Thursday, March 5, 2009

Cherry Rips Ovechkin


We all know that Don Cherry has always been a controversial figure. We also know that Don Cherry always speaks his mind—the controversial Canadian has probably never once abided by the polite rule; “if you have nothing nice to say, than say nothing at all.” Cherry’s last segment of Coaches’ Corner has the entire hockey community in an uproar. Much of the show was spent vilifying Ovechkin and his goal celebrations, which is what has infuriated much of the NHL fan base.
Oh, and there is one more thing that we forgot to mention about Don Cherry, most of the time he makes a fool of himself, I mean, have you seen the suits the man wears? Well, his comparisons, and video analysis fall under the same category.
Firstly, if you watch Cherry’s clip of Ovechkin’s goals, you will notice that he was wearing the old blue and black; over two-thirds of the goals Cherry shows are from Ovie’s first two seasons, when his goal celebrations were never an issue. Also, Cherry shows you the celebrations, but what he doesn’t show are the actual goals; so what you don’t see is Ovechkin racing down the ice only to be hooked, and score as he is sliding across the goal mouth on his side—indeed, goals well worth celebrating. But, Cherry calls Ovie everything from a ‘goof’ to a ‘showboat’, and compares his celebrations to those of soccer players. However, Don Cherry is all about attention (again with the suits), so if Alex Ovechkin is in church sitting on a certain church pew designated for attention seekers, then Don Cherry is sitting right there with him.

But, where Cherry really makes a fool of himself is when he is comparing hockey, to soccer. He says that Ovechkin’s goal celebrations are reminiscent of those of the MLS, something that shouldn’t be brought to the Canadian game of hockey. But, the last time I checked, soccer was the most popular sport on the planet, cashing in with well over a billion viewers. Seventy-five years old or not, if hockey had over a billion viewers I am pretty sure Mr. Cherry would be doing back-flips.
Cherry’s mistake in his broadcast, was when he practically called for someone to take Ovechkin out. It’s a little Reggie Dunn-ish in Slap Shot, if you ask me. While most of Cherry’s “celebration” comments are easily shrugged off, the buzz he created with those words will very likely encourage some player to give it their best shot at some point. He essentially condoned it and made it sound like something that needs to be done, which is unsafe, and unfair.
So what sprung this sudden attack on Ovechkin? Many feel that the attack comes from the staunchly pro-Canadian Cherry because he is taking Crosby’s side in the Sid/Ovie rivalry. It is a well known fact that Cherry is “racist” (for lack of better term) against the European players, actually, against anyone who is NOT Canadian. I think this attack springs from the fact that Ovechkin is finally getting the recognition that he deserves OVER Crosby. Since the Canadian National Treasure, that is Crosby, has been overshadowed by Ovechkin - and perhaps more significantly - embarrassed himself by his own conduct, it has suddenly become necessary for anyone who ever anointed Crosby as "The Next One" to vilify Ovechkin. The NHL thought Sid the Skid was the more marketable player, probably because he speaks English fluently. But what is happening is, the league and the fans have finally come to realize that Ovechkin IS what the league needs... a shot of adrenaline. He brings freshness and vitality to the league, and is a breath of fresh air to fan’s everywhere. While Cherry one has to accept that Don Cherry knows a lot about hockey, it also needs to be realized that Ovechkin’s type of hockey is what is selling these days. People watch hockey night in Canada to watch Don Cherry talk about something the only way Don Cherry can, and people sellout the Verizon Center to watch the Great Eight do his thing.
The best player in the world shouldn’t be a candidate for humiliation over something as petty as goal celebrations, simply because he is Russian, and not Canadian. The racism in the league, towards Europeans, is stupid, and has to stop. Gone are the day’s of the “CANADIAN WAY”--the game is international, and some of the leagues greatest players are coming from overseas. It is a fact that is best accepted now. In the words of Al Koken, “just because you’re not born in Moosejaw, but in Moscow, doesn’t make you a showboat.”
So Don Cherry, if you don’t like Ovechkin’s goal celebrations, there is a simple solution.
Stop him from scoring.
Good luck with that.


(I couldn't get the video to upload, so here is a link to it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMi99q89_To&feature=related )

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