Disclaimer: The following views are definitely the views of Keon to Dion and it's editor. You may be offended, get mad at me, or compare me to Benedict Arnold in some sort of twisted way. Frankly, I don't care. Thank you.
Despite all of the goings on in the world over the past week, the Toronto Sun ran what was close to a week-long feature on a feud between Brian Burke and Donald S. Cherry. The details of the dispute can be viewed here but the details are not what is important today, it's Mr. Cherry and his ever-tiring actions that are my point of interest.
Close to every Saturday night the man in the ugly suit pulls out his normal bullying tactics and huffs and puffs tirelessly against whoever he's decided to have a problem with on the particular day. Whether it's former fighters who are concerned about player safety or somebody not rhythmically striking their palms together for the Canadian troops, no crime is small enough in the eyes of our great coach!
Of course, that statement is oozing with sarcasm, and why shouldn't it be? The man and his act are getting pretty old. In the words of Mike Rupp, Don Cherry is darn near irrelevant (sorry about the salty language).
To the ordinary armchair athlete slurping back his Keystone Light in Moose Jaw, Timmins, or Yellowknife, Don Cherry may be a real stand-up guy and perhaps even our "Greatest" Canadian. But to those that matter today in the hockey world the man, and his message have become nothing but a punchline. If you listen to or read any major hockey source in Canada on a regular basis, you will know what I'm talking about.
His beliefs and the things that he glorifies are just not meant for our modern game. Are frightening, life-altering hits and staged fights really something that hockey needs these days? It's well-documented that we're mired in a concussion epidemic, but it should also be mentioned that we're witnessing some of the greatest offensive stars of a generation, finally starting to blossom. Guys like Giroux, Eberle, Kessel, and Tavares are finally joining the ranks of Malkin, Crosby, and Stamkos. Yet Grapes is trying to revive the dying age of the enforcer. All I want to ask is: why? Why are violent hits and passionless fights so necessary in what could be a golden age for hockey?
Don't get me wrong, Cherry's influence still exists. People still tune in to his program, and clearly even his critics still have plenty to say. He will continue to be lauded by some, and loathed by others until his final sign-off from Coaches Corner.
This is when the real change will happen. CBC only holds a contract to those Saturday night games through the 2013-2014 season, and once that contract is up, expect CTV and TSN to run a full-court press towards that agreement. The publically-owned CBC has not been able to hold rights to the Grey Cup, Olympics, or even their own hockey theme in the recent past, so naturally one cannot help but wonder about CBC's future with the NHL. Once the inevitable happens, the good pieces (I'm looking at you Elliotte Friedman) will be acquired by CTV-Globemedia, and the rest will be left for the hounds. Cherry will be left on the outside looking in. TSN already has its own format that works for hockey, and they won't divert from that. They've already tried the controversial figure in Matthew Barnaby, and that failed miserably. They will stay the course in the future.
Don Cherry may still have the ear of the public, but he doesn't have any more than that. At least he may have a future in music.
I'm cheeky, I know!
@BradMac91
@KeontoDion
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