Ron MacLean has been on Canadian hockey television for so long that, for a lot of fans, he almost feels like part of the game itself.

Saturday night. Hockey Night in Canada. The big desk. The calm voice. The long stories. The history lessons. The awkward jokes that sometimes go a little too far.

And that last part is where things get interesting.

MacLean has built a reputation as one of the most polished broadcasters in hockey, but live television is a dangerous place. When you talk for decades in front of a national audience, not every sentence is going to land. Sometimes the mistake is a bad joke. Sometimes it is a poor comparison. Sometimes it is not saying enough in the moment. Sometimes it is trying to explain something and making it even more complicated.

Over the years, MacLean has had several moments where he either apologized on air, issued a public statement, or had to come back and address a controversy that followed him long after the broadcast ended.

Here are the biggest ones.

1. The 2026 “roofies” comment during the Stanley Cup Final

The latest controversy came during Sportsnet’s coverage of Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.

During a segment that referenced the movie The Hangover, MacLean made a joke that immediately raised eyebrows. The line was:

“Roofies, they’ll get you every time.”

It was obviously meant as a movie reference, but that did not make it a good idea. The word “roofies” carries serious real-life meaning, especially because of its association with drugging and sexual assault. On a national Stanley Cup Final broadcast, it was always going to sound bad.

MacLean later apologized on air during the same broadcast.

He admitted:

“It was a bad mistake by me.”

That line matters because it was direct. He did not try to fully dance around it. He explained the movie reference, but he also acknowledged that the wording was wrong.

For a broadcaster as experienced as MacLean, that is the part that made people shake their heads. It was not a rookie mistake. It was a veteran broadcaster choosing the wrong words at the worst possible time.

2. The 2021 “tarp off” comment to Kevin Bieksa

Another major MacLean apology happened during the 2021 playoff series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens.

Kevin Bieksa was on the panel and made a comment about being the most positive guy there. MacLean tried to joke back, referencing a photo behind Bieksa that showed a shirtless man.

MacLean said:

“You have a photo of a guy with his tarp off, you’re definitely positive for something.”

In hockey slang, “tarp off” means shirt off. But the “positive for something” part caused immediate backlash. Some viewers interpreted it as a joke about HIV or sexuality. Others simply thought it was awkward and inappropriate.

MacLean later apologized and said the comment was meant as a reference to alcohol and a rum bottle in the background, not anything homophobic. But he also admitted he understood why people took it differently.

That apology was another example of MacLean trying to explain intent while still accepting that the impact was different.

And that is where live TV gets messy.

A joke can make sense in your head, but if the audience hears something else, the explanation almost never lands as cleanly as the original mistake.

3. The Don Cherry poppy controversy

This is probably the most famous Ron MacLean apology ever, and it was not even mainly about something MacLean said.

In November 2019, Don Cherry made comments on Coach’s Corner criticizing immigrants who he believed were not wearing poppies to honour veterans. Cherry used the phrase “you people,” and the backlash was immediate.

MacLean was sitting beside him. He nodded. He gave a thumbs-up. And in the eyes of many viewers, he let the moment pass.

That became the controversy for MacLean.

The next day, MacLean apologized on Sportsnet. He said Cherry’s comments were hurtful, discriminatory and wrong. He also admitted he failed to respond in the moment.

His most important line was:

“I sat there, did not catch it, did not respond.”

He also said:

“We were wrong.”

That apology changed Canadian hockey broadcasting forever.

Don Cherry was fired. Coach’s Corner ended. MacLean stayed. And for a lot of fans, that was the moment their view of MacLean changed permanently.

Some people respected him for apologizing. Others thought he abandoned Cherry. Either way, it became one of the defining moments of his career.

4. The first Hockey Night in Canada without Don Cherry

A week after Cherry was gone, MacLean had to open Hockey Night in Canada without the man who had sat beside him for decades.

This was not a normal apology. It was more like a public reckoning.

MacLean told viewers:

“Coach’s Corner is no more.”

He also said:

“I have collapsed a hundred times this week, if not more.”

That line became one of the most talked-about parts of the broadcast. It was emotional, dramatic and very Ron MacLean. He talked about relationships, disappointment, pain and trying to find the right words.

For some fans, it was heartfelt. For others, it came across as too theatrical.

But there was no denying the weight of the moment. Coach’s Corner was not just another intermission segment. It was a Canadian hockey institution. And MacLean was the one left to stand in front of the audience and explain why it was gone.

5. The 2012 9/11 first responders comparison

This is one that still sounds unbelievable when you read it back.

During the 2012 playoff series between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals, MacLean used a dramatic opening that referenced the spirit of first responders after 9/11.

Then he connected that theme to hockey players battling through pain in the playoffs.

The line that sparked outrage was:

“They are like police officers, they are like firefighters. You can’t fight fire with ego.”

He continued by talking about the pain the players faced, the price they kept paying, and the hearts they kept lifting.

The problem was obvious. Comparing playoff hockey players to police officers and firefighters connected to 9/11 was always going to be seen as too much.

MacLean later clarified that he was not trying to compare NHL players directly to 9/11 first responders. He said his point was more about spirit, sacrifice and inspiration, but the images and wording did not properly reflect what he meant.

That is a classic MacLean controversy. Big idea. Dramatic language. Too many layers. And then everyone argues about what he “really meant.”

6. The 2014 French referee comments

In 2014, during a playoff series between the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning, MacLean got himself into another storm.

The controversy came after MacLean suggested that a French-speaking referee should not have been assigned to a Canadiens playoff game, especially after Lightning coach Jon Cooper had complained about officiating.

The comment immediately touched a nerve.

In Canada, anything involving Montreal, language, Quebec identity, French-English tension and hockey officiating is not just a sports debate. It becomes bigger than that very quickly.

MacLean later apologized and admitted that it was divisive whenever the conversation becomes about French and English in Canada.

This was not a bad joke. It was a bad lane to drive into.

MacLean was trying to talk about optics and officiating. Instead, he ended up in the middle of a national language debate.

7. The Alex Burrows controversy

One of MacLean’s older controversies involved former Vancouver Canucks forward Alex Burrows.

Burrows had accused NHL referee Stephane Auger of targeting him during a game. MacLean later aired a segment that many Canucks fans believed was one-sided and unfair to Burrows.

That segment angered Vancouver fans badly.

The criticism was that MacLean, a former referee himself, came across as too protective of officials and too hard on Burrows. The situation got heated enough that MacLean later addressed it publicly and issued what many described as an apology or clarification.

The funny part is that Canucks fans have never really forgotten it.

Even years later, whenever MacLean’s name comes up in Vancouver circles, the Burrows situation is usually not far behind.

For a lot of fans out west, that was the moment they felt MacLean was no longer just a neutral national host. They felt he had picked a side.

8. The “shut up” moment with Kevin Bieksa

This one was much smaller than the others, but it still became a fan-discussion moment because it felt so strange.

During a panel exchange with Kevin Bieksa, MacLean jokingly said “shut up,” then appeared to apologize or walk it back for kids watching at home.

Compared to the Don Cherry controversy or the 9/11 comparison, this was nothing. But it became one of those little clips people pointed to as proof that MacLean can sometimes over-explain even the smallest things.

That is part of why fans find him fascinating and frustrating at the same time.

A lot of broadcasters would toss off a joke and move on. MacLean often turns the moment into a teaching lesson.

Sometimes that works. Sometimes it makes the moment even more awkward.

The thing about Ron MacLean is that his apologies rarely end the story.

They usually start another one.

When he apologizes, fans do not just debate the original comment. They debate the apology itself.

Was it sincere? Was it too much? Was it not enough? Was he forced into it? Was he protecting himself? Was he throwing someone else under the bus? Did he actually understand why people were upset?

That happened with the Cherry apology. It happened with the “tarp off” comment. It happened with the 9/11 controversy. It happened again with the “roofies” comment.

MacLean is a broadcaster who loves nuance. The problem is, social media does not.

Social media wants a clear villain, a clear quote, a clear apology and a clear punishment. MacLean often gives people a paragraph when they wanted one sentence.

That is why his apologies become their own events.

Ron MacLean’s legacy is not simple.

He is one of the most recognizable hockey broadcasters Canada has ever had. He has hosted some of the biggest hockey moments in the country. He has been part of Saturday nights, playoff runs, Olympic memories, emotional tributes and national conversations.

But he has also had a long list of awkward, controversial and uncomfortable moments.

Some were caused by jokes that missed. Some were caused by dramatic comparisons that went too far. Some were caused by silence when viewers expected him to speak up. Some were caused by trying to explain the unexplainable on live television.

And maybe that is the real story.

Ron MacLean has survived in broadcasting because he can talk. But he has also gotten himself in trouble for the exact same reason.

He reaches for meaning. He reaches for poetry. He reaches for the bigger picture.

Sometimes that makes great television.

Sometimes it makes everyone watching say, “Ron, what are you doing?”

That is why these moments keep coming back. It is not just that MacLean apologized. It is that every apology became part of a bigger conversation about hockey culture, live TV, accountability, and how much the audience has changed.

Ron MacLean is still one of the most famous voices in hockey.

But in 2026, fans are not just listening to the game anymore.

They are listening to every word.