Wait, wait, wait!
I know what you're thinking, and you are probably right.
But give me a chance to explain.
Much has been said about the job that current NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has done since he began in 1993. Once the Bettman era began, the league expanded with six more teams (Florida, Anaheim, Nashville, Columbus, Atlanta, Minnesota). It was seen as a good move then, but many of those teams are struggling financially in non-hockey markets.
He has been accused of poor advertising of the game, responsible for losing major television contracts with big-time American channels, and worries more about money than hockey. There is also the small fact that under his command the NHL was locked out.
Twice.
If you need to ask fans how they feel about Mr. Bettman, just listen when he steps on the ice to hand the Stanley Cup to the winner this year.
It is time for a new man in charge, someone who actually knows the game, watches the game, and loves the game.
It is time for Donald S. Cherry.
Don Cherry, love him or hate him, is what the NHL needs as a commissioner. He knows the game, he watches the game, and he loves the game. Obviously, after just turning 75, the possibility of this actually happening is slim to none. And slim just left town.
But dare to dream.
He Loves the Game
Forget the guys who grew up worrying more about statistics in class than statistics on the ice. Cherry absolutely loves the game of hockey. No one could ever argue that. Cherry is a man who spends most of his life either sitting in a cold rink watching a minor league game or in his living room watching an NHL tilt.
He is a true fan.
You could even argue that he's a world-class scout too, as he can spot a future NHL star in a game of 13-year-olds. Heck, if he told the parents of a newborn baby that their son would be playing in the NHL in 18 years, they'd better find the kid some skates.
He has spent his entire life in hockey. He only played one game in the NHL in 1955 (one more than Mr. Bettman) but went on to become famous as a coach and a national icon on CBC's Coach's Corner.
Kids adore him, parents respect him, and true fans of the game stay in their chairs when the first period ends on Saturday night.
If there is anyone who deserves the job as the head honcho of the NHL, it is the man who knows and loves the game at every level.
When He Speaks, People Listen
This year there has been more criticism of Cherry than ever before. It seems every week in the newspapers, on TV, and the Internet, that countless members of the ever-so-trustworthy media hurl insults and criticize him for what he says on the air.
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