Reuters/Andy Clark
RON MACLEAN
So it's me Ron MacLean here with Don Cherry on House of Commons Night in Canada, and it's been pretty busy, what with the Prime Minister attending the bronze medal hockey game at the World Junior Championship in Calgary.
DON CHERRY
Did he make the gold medal game?
RON MACLEAN
I really don't know. I do know he was in the Canadian dressing room after their game as a surprise visitor to congratulate them on their win over Finland.
DON CHERRY
Yeah, I read that. Don Hay told them their surprise visitor was Mr. Harper.
RON MACLEAN
But I don't know if he stuck around to watch the gold medal game.
DON CHERRY
If he didn't, he missed out. That was a great game!
RON MACLEAN
Some people say it was a little one-sided.
DON CHERRY
People say a lot of things, but if it's 0-0 after three periods, it ain't one-sided. I'll admit that Makarov stopped 57 shots, but I seem to recall Kirk McLean stopping 52 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final in 1994, and nobody complained about that, except of course in Manhattan.
RON MACLEAN
What did you think of the winning goal?
DON CHERRY
It was a beauty! That Mahmoud Ahmadinejad kid has a great future.
RON MACLEAN
It was Mika Zibanejad.
DON CHERRY
It all sounds the same to me although I have to say it's a pretty weird name even for a Swede.
RON MACLEAN
His father's Iranian.
DON CHERRY
WHAT? Does Harper know that?!
RON MACLEAN
Are you gonna do the piano thing again?
DON CHERRY
No, I'm taking up air guitar.
RON MACLEAN
Our ratings will go up for sure.
DON CHERRY
Listen! For years they tried to get me to say French names, you know, parlez-vous and everything. Then I had to learn Russian names. Then it was Finnish, then it was Swedish and now it's the whole United Nations!
RON MACLEAN
Not exactly the UN. There's about 190 countries in the UN and you've said four of them.
DON CHERRY
That's three more than I can handle. But having an Iranian kid score the gold medal goal for Sweden in Calgary the same day the Prime Minister says Iran is the biggest threat to world peace just strikes me as crazy or subversive.
RON MACLEAN
How so?
DON CHERRY
Isn't it obvious?
RON MACLEAN
No.
DON CHERRY
If Iran can produce hockey players like that, they might try to steal the Stanley Cup! Then where would we be?
RON MACLEAN
Playing international hockey in Sochi. It's only a couple of hours from Iran.
DON CHERRY
I don't think you're paranoid enough. Excuse me while I bring up Stompin' Tom on the air guitar.
RON MACLEAN
Anyway, the Prime Minister might not have been able to see the gold medal game because he was back in Ottawa appointing seven new Senators.
DON CHERRY
What fresh heck is this? Did he come up with a new Silver Seven? Who said he could appoint Senators?
RON MACLEAN
Not the hockey team, the actual appointments were to the Senate of Canada.
DON CHERRY
You had me worried for a minute there.
RON MACLEAN
But get this: Mika Zibanejad is already an Ottawa Senator.
DON CHERRY
What!? Harper appointed an Iranian to the Canadian Senate?
RON MACLEAN
No! He's a Swede even though he's got an Iranian name.
DON CHERRY
Same difference. I need my piano.
RON MACLEAN
And, Don, Mr. Harper was actually appointing Senators to the Senate. Zibanejad is an Ottawa Senator, on the hockey team, although they're letting him develop in Sweden.
DON CHERRY
Not Iran?
RON MACLEAN
No!
DON CHERRY
Thank God for that! Now I'm thinking, you know, maybe we should just introduce hockey to Asia and the Middle East. The United Nations could do that, organize the leagues and everything...
RON MACLEAN
And that's it for us at the World Juniors.
DON CHERRY
Waywaywaywaywaywaywait! We're not gonna talk about the Bruins-Canucks game?
RON MACLEAN
Later. This show's about politics.
DON CHERRY
It's all the same thing. Harper wouldn't have been in Calgary if it wasn't. Did he fly Business?
