The Vegas Golden Knights caused quite a stir on Thursday night following their victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Despite this victory advancing the Golden Knights to the Western Conference Finals for the fourth time in team history, head coach John Tortorella declined to speak with the media following his team’s 5-1 win.
The reaction from the National Hockey League was swift and left no room for interpretation. The league found this unprecedented behavior unacceptable, and its retribution sets the standard that it will not tolerate this sort of thing in the future.
As a result of “flagrant violations of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Media Regulations,” the NHL brought the hammer down on the Golden Knights. The team will forfeit a second-round pick in the 2026 draft– a harsh punishment for a team in possession of very little draft capital.
Head coach John Tortorella has also been fined $100,000.The NHL made it very clear in its issued statement that the Golden Knights have been warned about similar issues in the past.
“The imposition of these penalties comes after previous warnings were issued to the Club regarding their compliance with the Media Relations and other associated policies.”
The Golden Knights have the opportunity to appeal this decision to the Commissioner’s Office. If they choose to do so, that appeal will be held in person next week in New York.
