Qu’est-ce que c’est, Ron MacLean? HNIC host goes down that slippery slope

Maybe the shock of CBC losing Hockey Night In Canada has gotten to Ron MacLean.

Maybe he's worried about what happens to him once CBC's four-year hockey deal with Rogers runs out. Or maybe he's been standing next to Don Cherry for so long that he's beginning to morph into him.

Whatever the reason, that sure was one bizarre moment Tuesday night when MacLean suggested that referees with French-Canadian background not work playoff games involving the Montreal Canadiens. After all, for years MacLean has been (sort of) the voice of reason on hockey, attempting (rather ineffectually) to counter some of Cherry's looniest theories.

To hear him make one worthy of the man in the loud jacket is somewhat stunning. To be fair, MacLean has apologized, although his explanation didn't sound any more coherent than his original statement.

As for his original statement, it was a lulu. During the second intermission of the game between the Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning, MacLean questioned the wisdom of assigning Francis St-Laurent to the game after Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper had complained about the officiating of Francis Charron in the previous match. Cooper, by the way, didn't mention anything about Charron being either French-Canadians or Quebec.

MacLean did that for him.

``It was almost like they were responding to Jon Cooper's cavalier way he said they would like a do-over …," he said.

When panelist Elliotte Friedman asked if he was ``saying the French referee thing?", MacLean replied, ``Absolutely. Why would you tempt fate by putting yourself in that position?"

Friedman challenged him. "I just think it's a tough thing to say," he said. ``I've heard it, I've heard these things before. I just think to label all of the referees that way is really unfair."

He then asked him if there should never be a French-Canadian official handling a game in Montreal.

"Just this time," MacLean replied. ``Just after what happened in Game 3."

Naturally, that ignited a firestorm on Twitter and a torrent of complaints to the CBC. Politicians, even more naturally, got into the act. The Plains of Abraham were being cleared for battle.

Even Cherry has had enough sense to stay away from French-English issues in recent years.

MacLean didn't back down then, but did soften his stance a couple of hours later during the second game on CBC -- no doubt after sober second thought and some threats from CBC management. He said he didn't mean to turn this into a French-English thing (oops, way too late) but intended to say that a "local referee" shouldn't be assigned to an important game when another referee from the home team's area was involved in a controversy.

Charron, by the way, is from Gatineau -- a suburb of Ottawa -- so he presumably would have worked games even under MacLean's lopsided reasoning.

"First of all, I want to say I'm sorry," MacLean said. ``It's divisive any time you (make it) about French and English in our country. But I didn't intend to go down that path."

He then pointed out that international games often use "neutrals" from third countries to officiate.

"I wouldn't have sent an Alberta ref into an Alberta game had an Alberta official been involved in a tough Game 3," he said.

Backtracking aside, the comments were ludicrous. This is just what the NHL needs: officiating by geography.

Using his logic, the NHL would have nightmares trying to schedule officials. Can't have a Canadian referee handling a game involving a Canadian team. This guy's an American but his wife is from Montreal, so he's out. We can only have Canadians handling games between American teams. This ref is from Boston, and we know what they think of New York, so he can never do a Rangers-Bruins game.

The NHL would have to run intensive background checks on all officials just to make sure they hadn't eaten pot a feu or watched a Robert Lepage movie.

Throughout it all you couldn't help but wonder how Don Cherry ended up as the voice of reason on CBC.