'I LOVE DON': Ron MacLean ponders his future

Get the latest from Joe Warmington straight to your inbox
Joe Warmington
Published Nov 14, 2019  •  2 minute read
Join the conversation
Host's of "Hockey Night in Canada" Ron Maclean and Don Cherry pose in the studio before game two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2008 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Detroit Red Wings and the Dallas Stars at Joe Louis Arena on May 10, 2008 in Detroit, Michigan. Dave Sandford/Getty Images
Host's of "Hockey Night in Canada" Ron Maclean and Don Cherry pose in the studio before game two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2008 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Detroit Red Wings and the Dallas Stars at Joe Louis Arena on May 10, 2008 in Detroit, Michigan. Dave Sandford/Getty Images

He’s been called Judas. Pontius Pilate. Brute, too.

Story continues below

But while Ron MacLean has heard these references, he said there is only one truth when it comes to how he feels about Donald S. Cherry.

Recommended Videos

“I love Don,” he said.

You can tell from his voice these have not been easy days for MacLean. He’s worrying about the well-being of his close friend and the criticism he has faced for his response after last week’s controversial Coach’s Corner broadcast.

They have, after all, been partners for 35-years on Coach’s Corner until Remembrance Day when Cherry was fired by Sportsnet for saying “you people who come here” should wear poppies to honour the troops who provided this way of life and freedom.

MacLean took to Twitter, as well as appearing on the Sunday night Hometown Hockey broadcast, to apologize.

Story continues below

But he had no idea he would never appear with Cherry on Coach’s Corner again.

Loading...
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.

“It all happened so fast. I wish we could have had another day,” he said.

And now he is faced with trying to figure out what comes next.

He spent Wednesday at CBC headquarters meeting with Sportsnet brass and producers to work on just that.

“I am doing some thinking,” MacLean said Wednesday. “I am taking these days to sort and order what I will say Saturday.”

Read More
  1. None
    WARMINGTON: No apology from Don Cherry on HNIC poppy comments
  2. Don Cherry (Michael Peake, Toronto Sun)
    'I MEANT IT': Don Cherry fired over controversial poppy comment
  3. Sg. David Ratcliffe sells poppies in downtown Toronto on Friday November 8, 2019.
    WARMINGTON: Don Cherry scolds poppy-less Canadians

It’s going to be interesting to see how Hockey Night in Canada is going to handle that first intermission. It’s a massive hole to fill.

My suggestion is for everybody to stop trying to sink this ship.

I am hoping saner heads will prevail and we can get Coach’s Corner back where it belongs.

Forgive Don for a minor faux pas. Forgive Ron for his reactions in what was clearly a difficult time.

Make amends to those who feel hurt by what they think Cherry was trying to say.

And then get back to entertaining the audience on Saturday night.

jwarmington@postmedia.com

Loading...
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Comments
You must be logged in to join the discussion or read more comments.
Join the Conversation

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.

Trending
Read Next
Page was generated in 1.5887720584869