Don Cherry absolutely rips into the Leafs regarding Auston Matthews' captaincy

Don Cherry doesn't appear to be a fan of the Leafs having made Auston Matthews the team's captain, and he did not hold back from sharing his feelings.

This week, Don Cherry finally made a highly-anticipated return to his podcast, which he had taken a long break from, and the Toronto Maple Leafs were at the center of his comments. Cherry, a one-time coach in the NHL and long-time commentator, didn't hold back about the Leafs' move in recent days over the state of the team's captaincy, a move that was troublesome to him.

First and foremost on Cherry's mind was the controversial move of the Maple Leafs to strip the captaincy off John Tavares and name their star forward Auston Matthews the new captain. Outraged, the outspoken Cherry seemed quite critical of the move, as if it was some sort of attack against a player in Tavares who has been such a main piece with the organization over recent seasons. The latter move, however, was seen by Cherry as more than just a personnel move, but rather an attack on the character of the organization.

Cherry said that he felt the general manager, Brad Treliving, and head coach Craig Berube, of the Maple Leafs were driving the move. He said this new GM-head coach tandem needed to make Matthews the face of the franchise, and this change in captaincy was part of it. But to him, that wasn't a very valid reason at all and could lead to disruption among the ranks.

To diffuse the situation, Cherry predicted a new contract extension would be offered to Tavares by the Maple Leafs. This would pay off the perceived disrespect in stripping him of his captaincy and could salvage what is left of the relationship between Tavares and the organization. An offer like this would keep things copacetic in the locker room, stated Cherry.

While the musings of Don Cherry are loud and clear, the Leafs really have taken a bad situation and made it about as seamless as possible. The puck, as they say, now stops with Auston Matthews, who will be expected to rise to the occasion carrying the pressure of wearing letters and living up to lofty expectations that have been heaped upon him and his team.

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