CBS Sports
1/03/2012
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The last-place Montreal Canadiens apologized to those fans upset with the team for not hiring a coach who speaks French.

The apology by general manager Pierre Gauthier on Monday comes two weeks after the appointment of coach Randy Cunneyworth touched off a language flap. The Canadiens market themselves as French Canada's team, and it's been 40 years since the team last hired a coach who couldn't speak French.

"I'm sorry if we upset people because that certainly wasn't our intention," Pierre Gauthier said Monday.

It was a far cry from his defiant response last month. When asked then about Cunneyworth's inability to communicate with French-speaking fans, Gauthier replied testily that languages could always be learned.

The controversy has been fueled by the team's poor play. Under Cunneyworth, the Canadiens have won only one of seven games.

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