In almost any circumstance, I’d say Jim Rutherford was out of line. You don’t make an insinuation about another organization without explaining yourself, the way the Penguins’ gloriously blunt general manager did Sunday upon the signing of defenseman Jack Johnson.
“He was a healthy scratch at the end of the season (in Columbus),” Rutherford said. “I know the reason why. It wasn’t because of how he was playing.”
Why was it, then? Rutherford didn’t say, leaving folks to wonder what might have been going on that the Blue Jackets didn’t reveal (as opposed to, you know, Johnson just being terrible for most of the season).