John Anderson apologizes after 'toilet paper' comment about Zach Whitecloud and fans do not buy it and want him fired

ESPN's John Anderson issued an apology after making an insensitive comment about the name of Las Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud during a &quot;SportsCenter&quot; segment.Anderson had joked that Whitecloud's last name would be great &quot;if you're a toilet paper&quot; after he scored his first goal of the playoffs. Unfortunately, Whitecloud's last name is part of his Sioux Valley Dakota Nation heritage, and he is the first member of his nation to play in the NHL.After the comment, a number of NHL fans reacted on social media, with many expressing outrage and calling for Anderson to be fired.One fan tweeted:&quot;Zach Whitecloud is allowed to cry over something that affects HIM and affects him ALONE. You don’t get to tell him how to react or how to feel when someone mocks him for his culture. For his FAMILY NAME. It’s absolutely embarrassing on John Anderson’s part. He should be fired.&quot;connor@getjeekedZach Whitecloud is allowed to cry over something that affects HIM and affects him ALONE. You don’t get to tell him how to react or how to feel when someone mocks him for his culture. For his FAMILY NAME. It’s absolutely embarrassing on John Anderson’s part. He should be fired.783Zach Whitecloud is allowed to cry over something that affects HIM and affects him ALONE. You don’t get to tell him how to react or how to feel when someone mocks him for his culture. For his FAMILY NAME. It’s absolutely embarrassing on John Anderson’s part. He should be fired.Another fan tweeted:&quot;Holy sh*t the comment from SportsCenter's John Anderson comment is worse than I could have imagined. Absolutely shameful.&quot;Catherine Partsch Conlan@CatConlanHoly shit the comment from SportsCenter's John Anderson comment is worse than I could have imagined. Absolutely shameful.Holy shit the comment from SportsCenter's John Anderson comment is worse than I could have imagined. Absolutely shameful.Despite Anderson's apology and outreach to Whitecloud and the Golden Knights, many fans remained unsatisfied.One fan tweeted:&quot;ESPN’s John Anderson should not be able to get away with this kind of public racism aimed Indigenous family names. And this kind of racism happens a lot. ESPN can set a tone by saying this behaviour is not acceptable anywhere, including hockey.&quot;Janice Forsyth@janice_ubcESPN’s John Anderson should not be able to get away with this kind of public racism aimed Indigenous family names. And this kind of racism happens a lot. ESPN can set a tone by saying this behaviour is not acceptable anywhere, including hockey. twitter.com/awfulannouncin…Awful Announcing@awfulannouncingSportsCenter anchor John Anderson makes tasteless joke about Golden Knights’ Zach Whitecloud ow.ly/6gkc104GlSP83SportsCenter anchor John Anderson makes tasteless joke about Golden Knights’ Zach Whitecloud ow.ly/6gkc104GlSP https://t.co/uGAC4UuameESPN’s John Anderson should not be able to get away with this kind of public racism aimed Indigenous family names. And this kind of racism happens a lot. ESPN can set a tone by saying this behaviour is not acceptable anywhere, including hockey. twitter.com/awfulannouncin…Percy Yamni ✋@PercyPhillips3What a douche bag #johnanderson twitter.com/trooperjj/stat…Jen Stephens@trooperjj@espn @SportsCenter @NHL John Anderson should be ashamed of himself making fun of Zach Whitecloud’s name. What a d-bag. Do better ESPN! We expect better. #GoldenKnights twitter.com/i/web/status/1…383111@espn @SportsCenter @NHL John Anderson should be ashamed of himself making fun of Zach Whitecloud’s name. What a d-bag. Do better ESPN! We expect better. #GoldenKnights twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/HGT3XkFn62What a douche bag #johnanderson twitter.com/trooperjj/stat…HockeyPlease@thatscrazy7Fire this guy! At the beginning of this game I enjoyed watching @EdmontonOilers celebrate Native Culture awareness with the inclusion of the local tribes existence on National tv broadcast. Only to hear this from @espn 's John Anderson. One disappointed Native American here. twitter.com/trooperjj/stat…Jen Stephens@trooperjj@espn @SportsCenter @NHL John Anderson should be ashamed of himself making fun of Zach Whitecloud’s name. What a d-bag. Do better ESPN! We expect better. #GoldenKnights twitter.com/i/web/status/1…383111@espn @SportsCenter @NHL John Anderson should be ashamed of himself making fun of Zach Whitecloud’s name. What a d-bag. Do better ESPN! We expect better. #GoldenKnights twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/HGT3XkFn62Fire this guy! At the beginning of this game I enjoyed watching @EdmontonOilers celebrate Native Culture awareness with the inclusion of the local tribes existence on National tv broadcast. Only to hear this from @espn 's John Anderson. One disappointed Native American here. twitter.com/trooperjj/stat…Zach@HaidaZachYeah go fuck yourself John Anderson twitter.com/awfulannouncin…Awful Announcing@awfulannouncingDuring the Vegas-Edmonton highlight on SportsCenter, John Anderson jokes about Zach Whitecloud's name, saying it's a &quot;great name if you're a toilet paper.&quot;Whitecloud is the first Indigenous NHL player from the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation.4132During the Vegas-Edmonton highlight on SportsCenter, John Anderson jokes about Zach Whitecloud's name, saying it's a &quot;great name if you're a toilet paper.&quot;Whitecloud is the first Indigenous NHL player from the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation. https://t.co/gngA1yg8wkYeah go fuck yourself John Anderson twitter.com/awfulannouncin…allison hill (she/her) 🎷🦫@astroallisonnthis is truly unacceptable from john anderson. twitter.com/sinbinvegas/st…SinBin.vegas@SinBinVegas&quot;I don't want to be standing here in front of all of you but I hope we can use it an opportunity for everyone to learn.&quot;Whitecloud broke into tears as the press conference continued. This clearly affected him and his family deeply. Powerful stuff from a tremendous person.76182&quot;I don't want to be standing here in front of all of you but I hope we can use it an opportunity for everyone to learn.&quot;Whitecloud broke into tears as the press conference continued. This clearly affected him and his family deeply. Powerful stuff from a tremendous person.this is truly unacceptable from john anderson. twitter.com/sinbinvegas/st…Lance Stewart@Fishcam92A piss poor job by John Anderson of ESPN, even though he has since apologized. Good article on the influence that Zach Whitecloud has on others twitter.com/BenSGotz/statu…Ben Gotz@BenSGotzAlso, just going to leave this story from a few years ago here on the pride Zach Whitecloud has in his heritage.He's done a lot of positive things to impact his community.reviewjournal.com/sports/goldenk…39067Also, just going to leave this story from a few years ago here on the pride Zach Whitecloud has in his heritage.He's done a lot of positive things to impact his community.reviewjournal.com/sports/goldenk…A piss poor job by John Anderson of ESPN, even though he has since apologized. Good article on the influence that Zach Whitecloud has on others twitter.com/BenSGotz/statu…beep_beep@beep_beep@awfulannouncing Maybe he'll keep his job. But, John Anderson's legacy, no matter where he works or how successful he is, for the rest of his career, is always going to be, &quot;That loser who disrespected Zach Whitecloud.&quot;@awfulannouncing Maybe he'll keep his job. But, John Anderson's legacy, no matter where he works or how successful he is, for the rest of his career, is always going to be, &quot;That loser who disrespected Zach Whitecloud.&quot;Dave Rowe@daverowe2323@espn @espn John Anderson needs to be suspended at the very least. Really ignorant words spoken by him.@espn @espn John Anderson needs to be suspended at the very least. Really ignorant words spoken by him.Andrew Mangiapane is the best Breadman@FieryBreadmanTo those that said that what John Anderson said was a joke and Whitecloud should just shrug it off, fuck you. It clearly affected him. twitter.com/SinBinVegas/st…SinBin.vegas@SinBinVegas&quot;I don't want to be standing here in front of all of you but I hope we can use it an opportunity for everyone to learn.&quot;Whitecloud broke into tears as the press conference continued. This clearly affected him and his family deeply. Powerful stuff from a tremendous person.482&quot;I don't want to be standing here in front of all of you but I hope we can use it an opportunity for everyone to learn.&quot;Whitecloud broke into tears as the press conference continued. This clearly affected him and his family deeply. Powerful stuff from a tremendous person.To those that said that what John Anderson said was a joke and Whitecloud should just shrug it off, fuck you. It clearly affected him. twitter.com/SinBinVegas/st…While Anderson's comment may have been unintentional, it had a real impact on Whitecloud and the Vegas community.Former NHL player and coach John Anderson's career and achievementsJohn Anderson, a former NHL player, began his hockey career in 1969. He played in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Wexford, Toronto. Anderson's talent and skill on the ice were evident from a young age. He was drafted in the first round, 11th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1977 NHL Entry Draft.John Anderson played 814 career NHL games, scoring 282 goals and 349 assists for 631 points from 1977–78 until 1988–89. His best statistical season was the 1982–83 season, when he set career highs with 49 assists and 80 points.During Anderson's third season in Toronto, the club made a four-player trade with the Vancouver Canucks that brought winger Rick Vaive and center Bill Derlago to Toronto. Anderson was paired with the two new acquisitions to form a high-scoring line for the Maple Leafs.Following the 1984–85 season, the fourth year in a row Anderson had scored 30 or more goals for the Maple Leafs, he was traded to the Quebec Nordiques for defensemen Brad Maxwell. The following year, his first full year with Hartford, Whalers sniper Sylvain Turgeon battled injuries. Anderson filled in as the top left wing on the team. Anderson scored the winning goal against the New York Rangers on April 4, 1987, to give the Hartford Whalers their only division championship.John Anderson's contributions to the game of hockey have been recognized with several awards and honors, particularly his induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008.

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