Monday November 16, 2015
By Josh Sweetland/CHL
It wasn’t too long ago that the Windsor Spitfires became the eighth team in CHL history to win back-to-back MasterCard Memorial Cup titles.
A major junior hockey dynasty of sorts, the 2008-09 and 2009-10 Windsor Spitfires took the Ontario Hockey League by storm, posting a collective record of 107-22-1-6 over two seasons while developing a total of eight current day NHL regulars, a list that includes the likes of Taylor Hall (Edmonton Oilers), Ryan Ellis (Nashville Predators), Adam Henrique (New Jersey Devils), Cam Fowler (Anaheim Ducks) and several others.
Though we’re five years removed from the Spitfires last hoisting the Memorial Cup, the legacy lives on throughout the organization like it was yesterday. Current day Spitfires are well aware of the success that precedes them.
“One of the things about playing in Windsor is that no one is satisfied unless you win the Memorial Cup,” said big 6’6″ draft eligible sophomore Logan Brown who will represent Team OHL on Monday. “They were so successful during that stretch and they had such a talented group. Our management, coaches and fans still have high expectations of us today and it pushes us to always want to be better.”
The 2015-16 season has been a positive one to this point for Brown and a Spitfires club that experienced a forgettable end to last season. The Spits went down in flames, losing their final eleven games of the regular season after entering the new year well in range of eventually clinching a playoff berth.
Though things didn’t appear promising with the unexpected loss of overaged blueliner Trevor Murphy to the Nashville Predators organization out of training camp, the Spitfires have come together nicely, playing to a 14-4-3-0 record through their first 21 games to lead the West Division with 31 points. They’ve won their past four games entering Game 4 of the 2015 CHL Canada Russia Series at the WFCU Centre on Monday.
A change behind the bench has given the Spitfires a new look this season. With team president and former head coach Bob Boughner taking a job as an assistant with Peter DeBoer’s San Jose Sharks, the head coaching job was made available for Rocky Thompson who joins Windsor after serving as an assistant coach with the Edmonton Oilers last season.
The former rugged blueliner will serve as the head coach for Team OHL on Monday.
“We’ve started off pretty strong,” Brown continued. “With Rocky coming in and being the new coach nobody really knew what to expect, but he’s brought NHL systems in along with NHL and AHL experience and you can just tell it’s a pro mentality and everything about the schedule, the way they treat us and the way we play, it’s very good.”
The Spitfires made another offseason addition behind the bench, bringing in former Sarnia Sting bench boss Trevor Letowski as an associate coach. The Thunder Bay, ON, native has enjoyed the transition while joining a West Division rival.
“It’s a lot of fun coming to the rink here,” Letowski remarked of his new job. “We have great chemistry as a staff and this has been a great transition for myself and my young family. Rocky is a great coach, a detailed guy who has a real great vision for creating things offensively. He’s come from the NHL and it really shows in his knowledge and enthusiasm.”
Letowski, who was a star player for the Sarnia Sting back in his junior days, recently coached Canada’s Under-18 Team to a bronze medal in the 2014 IIHF World Under-18 Hockey Championship in Finland. He’ll serve alongside Victoria Royals head coach Dave Lowry as an assistant with Canada’s National Junior Team this December.
“Just being a Canadian you get excited about the World Junior tournament, and winning a gold there in 1997 was probably the highlight of my playing career, so having the opportunity to coach is something special. I’m really looking forward to being a part of it.”
Letowski and several of Hockey Canada’s top sets of eyes will be watching intently on Monday as Team OHL enters Game 4 of the CHL Canada Russia Series in Windsor off a 3-0 victory in Game 3 in Owen Sound. For participating Spitfires in Brown and teammate Cristiano DiGiacinto, the contest will mark their third game in four days.
“It’s a pretty big stage,” said Brown, who models his game after big San Jose pivot and OHL graduate Joe Thornton. “There’ll be a lot of people watching on Sportsnet and with the game being here in Windsor, it’ll be pretty cool giving our hometown fans a chance to see us represent the league. Anytime you get to play on an international stage, the adrenaline gives those tired legs a little boost heading into the third period.”
Though they’ve missed the playoffs in two out of the past three seasons, expectations within the Spitfires organization haven’t changed. Displayed throughout the WFCU Centre, images of those special moments provided by a pair of the best teams the OHL has ever seen remind current Spitfires of the task set before them.
“We’re well aware of the high standards this organization has,” Brown concluded. “You can look around and see the evidence everywhere.”
Team OHL is in the hunt for its first sweep of Russia since 2011 when the puck drops in Windsor on Monday at 7:00pm ET live on Sportsnet Ontario, West and Sportsnet ONE.
For more information including how to purchase tickets please visit canadarussia.chl.ca.
