on X:

"I wonder what the players on women's hockey teams think of that comment," one X user voiced their opinion.

"lol, not misogynistic at all, are we? Hasn’t he seen any women hockey? By the way, take it up with Bettman!!," another tweeted

"I can’t wait for the “what’s he insinuating by skirts” comments," another posted

"Do we not know yet how sexist that saying is," one fan questioned

One fan, however, agreed with Jon Cooper's statement and tweeted:

"Right on the money. Doesn’t by any means decide the series, but most definitely this game. Not once but twice…. No coming back from that."

There were two instances in the game where the Bolts had goals disallowed due to goalie interference.

The first incident occurred when Anthony Cerelli seemingly scored at 13:00 of the first period with a shot from the slot, but the goal was overturned after Florida successfully challenged for goalie interference.

The second disallowed goal happened in the second period when Mikhail Sergachev scored a one-timer but was also denied due to the contact between Cerelli and Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.

Jon Cooper reflects on Game 5 loss to Florida Panthers

Jon Cooper emphasized that the result of the game did not truly reflect the team's performance.

The Bolts HC highlighted various factors, including calls that didn't go their way throughout the game and series, but acknowledged the importance of making their luck and creating opportunities.

He said (via NHL.com):

“Anyone who follows this game knows that was not the case. There were a lot of things that didn’t go our way tonight, lot of things that didn’t go our way in the series. … I know how fortunate our teams have been when we have won. You make your own breaks.”

This marked the second consecutive time the Tampa Bay Lightning were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs after three continuous appearances in the finals, including back-to-back Cups in 2020 and 2021.