Character and compete wanted from ownership
2024-04-18
A heavy emphasis on character and compete level will be placed on the players and staff of the Halifax Mooseheads moving forward. That’s the message delivered from Owner/Chairman Sam Simon and Peter Simon – President of Simon Sports following a disappointing end to the 2023-24 season.
“I think our effort level on the ice and our consistency and compete level within our team, that really needs to be hammered home,” Peter Simon said Thursday in an interview on CityNews 957 – the official broadcast voice of the Mooseheads.
“That needs to be something that’s non-negotiable with the roster that we have and the coaching staff that we’re going to bring in.”
Simon was transparent with his feelings surrounding the unexpected four-game series sweep by the Acadie-Bathurst Titan that gave the Herd an early exit from the QMJHL Playoffs.
“It’s definitely the non-fun part of sports and the business but unfortunately a decision that we think is best for the organization.”
Discussions between ownership and General Manager Cam Russell ensued in the days that followed the unceremonious playoff elimination and resulted in a decision to move on from Head Coach Jim Midgley and Assistant Coach Liam Heelis. A decision that Simon said was not taken lightly.
“Truthfully after the season we really made no (immediate) conclusions and we took a week to assess everything. When a season ends so abruptly like that of course there’s a lot of emotions and there’s a lot of thoughts that take place but it’s really important to let those settle down and analyze what happened.
Yes, (Jordan Dumais and Jake Furlong) played a key role and yes, not having them was a really tough situation for our team but at the same time, just the way it all unfolded and the way everything took place it’s really unacceptable.”
The President of Simon Sports gave some insight into what will be the focus in the search for the next Head Coach to host Todd Veinotte.
“The number one non-negotiable is that we are going to get the most out of every player and that we’re going to get the best out of the whole team and that starts with our compete and our physicality.”
With the annual QMJHL Entry Draft looming on the horizon June 7-8 in Moncton, NB, Simon does not have a specific date for when fans can expect a new hire to take place.
“We haven’t really set a timeline. This week we’ve already received a lot of interest and resumes but a lot of teams are still in their seasons as well and we want to respect that. This season we have a lot more time and we want to get this one right.”
Halifax has gone through a number of leaders on the bench for one reason or another over the better part of the last decade. The team is going through a seventh head coaching change since the departure of Dominique Ducharme following the 2015-16 season.
“My father and I have only owned the team for a year and I know that there has been a lot of head coaches and part of what we want to do is we really want to find stability. Unfortunately it didn’t work out with Jim but hopefully we’ll get a new coach in place and want somebody who will be with us for a decent amount of time.”
He noted that the Mooseheads are set to enter a different phase of their cycle with multiple veteran players moving on to play professionally or elsewhere but sees it as an opportunity for positive change.
“Our thought on this is that there are different ways to do a retool and a rebuild in terms of the competitiveness of the team and making sure that we still have a product on the ice that the fans can get excited about.”
The retooling of the roster will not be solely based on skill level, but Simon doubled down on the types of people he wants to see join the organization through drafting and trading.
“It’s not just what they do on the ice in their skill and their talent, it’s also what types of players they are off the ice – the character they have. We want to bring in good kids in the locker room who give it their all, who are willing to whether you have a contending team or whether you have a rebuilding team they still put all of their efforts on the ice and they compete well and they give it their all.”
He finished the conversation with a message to Mooseheads fans that they can expect a team to be proud of on and off the ice moving forward.
“I want to reassure from my father and I, as well as Cam and the entire staff that the disappointment from this season, we’re going to get better from this and we’re going to learn from our mistakes. When something like this happens, truthfully it’s an opportunity to make changes and really right the ship and get everything going in the right direction. We’ll be better for Moose Country because they deserve better than what happened.”
Fans can listen to the entire Peter Simon interview with Todd Veinotte here: CityNews 957 Replay