Flyers coach John Tortorella loves reading your mail — as long as you’re not ‘an idiot’
Torts went viral for his handwritten note in response to a fan’s letter. He said it’s not the first time.
John Tortorella, in many ways, is old school. That mentality manifests in his coaching, but it also impacts his interactions with fans.
In the age of social media, Tortorella revealed earlier this season that he reads all of the letters he gets from fans in the mail.
“My mail is the highlight of the day for me,” Tortorella told reporters during a November press conference. “I read all my mail because I am not going to miss a young kid’s letter. An autograph or a letter back to them, I will not miss. I read it all. It’s astonishing some of the thoughts I get.”
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With the Flyers exceeding expectations in year two of their rebuild under Tortorella, Philadelphia has quickly fallen in love with him and his old-school mindset.
One fan wrote him a lengthy letter thanking him for the Flyers playing competitive hockey without tanking like the Sixers did during “The Process” — and two months later, Tortorella wrote him a note back.
“Thanks for your letter. I can feel your love of sport thru reading your letter. We are going to try like hell to get this right with the Flyers. Thanks for your thoughts!” Tortorella wrote in the note.
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Tortorella was surprised to find out the note had gone viral, given he responds to a number of notes he receives.
“I return thoughts back to people,” Tortorella said Thursday. “Now if it’s [expletive] and he’s just being an [expletive], then I don’t bother with it, but I believe it was an older gentleman, and as I said in that letter, he was a fan. He was a Flyer fan. Why can’t I write him back? ... I’m writing people back. If you have something to say to me, say it to me. If you’re an idiot, I won’t write you back.”
Staff writer Jackie Spiegel contributed to this story.