Don Cherry goes off on the Toronto Maple Leafs after the draft.

It seems that the Toronto Maple Leads have rubbed one of the most influential voices in all of hockey the wrong way. 

As you all know the 2019 National Hockey League Entry Draft took place over the week end and of course all 31 teams made a wide number of selections ranging from the major to the minor. For the Toronto Maple Leafs it was not a particularly eventful draft as the team was picking pretty late in the draft. In fact the Leafs did not pick till the second round of the draft and even then their first pick was just the 53rd overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. In spite of that some felt that the Leafs did a pretty good job, including analytics expert Sean Tierney.

That being said though not everyone loves what the Maple Leafs did over the week end and now some have even gone public with that displeasure. On Sunday notorious NHL analyst and legendary curmudgeon Don Cherry took to social media and absolutely lambasted the Maple Leafs over their performance at the draft. Needless to say it was all material that many of us have heard from Cherry before.

Here is the full unedited statement released by Cherry on Sunday:

Washington won the Stanley Cup two years ago with a big tough team and a big tough Canadian boy Tom Wilson, who I saw play minor midget in Toronto. He stirred the drink for the club which helped win them the Cup. St. Louis Blues won the Cup this year. A big strong tough club, with 16 Canadians, hit and hit some more. Put out Hertl, Pavelski and Karlsson in the San Jose series. Took no prisoners. MVP Canadian, saw play here in Toronto, Ryan O’Reilly tough and gritty and co-MVP as far as I’m concerned, Jordan Binnington, won the Cup for them, also saw him play minor midget, also Canadian. The best defenceman in the playoffs by far Alex Pietrangelo also a Canadian big tough kid I saw play in Toronto. Ok Lets go over it…. Tom Wilson, Ryan O’Reilly, Jordan Binnington, Alex Pietrangelo all from Ontario, 16 Canadians on Blues… a Blue print on how to win the Stanley Cup. The Maple Leafs team who needed jam and sand paper last year drafted; 1 Russian, 2 Fins and 3 Americans all described as rather on the small size 5’9 to 5’11.  The Leafs have gotten smaller and gentler… this team sits among 40000 kids who love the Leafs… it really does boggle the mind.

Of course Cherry is talking about a much more old school approach to the game, a philosophy he has never really diverted from. That being said there is no question that the Maple Leafs fully intend to move in a different direction, a decision that was made clear when the Leafs appointed Kyle Dubas as their general manager. 

Do you agree with the way Don Cherry has perceived the last 2 Stanley Cup winners? Was it size over skill? And if so do you agree with his assessment of the Leafs draft?