Donald Stewart Cherry Biography Quotes 3 Report mistakes

Early Life
Donald Stewart Cherry was born on February 5, 1934, in Kingston, Ontario, and grew up in a hockey-mad environment that prized toughness and community loyalty. His younger brother, Dick Cherry, would also reach the National Hockey League, a family footnote that underscored how deeply the sport ran in their household. From an early age, Don pursued the game with single-minded intensity, a trait that would become his signature on and off the ice.

Playing Career
Cherry entered the Boston Bruins system as a defenseman and carved out a long professional career largely in the minor leagues. He became known for grit, shot-blocking, and unflinching physical play rather than offensive flair. He played for several clubs, most notably the Rochester Americans and the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League, where his blue-collar approach made him a favorite with fans and teammates. He appeared in a single NHL game for the Boston Bruins, a brief taste of the big stage that shaped his understanding of how narrow the margins could be for players on the cusp. The lessons of that journeyman odyssey, work, accountability, and team-first sacrifice, would later define his coaching philosophy.

Transition to Coaching
After hanging up his skates, Cherry moved behind the bench in the minors and quickly earned a reputation as a demanding, imaginative coach who inspired deep loyalty. His teams played an aggressive, forechecking style that mirrored the way he had played. The Rochester Americans provided a key proving ground, and his success there led to the call that changed his life: the head coaching job with the Boston Bruins.

Boston Bruins Bench Boss
Cherry took over the Bruins in the mid-1970s and turned them into a relentless, hard-nosed contender. His club became synonymous with the lunch-pail ethos, a group that emphasized toughness, defense, and unity. He coached fierce competitors such as Terry O Reilly and Wayne Cashman and worked, if briefly, with Bobby Orr as Orr's storied Bruins tenure neared its end. Under Cherry, Boston reached the Stanley Cup Final in 1977 and 1978, falling to the powerhouse Montreal Canadiens coached by Scotty Bowman. Those series against Montreal, featuring stars like Guy Lafleur and Ken Dryden, cemented Cherry's status as a top NHL bench boss. He earned the Jack Adams Award as the league's coach of the year and remained a beloved figure in Boston despite heartbreaks such as the infamous too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty in the 1979 playoffs. After a short subsequent stint with the Colorado Rockies, his coaching chapter closed and a new career began.

Broadcasting and Public Persona
Cherry moved to television and found his most prominent platform on Hockey Night in Canada. His "Coach's Corner" segment, first hosted opposite Dave Hodge and then, for decades, alongside Ron MacLean, became appointment viewing. The interplay between Cherry and MacLean, the latter steady and diplomatic, the former brash and uncompromising, defined Saturday night hockey for generations in Canada. Cherry's flamboyant, brightly patterned suits became a visual trademark, and his commentary mixed old-school hockey values with a flair for television. He was also heard across the country on the long-running radio show Grapeline with broadcaster Brian Williams, extending his reach beyond television and into daily conversation about the sport.

Cherry embraced producing highlight videos packaged under the Don Cherry's Rock'em Sock'em Hockey brand, which brought bone-rattling checks, dazzling goals, and goalie heroics to living rooms across the country. At the height of his popularity, he became a pop-culture figure, ranking among the top choices in the national CBC series The Greatest Canadian. His nickname, "Grapes", entered common parlance among fans who either cheered his bluntness or challenged it, but rarely ignored it.

Ownership, Advocacy, and Community Work
Beyond television, Cherry took on ownership and management duties with the Mississauga IceDogs in the Ontario Hockey League, a venture that let him shape young players in a competitive junior setting. He advocated for Canadian junior development, physical commitment, and accountability, tenets that had guided his own career.

Family anchored much of his public philanthropy. His wife, Rose Cherry, was a steadying force through his ascendant years. After Rose's passing in 1997, he and his children, Cindy and Tim, devoted considerable energy to causes in her memory, including the establishment and support of Rose Cherry's Home for Kids, a pediatric hospice and respite facility that embodied the family's commitment to practical compassion. Cherry also lent his voice to animal rescue and adoption efforts, a passion he frequently highlighted during public appearances.

Controversy and Consequence
Cherry's outspokenness brought both admiration and censure. He championed Canadian armed forces and police, criticized changes in the game he felt reduced accountability, and often sparked debates around European and international styles of play. In November 2019, remarks he made on-air about Remembrance Day poppies and newcomers to Canada prompted widespread backlash. Sportsnet, which held national NHL broadcast rights, ended its relationship with him shortly thereafter. Ron MacLean publicly apologized on air, closing one of the most enduring partnerships in Canadian sports broadcasting. The episode marked a turning point: it underscored both Cherry's deep cultural imprint and the evolving expectations for public discourse.

Legacy
Donald Stewart Cherry's life in hockey spans nearly every role: minor-league grinder, NHL coach, team executive, author, and the face of a national broadcast segment that shaped how millions learned the game. The people around him, Rose Cherry, whose memory he honored through charity; his children, Cindy and Tim, who helped steer family initiatives; his brother, Dick, who shared the path to professional hockey; and broadcast colleagues like Ron MacLean, Dave Hodge, and Brian Williams, were integral to his story. So too were the players he coached, from Terry O Reilly and Wayne Cashman to the briefly overlapping presence of Bobby Orr, and the rivals who defined his Boston years, led by Scotty Bowman's Montreal Canadiens.

For supporters, Cherry stood for loyalty to teammates, pride in service, and a traditional code of play. For critics, he too often edged past sharp commentary into divisive rhetoric. Both views acknowledge the same fact: for decades he was impossible to ignore. In rinks, on television sets, and through charitable work reflecting his family's values, he left a singular imprint on Canada's sporting culture, one built on the conviction that hockey is not just a game but a test of character, community, and heart.

Our collection contains 3 quotes who is written by Donald, under the main topics: Sports - Humility.