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Not everyone who has been part of a group targeted by Cherry on air dislikes him today. Georges Laraque, a longtime NHL enforcer, is both a French Canadian and a second-generation immigrant to Canada. He thinks Cherry doesn’t get enough credit among other Quebecers for, among other things, pushing the NHL to bring back the Quebec Nordiques. “There’s so many things he’s done (for French Canadians),” Laraque said. “But no one ever talks (about that).”

Photo by Postmedia/File

No matter what Cherry said Saturday, Laraque does not believe he is a bigot. “The comments that he said were wrong. And I understand why they had to fire him,” Laraque said. “I wish he didn’t say it like that. But he is not a racist person.” Instead, Laraque thinks Cherry is simply a product of his time. “In Canada, liberty of expression has changed a lot. Now in society we have to be really careful about the things we say,” he said. “What happened with (Cherry) happens a lot with the older generation who haven’t adjusted the way they talk.”

For decades after Cherry’s verbal assault, Suhonen continued to work in professional hockey, in both Europe and North America. He now lives in his native Finland, where he recently produced a play about a Finnish hockey star living with the after affects of concussions suffered on the ice. Though they worked in the same building for two years, from 1998-2000, Suhonen said Cherry never spoke to him about what he said on air. He certainly never apologized. “No, no, no, no, no,” Suhonen said when asked about it Tuesday. He didn’t apologize then, and he wouldn’t apologize now, not for what he said Saturday, not even if it might have saved his job. That was Don Cherry. He stood by what he said, even if, as with Suhonen, he wouldn’t say it to your face.

• Email: rwarnica@nationalpost.com | Twitter: richardwarnica

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