head coach John Tortorella has had a change heart concerning protests. In an interview with The Athletic's Aaron Portzline, Tortorella revealed that he during the national anthem. The coach previously said that he would bench any player that protests during the national anthem while he was at the helm of Team USA at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. "When Raul Mondesi Jersey I stand for the flag and the national anthem, my reflection Jason Vargas Jersey is solely on the men and women who have given their lives defending our country and constitution and freedom, along with those who are serving today," Tortorella told The Athletic. "I have learned over the years, listening and watching, that men and women who choose to kneel during this time mean no disrespect toward the flag." Tortorella has a son, Nick, who is an Army Ranger, so Tortorella had a personal i sue with protests back in 2016. He felt that the protests were disrespectful towards military Abraham Almonte Jersey members. Now, the way Tortorella interprets protests is that they have nothing to do with the military -- especially following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. Tortorella added that if one of his players wanted to protest, he'd hope that the two could talk about the topic behind closed doors. "I would hope that if one of my players wanted to protest during the anthem, he would Billy Hamilton Jersey bring it to me and we would talk about it, tell me his thoughts and what he wanted to do," Tortorella added. "From there, we would bring it to the team to discu s it, much like it's being discu sed in our country right now. "How can we rectify some of these problems?" Tortorella even went a step further and said Kansas City Royals Jersey that he'd be interested in adding a regular "moment" prior to the national anthem for fans and players to reflect on the racial injustice that is transpiring in the world.