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An apology wasn’t enough. Sportsnet needed to fire Don Cherry. And that’s exactly what they did, on Remembrance Day appropriately enough.

In fact, the latest controversy around arguably the most famous broadcaster in English-speaking Canada underlines that Rogers Media and its sports subsidiary, Rogers Sportsnet, should’ve politely nudged Cherry into retirement when they first got the rights to the pricey National Hockey League package in 2013. That was the perfect opportunity for Rogers to announce that it was ushering in a new era for Hockey Night in Canada and that it would be an era without the old-school rantings of a guy who appeals to the worst elements in Canadian society.

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Sportsnet had a chance to politely say goodnight to Cherry when they started the 12-year, $5.2-billion deal, but instead they didn’t take the high road. And this is where it got them.

Photo by Dave Sandford / NHLI via Getty Images

On Saturday night’s Coach’s Corner segment on Hockey Night in Canada, Cherry went on an angry diatribe based on his belief that immigrants don’t buy poppies to commemorate Remembrance Day.