It’s been a tale of two teams for the Windsor Spitfires this season. From a horrible start to major coaching changes and now a promising future, they’ve had their fair share of chaos. As we enter the Christmas break, though, the first-half grades are in and there’s cautious optimism.
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After going “all-in” the last two seasons, the Spitfires came into the 2023-24 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) season knowing they would likely rebuild. The off-season saw plenty of roster turnover, plus new bench bosses, but nobody expected them to be this dire. They won just four of their first 21 games and that’s when chaos ensued. However, it may have been just what this team needed to ensure they didn’t completely flunk. Here are their grades from the unofficial (31 out of 68 games) first half.
Spitfires’ Grades at Christmas Break
Torres and Bowler Calm Bench Chaos
This season was supposed to be simple. After last season’s head coach Marc Savard left to join the Calgary Flames in the off-season, general manager Bill Bowler promoted long-time assistant coach Jerrod Smith to head coach. They already had assistant coach Andy Delmore on the bench but added another assistant in Casey Torres, who had a great hockey resume.
Unfortunately, while Smith, Torres, and Delmore tried different ideas and systems, nothing worked. The result was four wins in 21 games and no light on the horizon. On Mon., Nov. 20, Bowler made the tough decision to fire Smith and promote Torres to interim head coach. Within hours, both Delmore and goaltending coach Michael Leighton resigned.
Immediately after the firings, the Spitfires headed on a five-game, two-weekend road trip. Nobody knew what to expect but Bowler joined Torres behind the bench for all five games and something clicked. The team won three of five games and seemed more relaxed. Since the changes, the players have responded to Torres’ and Bowler’s new ideas and systems and they’ve gone 6-4. It’s been night and day with the new voices.
Related: OHL: Windsor Spitfires Make Multiple Coaching Changes
Smith had an inexperienced roster to work with and it just wasn’t the right fit. He’s a respected coach and a great family man, and this wasn’t all on him. That made it tough to see him go. However, this move may have been the best thing for the club in the first half.
Torres has been a breath of fresh air behind the bench and the players are buying into his and Bowler’s ideas. You can see the season slowly starting to turn around. This is a process and it’s not going to be solved in a weekend but they’re showing what this team is capable of. The light on the horizon has appeared.
Grade: C+
Spitfires Need All Offensive Hands on Deck
This season’s offence was supposed to be an intriguing one. Despite heavy graduation including forwards Shane Wright (Seattle Kraken) and captain Matthew Maggio (New York Islanders), plus defenceman Michael Renwick, there was enough returning offence to still create wins.
Forwards Liam Greentree, 17, and Oliver Peer, 20, have sprung out. Greentree has 40 points in 28 games while Peer has 39 points in 31 games, both on pace for career highs. They also had forward Alex Christopoulos, 20, who had 11 points in nine games following an injury. However, he was traded to the Saginaw Spirit in November. They’ve had more help with veteran Valentin Zhugin’s nine points in 13 games since coming from the Spirit and rookie Cole Davis sitting third in OHL rookie scoring with 20 points in 31 games. They’re also getting contributions from sophomore defenceman Anthony Cristoforo (19 points in 30 games) and rookie defenceman Carson Woodall (10 points in 21 games).
Unfortunately, the club’s depth has been inconsistent. Forwards Ryan Abraham and Colton Smith each had 12-game pointless streaks and haven’t realized their potential. Forward Jacob Maillet has just 23 points in 31 games after 76 points in 67 games last season while forward A.J. Spellacy has just eight points in 30 games after 17 points in 47 games in 2022-23. Veteran Aidan Castle was expected to be a significant producer this season yet has trouble even getting into the lineup.
Over the last two seasons, Savard ran an offensive-style game. That changed under Smith, who was more defensive. However, Bowler and Torres have found a happy medium and, generally, the players are responding. They’re currently 12th in the league with 107 goals through 31 games. If they want to increase that, everyone needs to be on the same page and pulling their own weight.
Grade: C+
Spitfires’ Defence Slowly Progressing
We knew this would be the Spitfires’ X-factor coming into the season. With four veterans graduating or traded before the season opener, it created a mess.
The club came into the season opener with four starters – Woodall, Josef Eichler, Conor Walton, and Tanner Winegard – combining for fewer than a dozen OHL games played. Their fifth guy, Cristoforo, had one season to his credit. That left their two main veterans as Rodwin Dionicio and defensive-minded James Jodoin with a combined 223 games of experience. This was a bad recipe from the start.
Jodoin, 20, was released after just eight games. Teams can only keep three overagers (20-year-olds) and Peer, Maillet, and Christopoulos claimed the spots. It was a risky move.
While Dionicio and Cristoforo are solid offensively, they’re works-in-progress defensively. With no real defensive-minded veterans, the club struggled from the start and allowing six-plus goals a night was expected. Bowler brought in 19-year-old Connor Toms (Soo Greyhounds) in October and 20-year-old Roberto Mancini (Spirit – which saw Christopoulos and Dionicio go the other way) in November to help. However, when you allow 125 goals in 21 games, more is needed and that was the coaching changes.
Fortunately, the coaching and system changes, plus the trades, have been the right combination. Toms is a valued depth piece while Mancini has become a locker room and defensive leader. The players have bought in and allowed just 34 goals in their last 10 games.
The players weren’t fully at fault for the defensive issues as they were put in a tough spot. While they’re still last in the OHL with 159 goals allowed in 31 games, they’ve improved and credit needs to be given where due. They still need a lot of work but there’s finally optimism for the second half.
Grade: D+
Michelone and Costanzo Rebounding in Goal
This was supposed to be the easy part of the Spitfires this season. Veteran Joey Costanzo, 18, was going to be the starter while Ian Michelone, 19, was his backup after a season with the LaSalle Vipers Junior B.
Unfortunately, the poor defence has really affected both goaltenders. After a 3.03 goals-against average (GAA) and .901 save percentage (SV%) last season, Costanzo took a huge hit in the first two months with a GAA over five and a SV% under .830. He allowed three goals or fewer in just three of 13 appearances before the coaching change. Michelone wasn’t any better, allowing three or fewer in four of 10 appearances. Neither had the stats they wanted and they weren’t getting the help they needed.
However, the coaching change was the turning point here, too. Leighton was one of the best goaltenders in Spitfires’ history but it’s tough to deny that Michelone and Costanzo have seen their numbers improve since the move.
In five starts, Michelone has allowed just 11 goals on 141 shots with his only blemish being four goals on 14 shots against the London Knights just before the break. After their Dec. 10 game, Michelone said he was “feeling lighter”, with more emphasis on staying in the moment and not worrying about what’s coming up. Costanzo has allowed 19 goals on 151 shots and remains confident in goal.
Neither Costanzo nor Michelone had the start they wanted but the coaching changes and roster additions seemed to have turned them around, too. They both have the talent to steal games and don’t necessarily deserve all of the criticism they may get for their poor starts. While there’s room for improvement, this seems fitting…
Grade: C+
Bowler on the General Manager Hot Seat
Over the last two seasons, Bowler has stated that he wants to be competitive every season. That’s not easy in the cyclical nature of junior hockey. Last season, he went all-in for a second straight season, which meant trading away youth and picks while creating issues this season.
Bowler started training camp with a new bench, an inexperienced roster, and an empty draft cupboard. It’s a tough combination. Then, just hours before the season started, he traded veteran defenceman Nick DeAngelis for Walton, 17, and several high picks. Not only was that poor timing, but it also drew criticism for moving a leader and fan favourite, and the defence was even more inexperienced.
Bowler stood by the move and showed patience for over a month. However, after struggling through October, he finally went out for veteran defensive help. Toms was a minor move but Mancini’s trade on a game day involving two leaders and fan favourites shipped out (Christopoulos and Dionicio) was huge. It drew more skepticism and in-game booing from fans toward Bowler. Fortunately, Mancini has been a fantastic addition to the room and a defensive leader.
Nobody can question Bowler’s passion for the club. He’s not afraid of making moves and doing what he thinks is best for the team. However, that doesn’t make him immune. He gave the coaches an inexperienced roster, which led to many of their issues. His timing on trades also created unnecessary chaos. The silver lining might be admitting that Smith wasn’t the right coach for them and subsequently joining the bench with Torres. However, the issues weren’t all on Smith, which rightfully puts Bowler in the hot seat. Give him credit for trying to fix an ugly situation but, when you helped create it in the first place, accountability is necessary, too.
Grade: C–
Overall: Spitfires Have Cautious Optimism
Back in September, we predicted that the Spitfires would be fighting for home ice this season. Despite an inexperienced defence, they had offensive firepower, goaltending eager to prove itself, and coaches who were ready to take that next step in their careers. Unfortunately, it hasn’t worked out anywhere near to plan.
Nobody expected them to be in last place in the OHL. However, that’s the reality they face. Fortunately, Torres and Bowler have found a way to get the players to respond and it’s created some cautious optimism. The players and Torres all know that this is a work in progress. Nothing is going to come easy, nor should it. All they can do right now is keep working and developing. If they want a playoff spot, it’s going to take a total team effort and putting together strings of wins. That glimmer of hope wasn’t even a thought in mid-November.
The first half was a tale of two teams. If we had done these grades at the 20-game mark, it would have been an unquestioned “F” as nothing more could be justified. That’s not the case now, though. While they remain 0.11 percentage points (.339 to .328) ahead of the Niagara IceDogs for last in the league, with a game in hand, you have to give credit where due. The players and coaches have worked hard to start the climb and the grade should reflect that.
Grade: C–
