Canucks Rewind: The 2014 Heritage Classic and Luongo’s trade

The John Tortorella era will go down in history for the Vancouver Canucks and their fans, but for all the wrong reasons.

Let’s rewind to the summer of 2013.

Despite securing two straight President Trophies in 2011 and 2012, it was clear that the Canucks were undoubtedly trending in the wrong direction.

The franchise had just come off of their second-straight first-round exit in the playoffs, having only won one postseason game during that span. Their aging core was on the wrong side of 30, and the success from their 2011 playoff run seemed like a distant memory.

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Their window to win was starting to close, and the front office felt that the franchise needed a drastic change.

Enter Torts.

Tortorella was hired by the franchise on June 25th, 2013, replacing long-time bench boss Alain Vigneault, who was let go from the position a month earlier.

Tortorella had an impressive track record leading up to this point, including a Jack Adams Award and Stanley Cup victory with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2004-05 campaign, and he was slowly climbing the ranks for most wins by an American-born coach.

Tortorella was well-known throughout the league for his brash, hot-headed leadership style, but it seemed to work for his teams, and the Canucks were hoping that his arrival would spark the same kind of success.

Spoiler alert: it did not.

Tortorella only lasted one season in Vancouver, posting a 36-35-11 record, good for 25th in the league. The team finished the campaign with a -27 goal differential, and were eight points out of a wild-card spot.

Ouch.

Despite the unsuccessful, yet expected finish to the 2013-14 season, Tortorella did provide some exciting, soon-to-be viral moments behind the bench, including his hot-tempered altercation against Calgary Flames coach Bob Hartley on January 18th, 2014. Simply remembered as the “line brawl” game, Tortorella tried to confront Hartley during the first intermission, accusing him of attempting to injure his players by putting out his fourth line on the opening shift. Tortorella was suspended for 15 days as a result.

Of course, this was just the tip of the iceberg for Tortorella.

The real drama took place just over a month and a half later during the Heritage Classic on March 2nd, 2014, and this is where our weekly rewind truly takes off.

The Canucks were set to face off against the Ottawa Senators at BC Place. The “outdoor” regular-season game was televised nationally, and garnered huge amounts of attention throughout the league. The Canucks dressed in their vintage Millionaires jersey, and it was another opportunity for the rest of Canada to watch some of Vancouver’s most skilled superstars in action.

Or so they thought.

Hours before puck drop, Tortorella made the unexpected decision to bench fan-favourite goaltender Roberto Luongo, which sent shock waves throughout the city and the bench.

There was no question that Luongo had faced immense heat and pressure while playing in Vancouver, particularly throughout his final two seasons with the club. During that span, Luongo split the net with former-Canuck Cory Schneider, although many believed that it was time for no. 35 to take over full-time, based on Luongo’s injury history and overall performance.

The Canucks had also signed Schneider to a much friendlier three-year, $12 million contract in June 2012, prompting many to believe that Luongo would be out the door as soon as they could find a club that didn’t think that his “contract sucked” too much.

As we all know, sooner turned into later.

One year after inking his deal, Schneider was unexpectedly traded to the New Jersey Devils, thrusting Luongo back into the spotlight as the team’s bonafide number one goaltender for the start of the 2013-14 season.

There was quite a bit riding on Luongo going into what-would-be his last campaign in Vancouver.

Like most of the core, Luongo was approaching the back nine of his career, and the trade rumours did not cease. To make matters worse, the team had lost eight of their previous nine games heading into the Heritage Classic, and were dipping their toes into the “rebuild” pool.

Despite all this, Luongo was still able to put up elite numbers between the pipes that season, posting a .917 SV and a 2.38 GAA in 48 games played, and there was no question that he earned his time as a starter.

John Tortorella clearly didn’t agree.

Under normal circumstances, the team’s winless ways would be reason enough for a coach to have a change of scenery between the pipes. But the Canucks’ struggles went well beyond their goaltending during that losing stretch, and it was no secret that Luongo wanted to suit up for his club that day, so it made sense to start Bobby Lou.

Of course, that didn’t matter for the bench boss.

Instead, Tortorella went with back-up goalie Eddie Lack, much to the displeasure of Vancouver fans and media. Lack was showered with boos as soon as he stepped onto the ice (to no fault of his own, of course), and the broadcast crew made sure to pan to Luongo’s angry, disappointed expression on the bench as often as they could.