What does Don Cherry have against the Redwings?

Question

It just seems like he's giving the wings no credit whatsoever. Making fun of Datsyuk and his scrum with Roberts seemed strange. And when asked "Don't the Redwings deserve some credit?" he says "I feel sorry for Crosby." What?!

Answer 1

He is a hockey personality, not a hockey expert. I wouldn't take anything he says seriously. He doesn't know what the h**l he is talking about for the most part.

Although 98% of the media give the Wings no credit. We could win the next 2 game 98-0 and they would blame it on poor reffing and the Wings taking dives.

Answer 2

hes just upset there the team in the hl and not the teams n canada

Answer 3

Beerslayer, you can say that again!  I get to watch on versus (cry) but usually have a peek the next day to see his ensemble of the evening!

Cherry claimed that he'd predicted a Wings final, but he doesn't seem to want to say anything particularly nice about them.  Neither did it seem very sympathetic the way he said he was 'sorry for Crosby' .  

I don't feel too sorry for Crosby - he and his team are in a playoff position that most hockey players would give all their remaining teeth for.  If they don't win this time around, there will be tons of opportunity for the young team members, and it might take some heat off Crosby - how does he put up with all that media circus?

Answer 4

NIPS

To make matters worse, Cherry is going around wearing suits from yesteryear.

When Cherry announced the nominees for the Jack Adams Trophy, he was wearing the suit he wore the day he accepted his award...30 years ago..........and then mentioned he spent $1200 on it.

On Sunday evening, he wore the same suit he wore in game 6 of the 1978 Stanley Cup finals.  

Now, I've known Don since the 60s (we fought once - he won), and Don is a bigger man now than he was then.  I've gained 10 lbs since the 70s, and none of my suits still fit me (although thank God the fedoras still do) so I find it hard to believe that any of Don's suits from 30 yrs ago still fit him.

Answer 5

He doesn't like Russians.

Answer 6

I refuse to watch him...I never have ever seen him say anything. I cant take a man dressed like a clown seriously. Its kind of like.... how can Canada take an economic crisis seriously when their currency is the loonie?

Answer 7

easy answer,,,,Don Cherry is a jerk from the word go....He has someting nasty to say about everyone and every team...Being from Pittsburgh and seeing Cherry coments about Lemieux and Jagr together in the cup years,,,,he just proved to be a jerk...I'm sure I don't hear all his coments,,,but just but listening to others,,,he rip on everyone,,,,,heck,,,I would be he rips on his own mother

Answer 8

Don Cherry has dissed and praised just about every team in the NHL 800,000 times in his career, it's basically just whatever he feels like at the moment he says, which is usually entertaining. He definitly prefers the old school, tough players that would get in fights and score once every 5 or 6 games  to shifty puck-handling Russians.

Answer 9

If you have watched Don at all on HNIC over the years, you will know that Don has opinions and favorites like all of us, only he isn't afraid to shun being politically correct when expressing them.

Answer 10

It's a European thing, the Red Wings are best known (to many) for their "Russian Five" line and I'm sure that doesn't sit well with Don Cherry, he tosses words around like "grit" and "heart" at players who clearly have little skill, its because he had little skill when he played, and all he did is what anyone who is desperate to stay in the nhl could do: go into the corners and try to show you are worth something.

The European players like Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Fedorov are the exact opposite of Cherry, they seem to have natrual talent that he never had and no matter what he did players like these would always be held in higher regard than him.

I dont think he gives a d**n about the fact that Datsyuk is from Russia and Zetterberg is from Sweden, he just hates skilled players and because so many of the Russians and Swedes have alot of technical skill/speed/agility/coordination he lumps them all together into "those Europeans" and complains about them.

So there's your answer he hates the Wings because they not only draft Europeans but also develop Euro talent (they pretty much trained Datsyuk and Zetterberg from good to great having drafted them in something like the 5th and 7th rounds). Essentially there are teams like Washington and Pittsburgh that just take the highly recommended Euro's as they come, but the Wings are actually CREATING more of them out of seeminlgy average players, and that kills Cherry.

Answer 11

He's just being himself. I'm guessing you don't get CBC?

Answer 12

Mike Babcock made fun of Datsyuk after the game as well.  I don;t think he has anything against the Red Wings (if he dows, Holland should fire his *** immediately)

Answer 13

Don Cherry feels the Detroit uniform colors clash with all his suits. Anyway He too must have got that NHL memo That says you have to pump up the golden boy Crosby.

Answer 14

What Fatts said.

Answer 15

I think you are reading too much into the post-game stuff. He was just being Don...and he was also trying to talk to both of the other guys at the same time. That being said..."The Don" is a strange bird....take everything he says with a grain of salt.

Answer 16

yeah, like someone else said, everyone has been told to pump up the golden boy crosby. This c**p gets on my nerves. Detroit is a well-oiled machine. They cannot be stopped. They are in the early stages of a dynasty in hockey, and all everyone wants to do is wrap their lips around crosby's you know what.

It is sad what sports is doing anymore. They hype up these players and teams to sell merchandise, to put people in the seats. They are losing the idea of sports in general.

Everyone of these broadcasters need to step back and celebrate this series for what it is, and not analyzing crosby and malkin all the time. They need to give detroit the credit they deserve. Look how badly they are shutting down pittsburgh!!!! Detroit's break out is so finely tuned, its not even funny. Pittsburgh gets the puck down in detroit's zone, and immediately detroit breaks out and goes in their end for minutes on end.

I just hope the wing sweep this series, even though i was hoping to see them win back at home. I hope detroit doesnt even allow the pens a goal this whole series. I think that just might shut these people up. Let's face it, the western conference is 10 times better than the eastern conference. Are the pens really the best that the east has??? geez! I think our blue jackets could take the pens.

Answer 17

it probably has to do with his not not so secret dis-like of Europenas and a heavy Euopean influance on Detroit's roster.  Truth be told the game passed Cherry by about 20 years ago and he just doesn't get it any more.