Had a chance to talk with D. Jay McGrath not long ago about the Klippers relieving Larry Wintoneak of his duties.
I will expand on all of the reaction as well as audio later today when I have a chance, but for now I'll pass on snippets of what I've been told.
D. Jay said he respected Larry and had no problem with him, but that some players didn't get along with him and "didn't like playing for him."
When I asked him if some players had tuned out the coach, he replied:
"Yeah, I can see that, (with) people quitting and people not having fun on the road trips. In general, people not having fun and not showing up to the rink with a smile on their face, people afraid to make a mistake."
He added that some players wouldn't accept his "rules" and that he'd heard some talk, but did not expect Wintoneak to be cut loose.
McGrath also said that a coach can only do so much and the players have to pick it up.
"It's us. We have to start playing better. Some guys will probably get more comfortable in the room and not have to worry about someone being on their case all the time. It could be a good thing or a bad thing. We'll have to wait and see."
Meanwhile, I've gotten calls from several newsy-type folks around the province regarding today's developments. I think this decision by the Klipper board has caught a lot of people off guard.
What are any of these players interviewed supposed to say. Take most of them behind closed doors and ask them what they really think and I'll bet you get a completely different answer.
ReplyDeleteActually, I was surprised he said as much as he did. You're right, of course.
ReplyDeleteYouve gotta be joking.... Last year Larry drove a school bus to Eston from Kindersley every day. That wasnt in his job description... His job is to coach not to drive a bus. Thats the kind of guy Larry is. Yes he is hard on his players, theres lots of coaches that are hard on there players... He demanded respect. Nothing wrong with that. Also he coached team Canada west.. Not many guys get the chance to do that. Maybe the players were the problem and not the coach????? Bad Bad mistake.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the above post. He went above and beyond his coaching duties, he followed what the board demanded of him and then they turned around and screwed him over. He was the type of coach who had passion for the game and had expectations for his players. Since when did this become a bad thing? Unfortunately a number of the players this year seem to have issues with authority, don't want to work for anything, it seems some of them are used to getting what they want and having their hands held, and too many of them are here to have fun (drinking, drugs, out past curfew, etc.) instead of being here to further their skills, work hard and play decent hockey. It's too bad the board didn't have the guts to stand behind a solid coach. They should really be ashamed of themselves. All the best to Larry in whatever the future holds.
ReplyDeleteWow. Those are big accusations. No one outside of the team will truly know what happened. Dont pretend you do.
ReplyDeleteYou dont demand respect you earn and then you give it back. Maybe his bus driving skills will come in handy now.
ReplyDeleteIt`s hard to swallow as a Fan as well as someone who Supports this team on a corporate level that the board could make such a decison. Perhaps the board members should step up and pay the cost of such a move instead of passing it on to the community. Fire a coach six months into a two year extension,It gets hard for the community to keep paying for such blunders. It is no secret that after last year this club not doing well financially. The team has been struggling but I am not sure Larry is solely to blame. Good Luck to Larry and good luck Klippers.
ReplyDeleteTo the last commenter, I have to agree entirely. From a financial standpoint, this doesn't make any sense to me and to many others, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteThe Klippers won't be out much cash for this. What's Larry gonna do, sue them? He's got the money for that?
ReplyDeleteThey'll buy him out. 3 months pay or something like that. Do you think Rockie is making Larry's salary? No way. The board knows what they're doing and covered their bases I'm sure before they even met with Larry. Not saying whether or not it was the right call, all I'm saying is if the board wants to fire you, as a coach, you don't hold the power.