Wednesday night, our boy Sidney Crosby put on a show. True, he does this most nights he laces them up, but on this particular night it was even better. As one writer put it, he called on his teammates to climb on his back as he carried them to their first victory in the Stanley Cup finals.
The young captain of the Penguins scored the first two goals as his club edged the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in a thriller. Yet this amazing feat went unmentioned by Don Cherry, as he gushed over the play ( all 8 minutes and 45 seconds )of Gary Roberts. Roberts, a journeyman player, garnered an assist. Cherry also enthused over Jordan Staal. Staal, at 19 one year younger than Sid The Kid, played a solid two-way game but was held pointless.
It is obvious to anyone with a sense of fairness in their bones that Cherry and his sidekick Ron MacLean do not like Crosby. These two work for the CBC, a crown corporation propped up by federal tax dollars, yet they allow their personal bias to trump the play of the game’s best players.
I didn’t see Cherry’s rant on ESPN but, according to the Globe and Mail, he continued to ignore the Cole Harbor native until ESPN commentator Barry Melrose asked, “What about the Crosby Kid?”
“Oh,” Cherry said, “I forgot. Yeah he played a great game.”
This from the guy who tells us at every opportunity that he was Coach of the Year in both the American and National hockey leagues. If he’s as good as he thinks he is you’d think he would give credit where credit is due.
Instead, he’s still hung up on the fact that Crosby, due to an injury, did not play in the Prospects Game of 2004, a game that Cherry participated in as a coach. As well, he’s still upset with Crosby’s lacrosse-type goal, while playing junior hockey. Cherry should get over it. And, if he can’t, then MacLean should reign him in, but don’t hold your breath waiting for that to happen.
Maybe Cherry doesn’t like the region because his Don Cherry’s Sports Bar didn’t last six months in Halifax, the alleged drinking capital of Canada.
Whatever, enough is enough and we, as viewers, are entitled to fair and balanced coverage, the presence of Cherry and Maclean notwithstanding.
As William Houston, the talented Globe and Mail columnist pointed out, the Hockey Night in Canada response to Crosby’s effort was dismissive and small – a disservice, not to Crosby, because he receives plenty of kudos and doesn’t need them from Hockey Night. “It was,” Houston said, “a disservice to the telecast and the viewers.”
(Al Hollingsworth is a retired journalist)
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