Windsor Spitfires 2022-23 Off-Season Thread (Part 8)

[rve24]

It is very sad day for Spit fans, as Wayne Maxner has passed away.

He was one, if not the number one coach the Spitfires employed.

Rest in peace Max!

He definitely had his style and preferences on how to run a team. Have heard many an entertaining story of Max and his teams from some former players he coached. Sad day.
Legendary stories of camps here in London and with StT Wildcats in the Cont.HL.

 

[hockeylegend11]

Hmmm someone here is playing. I know for a fact Savard was chastised for his behaviour with certain players, as was BB. Also held accountable for the utter playoff failure this past year. Now a few months later its ok because of 1 trip to the finals in a covid year and reg season success??? Im confused i guess.
I hold BB and the coaching staff at fault for last year’s debacle! Reg season success and a goodish draft or 2 does not save your ass in this game. Last i checked its a results oriented league. By that i use playoff success and player development as my measuring stick. Were not graduating many nhl players and again last years playoff mess… i also know how players have been treated by all 3 teams BB runs. That all gets him replaced in any place other than here.

I think everything saves a GM's ass and that includes regular season performance or in Windsor's case 2 years in a row Divsion and Conference leaders,attendance increasing 60% with additional revenue of over 1.5 million dollars,excellent drafting players signing NHL deals ie Maggio,Wyatt Johnston one of the best rookies in the NHL last season as a 19 year old,and Windsor despite heavy graduation from last year and losing Johnston a year early still garnered 1st place Conference and Division,something that Hamilton didn't do and they lost McTavish so they finished 6th and out in the 1st round too,Windsor this year with most injured missed games in the league which carried on thru the playoffs,suspensions(2), 2 D played in the playoffs when normally they wouldn't DeAngeils and Renwick,2 forwards with broken wrists,their best forward with a bad back,Abraham and Spellacy out for the season,Peer joining them on the sidelines,
the 1st 3 minutes of game 3 and missing the rest of the playoffs,not excuses but huge factors,toss in a 100% healthy opposition, I am guessing if Kitchener had all those issues they never would have won,too bad we will never know, and with the remainder of the players combining for the worst slump of the season at the wrong time,4 game sweep,never lost more then 3 in a row all season,and that happened on the road.
Defense was so bad that Costanzo finished 5th in the league in average and save percentage, Onuska on the other hand,and more then 1 source told me he was Savard's choice not Bowler,and Onuska finished 21st overall with a 4.40 goals against average, like I said before they kept the wrong guy.
Now was Bowler and Savard perfect but then nobody was throughout the league.
For some reason you have a hard on for both Bowler and Savard not sure why other then expected perfection.
Like I posted earlier the past 2 seasons have been great in Windsor more joy then pain,after knowing Johnston wasn't coming back for this past season this team surprised me with its 68 game season greatly and like I said earlier too,they were the 1st best team in the West the last 2 seasons combining regular season and playoffs,only Hamilton and Peterborough from the East enjoyed league title success, we saw how Hamilton did this year after beating Windsor and somehow I don't think Peterborough will repeat as champs but closer to what Hamilton did this past year.

 

[windsor7]

I think everything saves a GM's ass and that includes regular season performance or in Windsor's case 2 years in a row Divsion and Conference leaders,attendance increasing 60% with additional revenue of over 1.5 million dollars,excellent drafting players signing NHL deals ie Maggio,Wyatt Johnston one of the best rookies in the NHL last season as a 19 year old,and Windsor despite heavy graduation from last year and losing Johnston a year early still garnered 1st place Conference and Division,something that Hamilton didn't do and they lost McTavish so they finished 6th and out in the 1st round too,Windsor this year with most injured missed games in the league which carried on thru the playoffs,suspensions(2), 2 D played in the playoffs when normally they wouldn't DeAngeils and Renwick,2 forwards with broken wrists,their best forward with a bad back,Abraham and Spellacy out for the season,Peer joining them on the sidelines,
the 1st 3 minutes of game 3 and missing the rest of the playoffs,not excuses but huge factors,toss in a 100% healthy opposition, I am guessing if Kitchener had all those issues they never would have won,too bad we will never know, and with the remainder of the players combining for the worst slump of the season at the wrong time,4 game sweep,never lost more then 3 in a row all season,and that happened on the road.
Defense was so bad that Costanzo finished 5th in the league in average and save percentage, Onuska on the other hand,and more then 1 source told me he was Savard's choice not Bowler,and Onuska finished 21st overall with a 4.40 goals against average, like I said before they kept the wrong guy.
Now was Bowler and Savard perfect but then nobody was throughout the league.
For some reason you have a hard on for both Bowler and Savard not sure why other then expected perfection.
Like I posted earlier the past 2 seasons have been great in Windsor more joy then pain,after knowing Johnston wasn't coming back for this past season this team surprised me with its 68 game season greatly and like I said earlier too,they were the 1st best team in the West the last 2 seasons combining regular season and playoffs,only Hamilton and Peterborough from the East enjoyed league title success, we saw how Hamilton did this year after beating Windsor and somehow I don't think Peterborough will repeat as champs but closer to what Hamilton did this past year.

Defense wasn't good

 

[Teflon]

Very sad day indeed! Max was a personal friend and mentor. At a very young age he invited me into his room. He set me up with gear and tons of info. Yea the stories are epic. He will be missed.
Cmon legend you too have heard the same “stuff” regarding both BB and Savard. Some of our chats were about the issues. Hard on lol? No. But i have a list of rules you dont mess with in regards to personnel and personal issues. Both have stepped across those lines. I will keep our chats private as requested but you cant post what you did and not expect a reply.

 

[Cherrydon]

London free press has a story already about Max. I'd thought the Star would have something posted by know. Maxner is a person the Spits need to properly honor imo. Legend in my mind around here.

 

[RayzorIsDull]

Just a quick story on Wayne Maxner

" As a kid I had a chance to get to know Wayne and his family really well in my time around the Spits. I had my issues growing up and frequently spent more time around the Spits offices than in school. I would go down there to pass off my mother as much as go see her there. For you old timers that would go into the offices to see what was going on, pick up your season tickets or even purchase sticks etc when they had a pro shop to sell equipment Linda who you would have talked to was my mother. When I was there Wayne would spend some time with me to try to talk some sense into me. while his reputation was as a bit of a hard ass when it came to being a coach away from that role he was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

I used to play hockey against his son Wayne JR when he made the old Club 240 team before they became the JR Spitfires. This was back in the day of hard boundaries and I played for Riverside. Wayne was a good kid and while I never saw him a lot he was always good to talk to when I did. The rest of the family was no different.

I had the chance to sit in his office while he was on the phone discussing deals. He would never mention a players name in front of me knowing that I knew them all and some I knew very well, more as friends than players that played on a team my family had an ownership stake in.

A lot of fond memories of those days even though many came from some trying times. He was Windsor's GM/coach and always will be IMO. He had what it took to be an excellent GM and the heart it took to be a coach who cared about the players while trying to put them in the best position to succeed on and off the ice. He really represented what most people associated with JR hockey claim to be doing.

To his family, all of my condolences to you and a thank you for the times I had getting to know you so many years ago.

His passing really brings the original years of this franchise to a close. The 3 owners of the early years, Chuck Faubert, Jerry Glos and Fred Sorrell have all passed on. Doug Imrie who was the business manager for the team had passed quite a while ago and now Wayne Maxner.

While there have been many others within the early days of the organization who have passed staff and players these are the 5 that really built the foundation of this franchise.

I may no longer be on this board, that's a whole different story and I have no interest in returning for those reasons I do continue to follow.

CFaub

 

[dmead]

Just a quick story on Wayne Maxner

" As a kid I had a chance to get to know Wayne and his family really well in my time around the Spits. I had my issues growing up and frequently spent more time around the Spits offices than in school. I would go down there to pass off my mother as much as go see her there. For you old timers that would go into the offices to see what was going on, pick up your season tickets or even purchase sticks etc when they had a pro shop to sell equipment Linda who you would have talked to was my mother. When I was there Wayne would spend some time with me to try to talk some sense into me. while his reputation was as a bit of a hard ass when it came to being a coach away from that role he was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

I used to play hockey against his son Wayne JR when he made the old Club 240 team before they became the JR Spitfires. This was back in the day of hard boundaries and I played for Riverside. Wayne was a good kid and while I never saw him a lot he was always good to talk to when I did. The rest of the family was no different.

I had the chance to sit in his office while he was on the phone discussing deals. He would never mention a players name in front of me knowing that I knew them all and some I knew very well, more as friends than players that played on a team my family had an ownership stake in.

A lot of fond memories of those days even though many came from some trying times. He was Windsor's GM/coach and always will be IMO. He had what it took to be an excellent GM and the heart it took to be a coach who cared about the players while trying to put them in the best position to succeed on and off the ice. He really represented what most people associated with JR hockey claim to be doing.

To his family, all of my condolences to you and a thank you for the times I had getting to know you so many years ago.

His passing really brings the original years of this franchise to a close. The 3 owners of the early years, Chuck Faubert, Jerry Glos and Fred Sorrell have all passed on. Doug Imrie who was the business manager for the team had passed quite a while ago and now Wayne Maxner.

While there have been many others within the early days of the organization who have passed staff and players these are the 5 that really built the foundation of this franchise.

I may no longer be on this board, that's a whole different story and I have no interest in returning for those reasons I do continue to follow.

CFaub

Thank you for those recollections. Reminds us that these are people not just names.

Never met the man but, Wayne always struck me as a knowledgeable and fair coach.

 

[RayzorIsDull]

Hmmm someone here is playing. I know for a fact Savard was chastised for his behaviour with certain players, as was BB. Also held accountable for the utter playoff failure this past year. Now a few months later its ok because of 1 trip to the finals in a covid year and reg season success??? Im confused i guess.
I hold BB and the coaching staff at fault for last year’s debacle! Reg season success and a goodish draft or 2 does not save your ass in this game. Last i checked its a results oriented league. By that i use playoff success and player development as my measuring stick. Were not graduating many nhl players and again last years playoff mess… i also know how players have been treated by all 3 teams BB runs. That all gets him replaced in any place other than here.

I can understand how some would care but if he held others to the same standard and got the most out of them then you can't complain. I guess the best example would be when the Spits acquired a player last year who was criticized for his work ethic and thinking it would change here. Well it really didn't and so I don't think you can blame Savard that belongs to the player.

Results oriented business absolutely they won 15 playoff games and won 0 the next. Just like before they won 15 playoff games they had won 6 playoff games over the past decade. Would have wanted to see Savard another year certainly over Smith but that wasn't going to happen.

In regards to Bowler if we were to play it like the stock market and buy/sell/hold. I would be selling now. The drafting has been ok but certainly not at the level where you can go into the trade market to fill holes when your short picks. We don't have to discuss the import draft. He's hit on some draft picks maybe but the big 3 people mention if you want to win with them you need 17 more bodies and that will be a difficult task to achieve.

 

[rve24]

Just a quick story on Wayne Maxner

" As a kid I had a chance to get to know Wayne and his family really well in my time around the Spits. I had my issues growing up and frequently spent more time around the Spits offices than in school. I would go down there to pass off my mother as much as go see her there. For you old timers that would go into the offices to see what was going on, pick up your season tickets or even purchase sticks etc when they had a pro shop to sell equipment Linda who you would have talked to was my mother. When I was there Wayne would spend some time with me to try to talk some sense into me. while his reputation was as a bit of a hard ass when it came to being a coach away from that role he was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

I used to play hockey against his son Wayne JR when he made the old Club 240 team before they became the JR Spitfires. This was back in the day of hard boundaries and I played for Riverside. Wayne was a good kid and while I never saw him a lot he was always good to talk to when I did. The rest of the family was no different.

I had the chance to sit in his office while he was on the phone discussing deals. He would never mention a players name in front of me knowing that I knew them all and some I knew very well, more as friends than players that played on a team my family had an ownership stake in.

A lot of fond memories of those days even though many came from some trying times. He was Windsor's GM/coach and always will be IMO. He had what it took to be an excellent GM and the heart it took to be a coach who cared about the players while trying to put them in the best position to succeed on and off the ice. He really represented what most people associated with JR hockey claim to be doing.

To his family, all of my condolences to you and a thank you for the times I had getting to know you so many years ago.

His passing really brings the original years of this franchise to a close. The 3 owners of the early years, Chuck Faubert, Jerry Glos and Fred Sorrell have all passed on. Doug Imrie who was the business manager for the team had passed quite a while ago and now Wayne Maxner.

While there have been many others within the early days of the organization who have passed staff and players these are the 5 that really built the foundation of this franchise.

I may no longer be on this board, that's a whole different story and I have no interest in returning for those reasons I do continue to follow.

CFaub

Thanks for forwarding and thank them for sharing. Hope ya find your way back here. Solid balanced posts.and it's the boards loss buy I get it.

 

[Teflon]

Faub we must have met back then. Knew ur mom, kenny the bus driver, max. Numerous others…old school hockey, loved it. I can imagine the look on maxs face when seeing todays player contracts lmao.

As for todays front office group maybe thats on me. Not real sure, i just know im not a fan of how things are being run. Always willing to give a chance tho.

 

[OHL 17]

Best wishes to Cristoforo, Spellacy and Greentree !

 

[ohloutsider]

Trade window opens today. Any thoughts of who or when there might be an adjustment to the OA situation? I feel at least 1 OA will move before or around camp time. We have some top tier OA's that would be an upgrade on any team so there has to be interest.

Defense sucks, beat you to it W7.

 

[windsor7]

Trade window opens today. Any thoughts of who or when there might be an adjustment to the OA situation? I feel at least 1 OA will move before or around camp time. We have some top tier OA's that would be an upgrade on any team so there has to be interest.

Defense sucks, beat you to it W7.

Bowler phone fixed????

 

[punch1943]

Bowler phone fixed????

Caught me off guard. The summer is flying by. Normally the Spits don’t do a lot in the way of player movement early on. However this is, if I’m correct, a rebuilding season. My guess is that a team with lofty expectations this year will try to pry one or two of the Spits away from us . If I was BB I’d be looking to replenish the bare cupboards in any prospective trades. Certainly a few #2 picks would go a long way to fixing that.
It might get interesting very quickly.

 

[OHLTG]

There's been no point to rushing any deals so far. They sent Holmes away, getting a few picks, and now they've got a few weeks to figure out the other OAs. Plus, Bowler's looking to round out his staff, which I'd imagine is a pretty big priority. "Sooner than later" were his words, IIRC. I'd be shocked if the team doesn't make a move or two before camp but I'm not going to panic if it's not done this week or next.

 

[OHL4Life]

Hmmm someone here is playing. I know for a fact Savard was chastised for his behaviour with certain players, as was BB. Also held accountable for the utter playoff failure this past year. Now a few months later its ok because of 1 trip to the finals in a covid year and reg season success??? Im confused i guess.
I hold BB and the coaching staff at fault for last year’s debacle! Reg season success and a goodish draft or 2 does not save your ass in this game. Last i checked its a results oriented league. By that i use playoff success and player development as my measuring stick. Were not graduating many nhl players and again last years playoff mess… i also know how players have been treated by all 3 teams BB runs. That all gets him replaced in any place other than here.

i think hes a very good coach, but he didnt last long coaching is son in peterborough as there were issues there, and he didnt last long in st louis because there were issues there, he was not brough back. itll be interesting to see if hes changed and stays longer in the nhl now.

 

[windsor7]

There's been no point to rushing any deals so far. They sent Holmes away, getting a few picks, and now they've got a few weeks to figure out the other OAs. Plus, Bowler's looking to round out his staff, which I'd imagine is a pretty big priority. "Sooner than later" were his words, IIRC. I'd be shocked if the team doesn't make a move or two before camp but I'm not going to panic if it's not done this week or next.

No family members have asked for the job yet???

 

[OHLTG]

No family members have asked for the job yet???

...and if they hire family, you're going to stop going to games?

 

[windsor7]

...and if they hire family, you're going to stop going to games?

Would be consistent if they did... little experience too

 

[ohloutsider]

Soblev to ice dogs for picks

 

[OHLTG]

Sobolev to Niagara for

15th 2025 (Nia)
Cond 4th 2025 (Flt)
Cond 8th 2025 (Nia)

I'd imagine the conditions are based on him returning (and other factors?).

I wonder if this means that Eichler is coming?

 

[windsor7]

Soblev to ice dogs for picks

Hopefully he plays a game for Niagara..
Is that a desired place...

 

[DetSpitsFan]

Not super surprised he was moved, but he was the best defender we could keep.

They must not be expecting him in the O this year if it’s only a 4th & 8th conditional… I know he’s an OA, and an import… but still.

Leaves us with Christopoulos, Maillet, Peer and Jodoin as OA options?

The returns way higher on the forward group. I do think Jodoin holds value here, and they’ve always found a way to make him work here.

That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised if they just let him go, and we kept the 3 forwards. Unfortunately, if you thought defense was bad last year… or the year before, it’s worse this year.

DeAngelis, Christoforo, Woodall, Dionicio isn’t a bad top 4, but Woodall (IMO) has a lot to prove still, and that makes our defensive depth non existent.

 

[windsor7]

Not super surprised he was moved, but he was the best defender we could keep.

They must not be expecting him in the O this year if it’s only a 4th & 8th conditional… I know he’s an OA, and an import… but still.

Leaves us with Christopoulos, Maillet, Peer and Jodoin as OA options?

The returns way higher on the forward group. I do think Jodoin holds value here, and they’ve always found a way to make him work here.

That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised if they just let him go, and we kept the 3 forwards. Unfortunately, if you thought defense was bad last year… or the year before, it’s worse this year.

DeAngelis, Christoforo, Woodall, Dionicio isn’t a bad top 4, but Woodall (IMO) has a lot to prove still, and that makes our defensive depth non existent.

Better coaching systems need to be used.

 

[ohloutsider]

I think he will report.

Bowler's phone must be working! 2 OA's already moved this year!