The always-colorful John Tortorella will be behind the bench as head coach of Team USA during the World Cup of Hockey later this month.
(FOX)- He’s already making it known that he’s not going to tolerate any national anthem protests from his players during the tournament.
“If any of my players sit on the bench for the national anthem, they will sit there the rest of the game,” Tortorella told ESPN’s Linda Cohn on Tuesday.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has made headlines over the past few weeks thanks to his protests of the national anthem before his team’s preseason games.
Kaepernick has chosen to remain seated or kneeled for the anthems as a way to speak up against police brutality and racial injustice in America.
Several other athletes — including Seattle Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane and American soccer player Megan Rapinoe — have followed in the quarterback’s footsteps.