Cherry's time at the Corner may be over
Grapes doesn't expect to hear from CBC about renewal
By BILL BRIOUX AND JOE WARMINGTON, TORONTO SUN
COULD IT be true that the coach with the collars and his dog Blue might just be through? Enjoy the next few weeks, folks, because it might very well be the last for Don Cherry and Coach's Corner on Hockey Night In Canada. "I have had a good ride," the outspoken coach told The Sun last night.
Cherry wasn't denying the possibility his 23-year run on Saturday nights might very well be winding down? "It doesn't look so good," Grapes said before heading to the Hershey Centre to watch his beloved IceDogs OHL playoff game. "If it happens, it happens. I am not going to worry about it."
'A TOUGH YEAR'
Cherry confirmed for The Sun that the CBC has not offered him a contract to return next season. "They haven't talked to me," he said. "I haven't heard from them and I don't expect to hear from them."
The CBC has not commented on his status.
The 2003/2004 hockey season has been extremely difficult for Cherry: "It's been a tough year."
His popular post-first period segment was slapped with a seven-second delay after his comments about French Canadian hockey players landed him in hot water. A stern rebuke from CBC executive vice-president Harold Redekopp, and an investigation by Canada's language police clearly stung the 70-year-old TV icon.
While Cherry acknowledged there is a very real chance his long association with the network's best-watched show could be nearing an end, he insisted he is focused on the playoffs. "I'm having fun with [HNIC host Ron] MacLean and I can hardly wait to get down there. I just show up and do Coach's Corner."
NEGATIVITY
Told that his departure from CBC would be like NBC telling Donald Trump, "You're fired," Cherry shot back, "Yeah, I wish I had his hair."
But on a more serious note, he said he's a little tired of reading so much negativity by "political reporters" about himself in the press. "It seems every time there is anything bad in the world, it's me," he said. "But I guess if you are going to give it out, you have to take it."
Cherry said he hadn't heard that 74% of respondents in a TV poll wanted him to stay but said he appreciates the support.
And, he said, there is still a possibility things will get done between he and the CBC.
"I remember one time it didn't get settled until one week into the season." |
