There will come a day when the iconic Coach’s Corner figure – Don Cherry – will decide to leave the program. However, that day isn’t going to come in the foreseeable future.
According to Bill Brioux of the Canadian Press, the 82-year-old Cherry has signed a multi-year deal to say on with Hockey Night in Canada – now on Sportsnet – for the 2016-17 season and beyond.
One of the most naturally polarizing voices in the hockey world, Cherry signed on with Hockey Night in Canada and CBC in 1981. Since then, his old-school thinking has been a staple of first intermission hockey talk.
Known for his praise for Canadian hockey and military and his famous thumbs up, Cherry’s been the topic of conversation numerous times over his career for opinions he’s shared on and off the air.
While changes are still expected to come to CBC and Sportsnet’s coverage of the NHL – after the network took a significant hit to their ratings – one thing will surely remain the same. Cherry will be back and he’ll be just as polarizing as ever.
While he only played a single game in the NHL, Cherry was best known for his time behind the Boston Bruins bench where he coach for six seasons and led them to two Stanley Cup Final appearances.
Andrew is in his 8th year reporting for The Hockey Writers covering the Toronto Maple Leafs. He began his broadcasting with CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada team as well as being part of their coverage of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. He’s the former play-by-play voice of the London Jr. Knights for Rogers TV and currently hosts the Sticks in the 6ix podcast. You can follow him on Twitter at @AndrewGForbes.
