For the last 21 years, the top prospects in the NHL Draft join Hockey Night In Canada’s coverage of the Stanley Cup Final for the “Coach’s Corner” intermission segment featuring Ron MacLean and Don Cherry.
This year’s edition included two Massachusetts natives: Boston College defenseman Noah Hanifin of Norwood and Boston University forward Jack Eichel of North Chelmsford.
After each prospect shared some information about themselves, Eichel had a special present for Cherry. He presented the former Boston Bruins head coach with a USA Hockey T-shirt. Eichel, of course, has represented Team USA at the IIHF World Junior and World Championships.
For those unfamiliar, Cherry is the most passionate Canadian hockey fan in the world and would prefer all of the nation’s teams to draft and acquire as many Canadian players possible. We wouldn’t expect Cherry to wear this fine Team USA shirt during a broadcast, but he graciously accepted the gift and even joked to the other five players present, “you guys from the GTA never get me anything.”
The 2015 Stanley Cup Final resumes Wednesday night in Chicago with the Tampa Bay Lightning leading the Blackhawks 2-1 in the series.
