Pulling No Punches Here

One of these days, Don Cherry is going to pronounce a name correctly or get in a complete thought. And then watch out.

For now, consider "Hockey Night in Canada" host Ron MacLean as a linesman. MacLean can be quick to step in and save Cherry from getting in way over his head. But when the subject is Europeans, MacLean tends to give Cherry plenty of room to swing.

Cherry was trying to explain what goes through a player's mind after it has been rebooted a few times by a fist. Here's the Colton Orr/Matt Carkner fight that Cherry was referencing to start "Coach's Corner."



I must break in here to say that MAYBE Carkner is trying to save face by saying he wants to go to the box rather than the locker room. Or maybe he is alerting a trainer that he sees one of his lost marbles near the red line.

And Cherry, who noted his desire to save face after taking a beatdown, seems to have lost the name of Nicklas Lidstrom. OK, so Cherry knows the name of the Norris Trophy winner that he is putting down as he sings the praises of Dion Phaneuf.

Silly, really. Lidstrom's actions on the ice speak loudly, drowning Cherry's PR show for Phaneuf.



The American version of Cherry, Mike Milbury, later opines on the Ilya Kovalchuk trade, putting Atlanta GM Don Waddell on the stake and tossing the first match.

And you have to admit, if anyone knows anything about terrible, weak, stupid, insane deals, then Mike Milbury can move to the front of the line anytime. So, I have to say that Milbury has a point when it comes to not learning his lesson after having to getting very little for Marian Hossa, whom he was forced to send to Pittsburgh.

Now, what about that Roberto Luongo deal that you pulled back with the Isles, Mike? Roberto, who?

Everything From Soup to a Few Nuts

***I cannot figure out the Anaheim Ducks. Every time I turn around, they are losing games they should be winning. So I begin to write them off, and they put together back-to-back victories to keep them relevant for the time being. The Ducks sit in the No. 12 spot as of this writing, but none of the teams sitting at Nos. 6-11 seem all that intimidating (Colorado, Nashville, Los Angeles, Detroit, Dallas and Minnesota).



***Don Cherry still has a job on television. Hard to believe, but somebody up there likes him. Apparently the thought of anybody in the United States taking some comfort in the gold medal Team USA captured at the World Junior Championship just set is mind in motion. Seems as though Canada would have won gold if only... Well, you heard him. Just like the Boston Bruins would have stopped the Montreal Canadiens if only Bobby Orr had never suffered a knee injury, if only the Bruins had a coach who could count the number of men being sent out on the ice, if only... You get the idea. That's why you play the games. Otherwise, it's all just a bluster game where everyone can declare themselves a winner, Don. Woulda, coulda, shoulda ... didn't. Scoreboard.



***I expect a higher level of conversation when I turn on "Hockey Night in Canada," that is when I watch everything but "Coach's Corner." But Mike Milbury -- hmm, a former Bruin, the Florsheim attacker, etc. -- can only come up with this gem to introduce his bluster over the contract situation with Ilya Kovalchuk: "Oink, oink, piggy, piggy." Milbury, the man who traded Roberto Luongo and, with the owner's approval, tendered large sums to Alexei Yashin and Rick DiPietro. Anybody have four words I can use?



***A must see, as a rental or on cable, that is not hockey related is "Harvard Beats Yale 29-29." A very simple film that gives you better insight to young men who grew up and managed to put the game and their young lives in perspective. The time was 1968, which meant everything was in play, from sex to politics to war. But on Saturday afternoons in the fall, there was just a game of football.

THE SCOREBOARD
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Carolina 4, Ottawa 1
At Columbus 2, Dallas 0
Anaheim 3, at Chicago 1
Tampa Bay 4, at New Jersey 2
The standings are here.
Recap by Sportsnet.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Worcester 6, Portland 5 OT
At Chicago 3, Toronto 2 OT
Milwaukee 4, at Peoria 1
Hartford 2, at Providence 1 OT
At Rochester 6, Binghamton 1
Rockford 2, at Houston 1 OT
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Gwinnett 6, at South Carolina 2
At Reading 7, Florida 3
At Toledo 6, Charlotte 3
Bakersfield 5, at Stockton 4 OT
The standings are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Chicoutimi 4, at Baie-Comeau 3
Montreal 6, at Acadie-Bathurst 1
At Moncton 3, Halifax 0
At Shawinigan 4, Quebec 0
At Victoriaville 6, Rimouski 3
At Drummondville 3, Prince Edward Island 1
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
Mississauga 3, at Brampton 1
At Kingston 5, Ottawa 4 OT
At Windsor 4, Sarnia 1
At Kitchener 3, Niagara 2
Sudbury 7, at Oshawa 4
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Medicine Hat 5, Vancouver 1
At Everett 4, Spokane 3 SO
At Tri-City 5, Chilliwack 0
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Waterloo 3, at Chicago 2
Cedar Rapids 4, at Tri-City 1
At Sioux Falls 4, Omaha 3 SO
The standings are here.