Hockey coach's un-woke Twitter 'likes' surface right after Toronto Maple Leafs hire him — and the franchise drops him after two days



Cancel culture has claimed another victim — and swiftly.

What happened?

The National Hockey League's Toronto Maple Leafs organization hired Dusty Imoo last week as the new goaltending coach for its AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, the Toronto Sun reported.

But the franchise dropped Imoo, 51, after just two days, the paper said, adding that the coach's exit came after his Twitter "likes" surfaced.

Imoo, who has earned praise for his work with many goalies in the NHL, apparently clicked the social media platform's heart button for the wrong things.

The Sun noted Imoo's un-woke "likes" were for "unfounded U.S. government conspiracy theories and inequality" and "far-right Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol rioters."

The paper added that "while the club does not challenge political views of employees, it's another matter when he didn't get in line with a push for opportunity in sports and human rights. Imoo's Twitter account is no longer active."

Here's a small sample of Dusty Imoo's likes from Jan 6th. https://t.co/UxcmIxpuqs

— jon (@SteitzerJon) 1628453190.0

News of Imoo's departure came from Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan:

"Dusty Imoo will not be joining the Toronto Marlies," the message read. "We made a mistake not thoroughly following our organizational protocols when considering this candidate for the position."

More from the Sun:

Imoo's activity was indeed a bad look for the club, who under Shanahan and general manager Kyle Dubas have championed an inclusive environment around the Leafs, with women in prominent player-development positions, multicultural initiatives, and support for gays in hockey and other sports.

Yahoo Sports reported that Imoo also "appeared to endorse anti-Black and transphobic ideologies, while also supporting right-wing conspiracies and support for the insurrection on Capitol Hill in January. He also supported anti-vaccination sentiments."

Alternate title: The Toronto Marlies have hired Dusty Imoo - a full out anti-Black and transphobic white supremacis… https://t.co/nHwtNzUBu3

— Gaby (@hockeynuisance) 1628454636.0

How did folks react to Imoo's un-hiring?

As you might guess, not everybody was pleased about the Maple Leafs getting rid of Imoo, and they said firing him over his apparent views is going too far:

  • "Cancel Culture wins yet again," one commenter wrote.
  • "So having different political opinions and different views on certain topics outlaws you from job opportunities?" another user wondered. "Unless this guy is harassing people and committing crimes and causing problems I get the firing, why not judge his character on the job and let him have his own views?"
  • "You can only publicly express one point of view if you want to work for this organization," another commenter said. "It's been completely captured by the Woke religion. Pathetic."
  • "I rarely ever tweet. Am fully supportive of progressive thinking and am fairly open to all differing ideologies. Welcome to be proven wrong, but from what I've seen this is a dangerous slope," another user declared. "Allow people to have different political beliefs!!! Enough is enough."

University football coach fired for 'hateful' tweet about Stacey Abrams, election fraud



An assistant football coach for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has been fired after posting a tweet disparaging former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and making unsubstantiated claims about election fraud during Tuesday's Senate runoffs.

Chris Malone, who had just finished his second season with the Mocs, mocked Abrams' appearance as well as her failed 2018 run for governor in the post, which has since been deleted.

"Congratulations to the state of GA and Fat Albert @staceyabrams because you have truly shown America the true works of cheating in an election again!!! Enjoy the buffet Big Girl! You earned it!!! Hope the money was good, still not governor!" Malone wrote, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.

Abrams, who formerly served in the Georgia House of Representatives, played an active role in garnering support for Democratic Sens.-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossof ahead of the state's runoff elections.

It's worth noting that a third-party voter registration group founded by Abrams, the New Georgia Project, was under investigation by the Georgia secretary of state's office for "repeatedly and aggressively" seeking to register "ineligible, out-of-state, or deceased voters" ahead of the runoffs.

In response to the tweet, Malone was promptly fired and his bio page on the university athletics department website was removed. The university's chancellor called the tweet "hateful, hurtful and untrue" in a video announcement of his removal.

"Last night, a totally inappropriate social media post by a member of our football staff was brought to my attention," UT-Chattanooga athletic director Mark Wharton wrote in a statement Thursday morning. "The entire post was appalling. The sentiments in that post do not represent the values of our football program, our athletics department or our university. With that said, effectively immediately, that individual is no longer a part of the program."

Head coach Rusty Wright added: "Our football program has a clear set of standards. Those standards include respecting others. It is a message our players hear daily. It is a standard I will not waiver on. What was posted on social media by a member of my staff is unacceptable and not any part of what I stand for or what Chattanooga Football stands for. Life is bigger than football and as leaders of young men, we have to set that example, first and foremost. With that said, effectively immediately, that individual is no longer a part of my staff."

Statements below from head coach Rusty Wright and Director of Athletics Mark Wharton. https://t.co/qRbQgbrvi3
— Chattanooga Football (@Chattanooga Football)1610028579.0

Malone was hired by the Mocs in 2019 to serve as an offensive line coach and formerly worked as a coach at Old Dominion, James Madison, Virginia State, and UMass.