There was one notable absence. Boston College men’s hockey coach Jerry York, being inducted into the Hall of Fame this weekend as a builder, opted not to take part in Friday’s ceremony. Why? Well, it was a Friday night in November — York had a game to coach.
HOCKEY HALL OF FAME: BROWN | CARBONNEAU | HUGHSON |WICKENHEISER | YORK | ZUBOV
No. 16 Boston College beat Vermont, 5-1, in a Hockey East matchup Friday, and York earned his 1,074th victory as a collegiate head coach while the Hall of Fame game played out in Toronto. A few media members lamented York’s absence:
To say those comments ruffled a few feathers on Twitter would be putting it lightly.
Several media members who have covered York and his teams for years rose to the 74-year-old coach’s defense, noting that his commitment to the collegiate game is what has earned him a spot in the Hall of Fame — and that his insistence on coaching BC before he joins his fellow inductees for Sunday’s Legends game and Monday’s official ceremony is exactly in-character.
NESN analysts spoke out on Simmons’ comments after the Boston-based network’s broadcast of Friday’s Leafs-Bruins game.
“If anything it’s a tribute, in my opinion, for Jerry York to say, ‘I’ve got a team to coach, these are my kids. I’ve made a commitment to them. I’m going to honor that commitment,’” NESN host Dale Arnold said.
York’s Eagles play Vermont again Saturday at 7 p.m. ET. The Eagles are 6-4 so far this season.
And for Simmons’ part, he admitted Saturday morning that he would change the wording “idiotic” to “disrespectful” but still stood by his original tweet.
