Patrik Laine's no-trade clause: he refused to play for John Tortorella and the Philadelphia Flyers

PUBLICATION

Julien Trekker
August 30, 2024 (12:34)

SHARE THIS STORY

Before being traded to the Montreal Canadiens, Patrik Laine reportedly refused to waive his no-trade clause in a deal that would've sent him to the Philadelphia Flyers, where his former head coach John Tortorella is currently coaching.

Patrik Laine, after an 18-game season with the Columbus Blue Jackets, was finally traded by general manager Don Waddell to the Montreal Canadiens. Reports confirmed that a deal was in place before the trade with the Habs happened, but Laine refused to waive his no-trade clause.

It was recently revealed by a Canadiens insider that the deal would've sent him to the Philadelphia Flyers.

Laine spent only half a season with John Tortorella. When he was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets from the Winnipeg Jets, he played 46 games with Tortorella behind the bench.

At the time, there was a lot of drama between the player and the coach. Laine ended up scoring 21 points, including 10 goals, under Tortorella. The next season, with Brad Larsen as head coach, he managed to score 56 points in 56 games, showing that his relationship with Tortorella hurt his performance.

With that in mind, it's not surprising to see that he refused to play for the Philadelphia Flyers.

It is also possible that Laine simply believed a better opportunity would come, and when Montreal made an offer, a team that wasn't on his no-trade list, he seemed happy to end up with that organization.

Laraque & Gonzales on BPM Sports

Source for Patrik Laine's statistics: Hockey DB