The Windsor Spitfires have their guy. The club named their new head coach on Tuesday afternoon and, while he’s a familiar face around the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), he comes with some controversy.
Coming into the offseason, general manager Bill Bowler had multiple tasks in front of him, primarily to rebuild a roster that finished second last in the league last season. However, one of his bigger tasks was finding a permanent head coach. Last summer, he promoted long-time associate coach Jerrod Smith to the head coaching spot. Unfortunately, after a dismal start of four wins in 21 games, Smith was fired and replaced by new assistant coach Casey Torres. He stuck around as interim head coach until the end of the season while the club looked for a permanent name. Now, that search has ended.
Spitfires Hire Walters as Head Coach
The Spitfires called a press conference for Tuesday, officially naming long-time OHLer Greg Walters as their new head coach.
Walters, 53, played junior for legendary Ottawa 67’s head coach Brian Kilrea from 1987-90 before a lengthy pro career. He retired in 2001-02 and joined the Sarnia Sting (OHL) in various coaching roles until 2009-10. He was also head coach and GM of the Georgetown Raiders (Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL)) from 2010-18 before coaching the Oshawa Generals (2018-20) and the Owen Sound Attack (2020-23). He’s a self-described “player’s coach” who is eager to develop the Spitfires’ young talent.
“I’m so honoured and privileged to be given this great opportunity,” he said during the press conference. “I’m excited to be working with Casey Torres and (assistant coach) Kris Newbury and work together as a staff. We have a great young team … What an unbelievable 2006 (born) draft they had and now a very promising 2008 (born) draft. I can’t thank you guys enough … I can’t wait to meet the players, the staff, and get out in the community. I’m a player’s coach, I love these kids, and I want them to come in here as young men and leave as grown adults…”
Bowler has repeatedly said that the club had a long list of candidates who wanted to become a part of the Spitfires’ organization. He said Walters stands out as a man who’s thinking about hockey 24/7, which the players want and need.
“He eats and breathes hockey,” he said. “There isn’t a minute that goes by that he doesn’t think hockey, talking hockey, texting hockey, watching video, etc. I think our players need that, want that, and want individuals and staff that care that much and put in the time to develop them.”
Suspension Cloud Hangs Over Hiring
Walters’ storied history unfortunately comes with a new darker cloud that can’t be ignored. He was fired from the Attack in October 2023 for a verbal altercation with a staff member. After an OHL investigation in December, he was suspended until June 30. The OHL reinstated him on July 1. Walters said he takes full responsibility for it.
“Hockey is an emotional game and sometimes you say things that you don’t mean and you regret,” he said. “I definitely took full responsibility for that. I’ve done over 30 hours of sports psychology through that time and I wish I had done that before … This will be the last blemish on my record, I’ll tell you that … Nothing happened with a player, ever. I’ll go through the wall for them. The suspension had to do with a staff member and I took full responsibility for the argument. It’ll never happen again.”
Walters said he believes that the game and the world are changing and coaches should put that time in to understand how to coach the kids and how the world is moving. It’s a chance to grow and Bowler said humans make mistakes. He’s confident that Walters has learned from the situation.
“I’ve done my homework and the league reinstated him,” he said. “It was a mistake … This happens when you’re dealing with junior hockey … We’re human beings and have the ability to make a mistake once in a while. (The suspension) was nothing so egregious that he was expelled from hockey. He served his time and I’m confident he’s learned from it.”
This could make or break Bowler. If Walters succeeds, it just adds to an already solid resume. However, if he fails, it falls on Bowler and creates a tough scenario for the organization.
Walters’ Style and Knowledge From Legendary Coaches
Under former head coach Marc Savard (2021-23), the club was high octane, leading the OHL in offence in back-to-back seasons. Under Smith and Torres, they focused on defence, though that became difficult when four of the seven regular defencemen entered the season with a cup of coffee at the OHL level. What style does Walters want to bring to the table? He said he wants everyone on the same page defensively with freedom to create offensively.
“My belief is that if we have six guys on the same page, we’ll get the puck back quicker and we’ll be able to jump on offence,” he said. “I want four guys on every rush, want some movement offensively … I want the kids to have freedom and be creative with the puck. Understanding that, if we lose it, we have to get back defending properly. Every team I’ve ever coached has worked hard and been physical. This is developing these kids to the next level and, when you watch the NHL playoffs where these kids want to get to, they’re all finishing their hits and being accountable.”
Walters has played under legendary head coaches Brian “Killer” Kilrea and John Tortorella. He said they were big inspirations to how he coaches today and taught him about being a team-first guy.
“Everyone thinks Killer is a very tough coach but I’ve seen him cry and he was such an inspiration for me coming in and leaving there a man,” Walters said. “He taught me how to play away from the puck, to be tough and physical, and a team-first guy … I played for John Tortorella and he was one of my favourite coaches that I’ve had in my life … He has the biggest heart and cares about his players so much.”
Torres, Newbury Return as Assistants
With Walters firmly behind the Spitfires’ bench, the question is – who joins him? As of now, it’s the same personnel in their original positions. Walters said he’s looking forward to working with Torres and Newbury, who has returned from his own suspension. Hockey Canada suspended him for four weeks in March after an incident with his old team last fall, the Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL).
When Smith was fired in November, the club also saw assistant coach Andy Delmore and goaltending coach Michael Leighton both resign. While Delmore was replaced by Newbury, Bowler didn’t have a permanent goaltending coach. That will change shortly as the club expects to name one in the very near future.
Related: OHL: Windsor Spitfires Make Multiple Coaching Changes
Having a new staff in place as soon as possible is big. Having them stick around for the entire season is crucial. The players need stability and so do the fans. There’s justified skepticism and Walters is eager to calm the minds. He said fans are going to be happy with what happens next.
“You look at my coaching record and you can see that all of my teams have been very competitive with success,” he said. “They play extremely hard and for each other. I know the people in Windsor are going to like the way we play.”
The Spitfires are certainly talking the talk. When training camp and 2024-25 come around, we’ll see if they can walk the walk. That would be a much-needed breath of fresh air.
