Flyers coach John Tortorella on Thursday reiterated his support of defenseman Ivan Provorov’s decision to not wear a Pride Night jersey during warmups Tuesday night, skipping warmups altogether.
Provorov, 26, cited his Russian Orthodox beliefs in explaining why he did not partake.
“As I said, Provy did nothing wrong,” Tortorella said Thursday, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Just because you don’t agree with his decision doesn’t mean he did anything wrong.”
Provorov played 22:45 in the Flyers’ win over the Ducks. Philadelphia selected him No. 7 overall in the 2015 draft, and he’s in his seventh NHL season.
Tortorella said he and Provorov discussed the defenseman’s decision beforehand.
Ivan Provorov (9) during the Flyers’ game against the Ducks on Jan. 17, 2023. Getty Images
Flyers head coach John Tortorella NHLI via Getty Images“Provy’s not out there banging a drum against Pride Night,” Tortorella said. “He quietly went about his business. Him and I had a number of conversations to how we were going to do this. You have the team, you have him, you have all this going on. Talked to [alternate captain Scott Laughton.] Went through the whole process there. [Provorov] felt strongly with his beliefs. And he stayed with it. And this was discussed, prior up to that.
“But I’m trying to make a correlation to how I was wrong. You asked me if I was going to bench him? Why would I bench him? Because of a decision he’s making on his beliefs and his religion? It turned out to be a great night for Pride Night. Players were involved. The building was filled. There was awareness and everything. Provy didn’t actively seek out and try to make a stand against it. He just felt he didn’t want to take warmup. I respect him for his decision. I thought the team handled themselves well. I thought our whole organization handled itself well to make sure we didn’t lose sight of that night.”
Tortorella said he doesn’t believe Provorov’s decision will impact the Flyers’ locker room.
“Not for a second,” Tortorella said, according to TSN. “The meeting, the 15-20 minutes we spent together, was really healthy. [A] really good process in a very important situation.
“To me, it bonds the team going through something like that. I’m not concerned about the speculation of a team splitting up. Not a chance.”
After Tuesday’s game, Provorov said, “I respect everybody. I respect everybody’s choices. My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion.”
