This is a really good read. I know you're going to be shocked by this news. Apparently, xenophobe Don Cherry of the Coaches Corner stepped on it again this week blasting US division I college hockey. Cherry is not a fan of an ex-college hockey player taking the ice over a player that played in the Canadian Hockey League. This article kind of piggy backs on this subject. See tweets below.
Stephen Whyno, The Canadian Press – "I think that if more Canadian families were exposed to what college can do -- as parents for your kid socially, athletically and academically ... I think more people would be doing it," said University of Denver coach Jim Montgomery, a Montreal native who went to Maine and ended up playing 122 NHL games.
One opportunity for exposure is the NCAA tournament, which begins Friday and includes 109 Canadian players. There are 35 players from Ontario, 35 from British Columbia, 18 from Alberta and seven each from Quebec, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Many of those players are trying to follow in the footsteps of several successful Canadian NHLers who went to college, including four members of the gold-medal-winning Sochi Olympic team: Jonathan Toews (North Dakota), Martin St. Louis (Vermont), Patrick Sharp (Vermont) and Chris Kunitz (Ferris State).
Among the 945 players to see NHL action this season, 100 were Canadians who played at a U.S. college.
Naturally, many went the more traditional road, through the QMJHL, OHL or WHL. But the NCAA is slowly becoming another acceptable way to get there.
Here's are the tweets in question from Don Cherry. I must say that Cherry is clueless when it comes to college hockey. Also, historically, the Toronto Marlies have had a fair number of college hockey players on their roster. Two years ago, when the Marlies made a run in the playoffs they had many ex-college hockey players, making a huge contribution for the Marlies on the ice. This season, if my math is correct, the Marlies have three players with college hockey experience.
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