While I completely agree with you guys in saying that Maxwell has to take the blame for handling this situation immaturely (which I thought I did make clear), I also still think that the development program should have at least seen this coming.
If I'm a coach, I don't want a player on my team who has made it public that he does not want to be on my team or part of my program. And that is regardless of whether they signed a contract or not. By keeping someone who doesn't want to be a part of your team, you're just asking for bad blood. For one, now all his teammates know that he doesn't want to be there, so how do they know he's giving it his all for them? Not to mention it seems to have created a bit of a division in the locker room, with the reports that guys like Maxwell and Morin (among others I'm sure, Fowler? D'Amigo? Palmieri?), are ready to jump to the CHL.
The Development program could have avoided all of this animosity if they had simply let Maxwell go. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to predict that a 17 year old kid (obviously immature) could react negatively and be a distraction should he not get his way. Is it wrong? Abso-freaking-lutely. The kid needs to grow up. But is it unexpected? I would say no. How many 17 year olds are mature enough these days? All this and it appears it has spilled over to the rest of the team.
I'm not saying we should be taking the blame off of Maxwell and the other dimwats for being immature jerks about this. They deserve what they have gotten. What I am saying is that the Development program should have seen something like this coming and it all could have been prevented if they had just let Maxwell go. It's not like he's helping them win games now playing for the Under 17 team. By trying to prove a point and teach him a lesson, all they have appeared to have done is alienated some of the other guys on the team who are probably Maxwell's buddies and will be joining him shortly to the OHL.