MONTREAL - Hockey Night in Canada's Don Cherry issued a full apology Saturday evening for having denounced a trio of hockey players who had hit rough times after careers as hockey fighters.

The controversy started when the controversial hockey commentator accused Stu Grimson, Chris Nilan and Jim Thomson of being "hypocrites," and "pukes" for blaming woes in their personal life on stress they endured in their roles of hockey enforcers.

Nilan and Grimson quickly explained that they had never blamed their post-retirement problems on their previous roles as hockey enforcers.

Cherry expressed partial regret on air a week earlier, apologizing for calling the trio "pukes."

It was reported this week that the three retired players had been looking into the possibility of launching a lawsuit against the controversial hockey announcer.

Cherry expressed particular remorse for his comments towards former Canadien Chris Nilan who he says he has known and loved for 20 years. His co-host Ron McLean appeared contrite as well for having allowed the comments to go unchallenged.

"I gotta admit I was wrong on a lot of things. Three enforcers, tough guys, my type of guys, I threw them under the bus, and I'm sorry about it. I really am," said Cherry.

Chris Nilan responded to the apology through his twitter account. "I want to thank Don Cherry for standing up and making a public apology to the 3 of us," he wrote. "Means a lot. We are friends once again."

Unlike in his previous semi-retraction, Cherry was unequivocal in his apology Saturday.

"Chris (Nilan) and Stu (Grimson) never said that they took drugs because they were enforcers in the National Hockey League. Also, they never said they wanted fighting out of the game, that's for sure. I was wrong on that, 100 per cent wrong. And when you're wrong, you have to admit it," he continued.

He was referred to comments he made in an edition of "Coach's Corner" broadcast Oct. 6. Cherry sounded off against the three players in an animated rant, accusing them of saying that fighting should be taken out of hockey.

"The ones that I am really disgusted with ... are the bunch of pukes that fought before: Stu Grimson, Chris Nilan and Jim Thomson," he said.

"(They say) 'Oh, the reason that they're drinking, (taking) drugs and alcoholics is because they're fighting.' You turncoats, you hypocrites. If there's one thing I'm not it's a hypocrite. You guys were fighters, and now you don't want guys to make the same living you did."

Cherry singled out the players as part of a longer segment where he accused those against fighting of using the recent deaths of tough guys Derek Boogaard, Rick Rypien and Wade Beak as a soapbox.

Grimson denied in media interviews that he ever said fighting should be removed from hockey, or that the enforcer's job causes substance abuse. Grimson also said he doesn't suffer from addiction to drugs and alcohol.

Nilan has been said he has addiction issues, but doesn't blame them on his job as an on-ice policeman during his playing career.

Thomson, however, says fighting should be banned from hockey and does blame his years of fighting in the NHL for his addiction.