Don Cherry of CBC's Hockey Night in Canada said Monday that the Russian National Hockey Team had "no class" and "no honor" for leaving the ice before the Canadian National Anthem Sunday in Prague for the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championship final.
The Canadian team, without many of their superstars because of the ongoing Stanley Cup playoffs, defeated the Russians 6-1. The Russians won the 2014 IIHF World Championship, and like last year, had many of their All-Star players from the NHL and Russian KHL league, including three-time NHL MVP Alexander Ovechkin.
Cherry is known for his proud Canadian roots and heritage throughout the hockey world, and it often spills over to the broadcasts of his "Coach's Corner."
"We were the ones that stayed [during the 2008 and 2009 Russian gold medal wins]...We stood twice while they won, and they walked off the ice," says Cherry. "They've got no class whatsoever."
While the large majority of the Russian team did in fact walk off the ice, only three players stayed on the ice: the Washington Capitals' captain Alexander Ovechkin, the Pittsburgh Penguin's Evgeni Malkin, and Viktor Tikhonov from the KHL's SKA Saint Petersburg.
Only three Russians who stayed to listen to the Canadian national anthem were Ovi, Malkin, Tikhonov. #DearthOfManhood http://t.co/VnCJTcwe10
— Slava Malamud (@SlavaMalamud) May 17, 2015
Reuters is reporting that the IIHF President will give some punishment to the Russian team saying, "The IIHF has its own protocol and some sort of punishment will be handed down."
The Canadian national team has now won 25 world championships.
H/T USAToday