Canadian legend Don Cherry makes his feelings known after Canada's embarrassing elimination from World Juniors

Canadian hockey icon Don Cherry did not mince his words following Canada's embarrassing early exit from the World Junior Hockey Championships.

Canada was knocked out again by Czechia, 4-3, in the quarterfinals on Thursday. Canada won just two of five games at the tournament in Ottawa.

For the second consecutive year, Canada has been unable to progress to the medal rounds, losing to the same opponent at the same stage as last year, when facing the Czechs in the quarterfinals in Sweden.

Cherry offered a suggestion for Hockey Canada moving forward:

"Don't be too hard on the kids. They tried their best," Cherry wrote on X. "They seemed tight all tournament. Hockey Canada has to get with it and hire full-time coaches for the World Jrs, Under 18, Under 17 and get some consistency."

Dave Cameron was in his third stint as the head coach of the World Juniors, having secured medals in his two prior attempts in 2011 and 2022, earning silver and gold medals, respectively.

But this year's tournament was a different story. Cameron faced much criticism following the early exit, and when a reporter asked, "Do you have any regrets?" Cameron replied, "No."

Cherry's suggestion of hiring permanent coaches offers a solution for Canada’s rebuild.

Don Cherry's son Tim Cherry’s take on Canada's World Juniors roster

Don Cherry's son, Tim Cherry, shared his thoughts on Canada's roster on Don Cherry’s Grapevine Podcast. Tim pointed out the absence of top players from Canada’s lineup for the World Junior Hockey Championship.

"You have Michael Misa, who was on pace to score 140 points in the OHL and has 30 goals and 30 games. I mean, he didn't even get invited to camp. He didn't even get invited to camp. Wasn't even invited," Cherry said."

Tim Cherry pointed out that several top players like Michael Misa, Zayne Parekh, Beckett Sennecke and Carter Yakemchuk were left off the team by Hockey Canada, not even receiving an invitation to the selection camp.

Tim emphasized the need for Hockey Canada to have a full-time coach and GM with complete authority over the roster selection process, in order to ensure the best players represent the country at the World Juniors.