I can't see an experienced guy wanting to take this job if offered this job. In other words this job wouldn't get experienced guys applying for it. Bowler is the best they could probably get and the best option for current ownership. Good for them but the smart fans aren't buying it.
Windsor Spitfires 2019 Offseason Thread (Part 3)
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I can't see an experienced guy wanting to take this job if offered this job. In other words this job wouldn't get experienced guys applying for it. Bowler is the best they could probably get and the best option for current ownership. Good for them but the smart fans aren't buying it.
Great offseason so far if you ask me, everything that fans were worried about didn’t end up happening. Players ended up signing and reporting, ownership turned into being the best case scenario, and the roster is going to be a-lot more complete this year. I assume the only thing some people were still worried about is the perceived over payment in the Maggio trade and some still not happy with the current coaching staff. Which we all know is not going to change.
Windsor fans wont be happy until this team is gone, the have won 3 Memorial cups in the recent past . A lot of clubs haven't won in 20+ years but their fans stick by them for the most part. Windsor will be like Belleville , when the team leaves the whole damn town will say WHY !!! Wake up and support your team or go to Jr.C
OHLTG
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Windsor isn't moving I still have never understood where people get that from.
OHLTG
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OHLTG
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Article in Windsor Star tonight talks about Bowler's approach to the GM position. He wants the team to be steady over the long haul, he really wants to make sure they don't miss any talents, and there are no issues with Rafkin. In fact, Rafkin doesn't mind Bowler instead of WR - "it will be good either way" (Rafkin quote).
Bowler doesn't expect many deals before camp as he wants to see what they have.
Interesting comments from him about DiPietro and Piiroinen - basically, DiP was a very rare commodity and they don't expect Piiroinen to hit that mark, which is good and bad.
He's got an interesting philosophy - you don't need the 20 best players, but 20 players that truly care about each other. Team work makes the dream work kind of approach. (he talked about the Blues)
Bowler doesn't expect many deals before camp as he wants to see what they have.
Interesting comments from him about DiPietro and Piiroinen - basically, DiP was a very rare commodity and they don't expect Piiroinen to hit that mark, which is good and bad.
He's got an interesting philosophy - you don't need the 20 best players, but 20 players that truly care about each other. Team work makes the dream work kind of approach. (he talked about the Blues)
Some interesting comments... sort of.
“I think I’d like to put a quality product on the ice, a sustainable product that players believe in and fans believe in over time,” Bowler said. “If you’re close (to a title run), and you think you have to make decisions, you can add a piece, but I’d like to take the steady approach to having a quality team year in and year out.”
Sounds like he's trying to reassure the fans that this will be a stable product, fine with that provided he is willing to spend what's needed when it's needed and sell what's needed when it's needed.
"The only big chase for the club right now is for Finnish defenceman Ruben Rafkin, who was the team’s top pick in last month’s import draft."
"Aside from that, Bowler does not expect a flurry of roster deals before training camp next month."
Forgetting the specifics about Rafkin, sounds like they won't be doing much to pursue any flyers in the system/FAs etc. There are moves to be made, some sooner than later would help things.
“I’ve got to be patient,” Bowler said. “I want to truly understand what we have here with our players and coaches. There’s a lot of ways to build hockey clubs.”
Bowler doesn’t want to bring bodies in and out on a regular basis looking for that magic combination.
“I like our roster,” Bowler said. “I like our people. I want to work with our players. I’d like to get more out of our people and by doing that, I think people work harder for you if it’s the right environment and it’s a place they want to be. I think they’ll have more success."
This is where the concerns start to come up. After three (?) years or so working alongside of Rychel and he needs to find out what this team has? If he doesn't know after being on the inside he shouldn't be there. This is more along the lines of lowering expectations for this season. Being patient is one thing, finding out what you have when your new to the org is another thing but coming from within he needs to hit the ground running unless there is an organizational plan to stay the course which is what fans don't want. Changes need to be made, make them.
Fans want stability, but they want the correct decisions to be made. A stable but bad product will not keep fans happy. A stable product in terms of direction, having a clear and obvious plan for improvement and making moves when required is what fans want. This word salad that says nothing of significance except if people read between the lines, I will do nothing seems to show he has no authority/autonomy.
“We like a lot of our pieces, players and our leaders, but the best teams aren’t necessarily the best 20 players. We have to find a way to build a hockey team, a unified group that cares about each other. That’s everyone, staff (and) players.
“The 20 best players do not make the best hockey team. It’s the 20 best relationships that make the hockey team.”
Looking more and more like same old, same old.
Their leadership was completely invisible last season, they like it, OK.
A unified group? From all the comments last season this team was nothing close to a unified group and it started with the leadership/lack thereof.
The 20 best players do not make the best hockey team? No, if there are issues that is correct but the 20 best relationships, if they don't have the talent isn't going to win you many games either. It tales the right mix of talent, leadership and meshing of personalities along with a coaching staff to bring it all together. They lack the coaching staff, they lack the player leadership and they lack the chemistry... but they like what they have.
Expecting another long season with some slight improvement in spite of of whatever they are trying to accomplish off ice, certainly not because of it.
“I think I’d like to put a quality product on the ice, a sustainable product that players believe in and fans believe in over time,” Bowler said. “If you’re close (to a title run), and you think you have to make decisions, you can add a piece, but I’d like to take the steady approach to having a quality team year in and year out.”
Sounds like he's trying to reassure the fans that this will be a stable product, fine with that provided he is willing to spend what's needed when it's needed and sell what's needed when it's needed.
"The only big chase for the club right now is for Finnish defenceman Ruben Rafkin, who was the team’s top pick in last month’s import draft."
"Aside from that, Bowler does not expect a flurry of roster deals before training camp next month."
Forgetting the specifics about Rafkin, sounds like they won't be doing much to pursue any flyers in the system/FAs etc. There are moves to be made, some sooner than later would help things.
“I’ve got to be patient,” Bowler said. “I want to truly understand what we have here with our players and coaches. There’s a lot of ways to build hockey clubs.”
Bowler doesn’t want to bring bodies in and out on a regular basis looking for that magic combination.
“I like our roster,” Bowler said. “I like our people. I want to work with our players. I’d like to get more out of our people and by doing that, I think people work harder for you if it’s the right environment and it’s a place they want to be. I think they’ll have more success."
This is where the concerns start to come up. After three (?) years or so working alongside of Rychel and he needs to find out what this team has? If he doesn't know after being on the inside he shouldn't be there. This is more along the lines of lowering expectations for this season. Being patient is one thing, finding out what you have when your new to the org is another thing but coming from within he needs to hit the ground running unless there is an organizational plan to stay the course which is what fans don't want. Changes need to be made, make them.
Fans want stability, but they want the correct decisions to be made. A stable but bad product will not keep fans happy. A stable product in terms of direction, having a clear and obvious plan for improvement and making moves when required is what fans want. This word salad that says nothing of significance except if people read between the lines, I will do nothing seems to show he has no authority/autonomy.
“We like a lot of our pieces, players and our leaders, but the best teams aren’t necessarily the best 20 players. We have to find a way to build a hockey team, a unified group that cares about each other. That’s everyone, staff (and) players.
“The 20 best players do not make the best hockey team. It’s the 20 best relationships that make the hockey team.”
Looking more and more like same old, same old.
Their leadership was completely invisible last season, they like it, OK.
A unified group? From all the comments last season this team was nothing close to a unified group and it started with the leadership/lack thereof.
The 20 best players do not make the best hockey team? No, if there are issues that is correct but the 20 best relationships, if they don't have the talent isn't going to win you many games either. It tales the right mix of talent, leadership and meshing of personalities along with a coaching staff to bring it all together. They lack the coaching staff, they lack the player leadership and they lack the chemistry... but they like what they have.
Expecting another long season with some slight improvement in spite of of whatever they are trying to accomplish off ice, certainly not because of it.
OHLTG
Registered User
I wonder how much he was involved with the players, though. WR was very interactive with them but that doesn't mean Bowler was.
The entire thing feels more like he's willing to evaluate, as opposed to rash trades. That goes towards the whole stability thing.
Hasn't he been basically been Cypher's guy on the inside the last few seasons? I would hope if that were the case he would have a clue as to what he has with the current roster/prospects. He sounds like someone coming from outside but not just outside of the organization, someone who hasn't really seen the team play in three years, from a different league entirely.
Everything he said sounds like he is what I and others have been saying, he's here to do as he's told not do the job that needs to be done.
No, he doesn't need to gut the roster to do the job but anyone who has watched this team the last couple of years can see there are changes that need to be made to improve this team. There are players who don't have a role here anymore and there are players who have been surpassed by younger kids coming up. There are players who, by all accounts need to be moved just to improve the chemistry and get the coaching staff going in more creative ways if the plan is to keep them in place.
An outsider with any familiarity with the team could walk in and give a better bunch of responses then he just gave. No GM is going to come in during the off season and start naming names etc as to who is on their way out but recognizing and stating there are changes that need to be made to improve this team would at least give the impression he has some autonomy to make changes instead of simply saying we're not going to be doing much, we like the team we have and if there is a chance to improve things we'll consider it.
If you and I and others can see the problems then someone on the inside, who was likely there to help keep part of the ownership informed would have much more knowledge of what's been going on and yet he comes across as if he has never seen the team play. If he hasn't been involved in evaluating how these kids are doing, or at least recognizing where there is room for improvement he is either not a competent GM for the current situation or he is simply going to do as he is told, nothing major, stay the course, slow and steady until whatever decisions about the future are made.
Will we see a better team this year? I would expect we do but how much improvement? Simply a combination of maturing kids and declining competitiveness as other teams rebuild or will it be decisions made to actively improve the roster and how it's managed/developed.
The two good things he said or implied?
They want to build a stable and steady product that is consistently good and he's not going to be hyping up the kids the way Rychel did, which helps to lower expectations.
OHLTG
Registered User
He's been with LaSalle, though, so I don't know how much he's truly interacted with the players. I can say that I've personally only saw him at the rink a few times, whereas I saw Rychel on a near "every game" basis.
There are a lot more questions than answers right now, but, until August hits, not much can be answered. You'll get fairly generic quotes like we have here.
It was nice to hear how he wants a sustainable product year after year. The more kicks at the can you have the better chance you have of winning.
As for other guys in the system/fa's I think Bowler knows what he's working with. I think you could even read into the comments a bit that they have a lot of work to do with the reputation the Spits organization has with prospects.
I agree with the platitudes he lobs towards the players who have been around might be concerning. These are the same guys that lost 27 of 31 down the stretch. The stuff about the Blues and the best relationships is a non starter. You think this team starts running off wins and playing Gloria (horrible song btw) after games if they lost the first couple?? Of course not, it was a great story but just as Bowler says he wants a sustainable product, that 2nd half run of the Blues also isn't sustainable in the long run.
I hope Bowler realizes what he's up against. Rychel said he wanted to move some players out. I can't imagine some of the guys have a whole lot of value overall. I am hopeful of moving out a guy like Boka because Letowski doesn't know how to utilize him right and if he returns there's no reason to think Letowski learned his lesson. I would prefer them not to move Frasca but of course maybe they have no choice. I just hope Bowler realizes a lot of the decisions this year has to do with how Letowski utilized certain players last year.
OHLTG
Registered User
Familiarity with the organization doesn't necessarily mean the personal relationships with players.
I get the idea with the Blues (whether it's agreed with or not). You can have the most talented team in the league but if they don't play like a team, what's the point? Having 20+ individuals, or even multiple groups within the team, doesn't help anyone. Have 20+ talented guys, on the same page, playing for the crest within systems they're all comfortable with, and playing for each other. That's not a bad thing.
Letowski should just watch Bull Durham
I am just hoping Bowler already knows what he has and is just saying platitudes.
In the case of the Spits with losing 27 of 31 games to end of the year. Familiarity can speak to built in biases for or against certain players. The question is if Bowler has the power the speak to Letowski and let him know how certain players need to be used. Of course if Bowler doesn't have the power to do much with the coaching staff there's no guarantee Letowski is going to listen.
OHLTG
Registered User
...and if a GM comes in with no familiarity and no knowledge, you're basically starting from scratch. That would have gone over well here.
Bowler could be good. Bowler could be bad. Right now, in mid-July, nobody knows what's going to happen. He's going to look at the roster, make minor changes were required, and evaluate. Everything is TBD.
While it's always fun to hear about the team losing 27-0f-31 to end the season, because we know how much teams never improve in the off-season........oh, wait, they did just that.
Bowler could be good. Bowler could be bad. Right now, in mid-July, nobody knows what's going to happen. He's going to look at the roster, make minor changes were required, and evaluate. Everything is TBD.
While it's always fun to hear about the team losing 27-0f-31 to end the season, because we know how much teams never improve in the off-season........oh, wait, they did just that.
Starting from scratch isn't a bad thing. A GM comes in with an open mind and zero pre-conceived notions on any player.
Everything would be TBD with any GM whether his name is OHLTG or Kermit the Frog.
So you don't like hearing how the team lost 27 of 31 down the stretch. At this time last year what did you think of the team going into 18-19 did you believe they would lose 27 of 31 down the stretch? Sure you can believe they improved during the off-season but until games are played none of us have any idea what the team will do. You yourself said you weren't impressed by the coaching. Are you doubling down on the coaching staff now believing they will figured out their flaws as a coach and come up with a plan to get the most out of this group???
You said a 1st round playoff round win is necessary. What happens if they don't?? Letowski going to lose his job?? As long as he has term he's sticking. Bowler going to be fired after 1 year?? Doubtful. I just hope Bowler is just passing out platitudes because the team played 72 games last year and the last 31 games were ugly.
I see nothjng changing if they dont make it out of the 1st round.
They will just fluff it off.
Not shocking.
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