I had written up a few items that I thought were big stories of the 2019-20 NHL season. Of course, all of mine involve the firing/suspensions of various NHL personalities. You can read the full article that our crack team of writers worked on (not the drug), posted over on Puck Junk if you want to check it out. We wrap up the Top 11 Stores of the 2019-20 NHL Season. The full article...
Sports are not immune to parallels that exist within the society
that surrounds it. A wise-man once said, “The world don’t move to the beat of
just one drum. What might be right for you may not be right for some.” Indeed. Despite the sometimes seemingly deliberate
best efforts to remain on their own island, the hockey world made quite a few
headlines this year in their appeasing of the woken masses of cancel culture
fanatics. This is the tale of three vocal knights of hockey broadcasting.
THE TALE
OF SIR CHERRY
As many of you are probably aware, the dulcet tones that filled
the airwaves for 38 years on Hockey Night In Canada were silenced on November
9, 2019. Don Cherry, one of the most popular sports personalities, for better
or for worse, was no stranger to controversy.
The 85 year old has been an outspoken proponent of the “good old days”
of hockey as well as a constant, often xeno-centric, supporter of all things
Canadian for his entire career.
Whether
it was coming after Ovechkin for excessive celebration, disparaging the entire
Russian Federation hockey program, calling out officiating on national TV, or
criticizing Canadian team GMs for not having enough players from Planet Maple
Leaf on the roster, Don has years of front line training in speaking his
mind.
But this time, even dapper Don’s obnoxiously fantastic wardrobe
couldn’t save him from his comments he made on air during a “Coach’s Corner”
segment of the show. When discussing the
upcoming Remembrance Day in Canada with co-host Ron MacLean, Cherry very
adamantly drew attention to what he saw as a lack of disrespect from the people
of Toronto when it came to displaying poppy’s to honor the country’s fallen
military heroes. He said, “You people ... that come here, whatever it is,
you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey. At least you could pay a couple of bucks for
poppies or something like that. These guys paid for your way of life that you
enjoy in Canada.” That statement, as
well as the many that preceded it, probably would not have garnered much
attention in the past but not this time.
Sportsnet viewed his statements as nothing more than divisive hate
speech and relieved the former NHL coach of his duties, setting off a firestorm
of debate that still comes up today.
Cherry’s hero/anti-hero
character brought both support and ire from both sides of the coin with people
speaking out against his anti-European (and at times misogynistic) views and
many applauding him for saying the things that live in the mind but never dare
to leave the mouth. Regardless of what
stance you take (or took), it was clear that Don Cherry’s schtick had run its
course…or had it. You can still find Don
but now on his podcast, the Grapevine along with his son and grandson. He still
touts the show as him “telling it like it is” without the filter. I’ve listened to quite a few shows and to me,
this is the Don I missed, the story-telling Don that waxes on about tales of
his life in hockey.
THE TAIL OF SIR ROENICK
Love them or hate
them, the guys over on Barstool Sports podcast Spittin’ Chiclets are hockey
royalty when it comes to making the interview rounds.
With former NHLers Ryan Whitney and Paul
Bissonette (since 2018), along with co-host RA (Rear Admiral) and producer Mike
Grinnell, the show focuses on hockey topics of the day as well as features
guests that have included the likes of Connor McDavid, Chris Pronger, Auston
Mattews, Derek Sanderson, Ron MacLean, and Sidney Crosby, to give you a sample
of variety.
The show is known for its
irreverent humor and discussions about hockey, life, sports, betting, and
general “guy stuff”, to use an overused phrase.
It is also probably the closest thing most fans will ever get to an
actual professional hockey locker room experience.
The point is, this is one of the reasons why
many of their guests seem to feel much more open and honest with their
discussions and you won’t hear the “pucks in deep” talk.
But sometimes, things can go south.
Former Blackhawk,
Flyer, 2x Coyote, Shark, King and at the time, NHL analyst for NBC, Jeremy
Roenick, joined the guys for a show on December 19th, 2019. This wasn’t the first time JR had been on the
show. He had appeared before, talking
hockey, his job, his family and anything else the guys wanted to discuss. Always known as the jokester in his playing
days, he even once told a very detailed story of the epic prank he played on
Torey Mitchell while they were in Las Vegas (and it is EPIC, so go find it).
This latest episode took a different turn though, as JR went a little “blue” as
the comedians used to say. He was
describing his personal relationship with co-worker Kathryn Tappen and his
wife, describing Kathryn as the most professional sports personality he has
ever worked with. He then continued describing
their summer vacation to Portugal, making quite a few references to his thought
of always wanting a three-some with both of the “blonde bombshells”. He also joked of his equal-opportunity love
making desire for another co-worker, saying he wouldn’t mind taking a crack at
Patrick Sharp if given the opportunity since he was “so beautiful”.
While many
listeners and fans of the show saw through most of this as mindless humor, the
executives at NBC did not. Neither did
those that supplied the thousands of carefully penned and thought out pieces of
literary prose directed at NBC’s various social media platforms (otherwise
known as hate mail). In today’s social
climate, the pressure to hold people accountable for their actions outside of
the work environment but while still under employment of corporations,
especially high-profile/public interest ones has never been higher. A few days later, NBC issued a statement
expressing their disappointment in JR’s comments and suspended him indefinitely
without pay. Tappan, admitting that she
would still remain friends with JR, also publically stated she found his
comments inappropriate. Regardless of
apologies, both public and private, Roenick has not graced the airwaves of NBC,
NBCSports, or any of their affiliates since the incident.
THE TALE
OF SIR MILBURY
Never the straight-laced, analytics guy in the studio, Mike
Milbury generally takes the path he is most comfortable with and that’s
speaking whatever comes to his head at that moment.
That is exactly why NBC brought him in; to be
the antithesis of all others before him.
Now I could feasibly drone on with dozens of puns and bad jokes related
to footwear and their use as weapons to describe “Mad” Mike Milbury but his
actions pretty much speak for themselves.
Despite his long, long history of saying some “not so PC” remarks either
on the air, in interviews, in the studio, or in various articles and by-lines,
he always seemed to get a pass as the blathering idiot that no one listens to
anyway (at least in my mind).
For the
sake of this becoming the Slam Mike Milbury Epitaph of Infinite Sorrow [patent
pending], I’ll stick to the most recent event; the one that finally brought the
hammer down on his NBC career, for now.
On August 20th2020, during the Islanders 4-0
shellacking of the Washington Capitals, conversation began amongst the co-hosts
of the broadcast, which included Milbury and longtime broadcaster John
Forslund. Since the unprecedented
bubble-life began, varieties of stories about players adapting to their new, unique
environments came to light. Forslund
mentioned, “if you think about it, it’s a terrific environment,” describing the
players that are team oriented and enjoy being engrossed in routine. To which Milbury replied, “Not even any woman
here to disrupt your concentration.” I’m
pretty sure no shoe was going to beat that statement back from whence it
came.
NBCSports quickly took to their social media outlets, relaying
their disappointment in Milbury’s comment, calling it “insensitive” and
“insulting” and that they planned to handle it accordingly. Mike shortly released a statement,
apologizing (once again) for his remarks, regretting his mistake, and stepping
down from the NBC team for the rest of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Citing his comments as being irreverent and
adding flavor to the broadcast, many of Mad Mike’s proponents took to the
socials to defend his statements but this time it was just too much. Lest we forget the 2012 comment about then
Penguins coach Dan Bylsma who he said should have “taken off his skirt and gone
over there” to fight then Flyers head
coach Peter Laviolette. Or maybe
the time he made light of concussion issues, using Sidney Crosby as an example
and calling him a “punk”? How about the
time when he affectionately referred to the Sedin twins as Thelma and Louise? Or the time he referred to golfer Tiger Woods
as Tiger “Wuss” and told him he would send a goon squad to “tidy” him up a bit
after he made a comment about hockey players injury recovery (I actually didn’t
mind that one). Still not enough? Lets see…calling Pierre McGuire, on air, a
“soccer mom” for his opinion on a dangerous play, repeatedly using some form of
the phrase “hit ‘em with your purse”, monologing on the “pansification” of the
game, oh, and don’t forgot the assault charge that was later dropped against
him for grabbing and berating a pee-wee hockey player (they are 12 at that
level in case you were wondering).
Again, whether you picked a side in the Milbury case (or his one
before this, or the one before that, or the one before that, etc), is irrelevant
when the Cancel Culture Squad mobilizes.
Milbury decided (or was told) the attention he brought was too much of a
distraction and he didn’t want to “interfere with the athletes as they try to
win the greatest trophy in sports.” Well
at least he got that part right.
