GM Egert looks to reinforce a winning, pro-level culture with deadline deals
While deadline day itself was fairly quiet for the Ottawa 67’s, new general manager Jan Egert had been working hard since taking over the role in late November to try and support the surging team.
Egert had long been in management before, starting his career as a video coach with the then-Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors under James Boyd before following him to the 67’s and working his way up to being the club’s assistant general manager.
Despite the change in role, the transition hasn’t been as hectic as you might expect.
“I already had a lot of decision-making power with James Boyd as the general manager; ultimately, now, when someone calls with something, they are calling my number, when previously 90 per cent of those calls went to James,” he said. “The ultimate difference is that the decisions ultimately end with me.”
“Besides that, it’s not all that different, because we’ve got the same support staff, it’s the same organization, we’ve got the same processes in place that we’ve had over the last number of years…”
That said, there remains a gap with James Boyd moving on to join the OHL as its vice president of hockey operations in November.
“It’s been almost a 14-15-year relationship. At that point, you obviously have a bit professional relationship that allows you to bounce different things off of him–just having a bit of a sparring partner–related to anything, be it player acquisitions, organizational health, our environment, how we can improve things, what is working, what isn’t working…” he said. “ That sparring partner is now gone in that role, so it has been a bit of a change that way.”
“After 15 years of a relationship with somebody, you become close friends, too. James and I have spent hours and hours together over the last decade and a half, and that element is gone within the organization on that front,” he said. “But James didn’t fall off the face of the earth; he’s now the VP of hockey operations at the Ontario Hockey League. So I probably had not as many phone calls to James this trade deadline as previously, but there’s still plenty of phone calls to him.”
While the club’s outside expectations have shifted as the team went from missing the playoffs last season to now, within the CHL’s top 10 power rankings, the club’s expectations never faltered.
“It’s a mentality to accept that last year simply wasn’t good enough, nowhere near good enough, on many different levels,” he said. “Everyone’s competitive within our group, and the results of last year bothered people and didn’t sit right.”
“When you get that common bond of everyone coming into training camp and being ready to compete, that energy is reflected in everything you do.”
“That competition is reflected on the ice, in the gym, when the players are pushing themselves academically, in the level of pride our players have in our community engagement, it’s reflected in everything,” he said. “It’s not something you turn off and on; it’s something that’s been building for quite a long time, and for me, it’s been no surprise that this team is as competitive and has been rewarded with the level of success that they have.”
When asked about the team’s overall philosophy at the deadline, Egert declined that there was an overall change in philosophy given the team’s success.
“You are not getting into the trade deadline to redefine the wheel. You are looking to complement the group that you have. You are looking to create flexibility for the team that you have while not jeopardising organisational health,” he said.
That’s really the philosophy any time you enter a period to improve the hockey club: whether that’s trade deadline or summer free agency. It’s really the same philosophy all the time. We have our DNA, we know what we are, what we stand for, the standards we operate at, can we find individuals, both as people and players, to complement what we are trying to do?”
The Ottawa 67’s have made four major additions to their lineup over the past month or so as they look to build towards the post-season.
On David Bedkowski:
“He’s a unique player in our league with his size, reach, his mobility, his ability to move the puck, he’s hard to play against, can play in all situations if required…” he said of the Buffalo Sabres prospect. “He’s got a pro mentality and is looking to become a pro hockey player, and that’s part of the reason we wanted to acquire him; to provide our d-corps additional presence.”
On Sam McCue:
“Sam is all in; he’s super excited to be part of the group and the environment, and he’s itching to get back on the ice,” he said of Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Sam McCue. “He’s a player preparing for that next step in his hockey career, and the best way to do that is to be part of an environment that operates at a high standard with a plan to try to win hockey games and a plan to try and accomplish things at a team level but also allow him to accomplish things at a personal level to put him in the best position to sign a contract (with the Toronto Maple Leafs),” he said.
On Nic Sima:
“Has a championship pedigree, has been through the rigours of a championship-winning season–although they didn’t win an OHL title, they were preparing for that. They then competed in the Memorial Cup, successfully winning that,” he said. “That type of experience for an individual to come in and provide that kind of leadership is immensely valuable because you cannot mimic that.”
On Teddy Spitznagel:
“Teddy Spitznagel is no different; Teddy was part of a championship run in the Clark Cup with the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks,” he said. “He also understands the intensity and the competition in those second and third rounds.”
From these additions, it’s clear that the throughline is players who bring a pro or playoff-ready game and postseason experience.
“Winners have either won, and the players who haven’t yet won are doing everything possible to try to become that winning profile and have that championship pedigree,” he said. “Any time you can acquire players who’ve all been around in at least an environment that has competed at the highest level in major junior hockey, that’s going to be a level of experience that complements our group.”
Now that the roster is settled, Egert seems confident in the group’s position, not just as players but as a collective, cohesive unit.
“It’s 24 players that want to be part of the Ottawa 67’s environment, are proud to be 67’s and want to push the standards of what we do,” he said. “When you have everyone pulling the rope in the same direction, all bought in to try and accomplish a common goal, you have the opportunity to do special things.”
“That’s what excites me about the group,” he adds. “But at the end of the day, games aren’t won on trade documents and contracts on January 9th, 10th, leading into the trade deadline; we still have to play the game of hockey.”
Jacob Titus
Writer, Ottawa 67’s
