Off-Season Journal #1
April, 01, 2008
Hi this is Harry Young from the Windsor Spitfires. Some of you may know who I am but for those of you who don't I am the big guy on the back end wearing number 55. This was my second season with the Spits and my third year in the league. All summer long I will be writing journals to keep the fans connected with the team and informed on what we are doing. Right now I will just start with a brief overview of the season and how I did personally.
My season personally was just as big of a turn around as the teams. In my first season with the Spits we were a young, inexperienced team with a lot to learn. Over the season there was much improvement and over the summer we worked hard to come back as a dominant team. How our season would go was still uncertain coming in but starting off on that huge win streak was a great beginning. Like all young teams we had our ups and downs with streaks and slumps. Overall the season was a great success and a big surprise.
For me specifically, I worked very hard in the off season and was also unsure of my future with the team. I came out hard in training camp and the pre-season and this set me up for a good start to the season. Just like the team itself I progressed throughout, learning a lot and gaining good experience.
This success was due to many different individuals. The rookies we drafted this year were an unbelievable help to us. They really show the great future that Windsor has ahead of itself. The returning players came back much more competitive and confident with the years experience. Also the players that we brought in and the overagers were a huge part in our success and as a leadership group. The coaches obviously deserve much of the credit in teaching us and shaping this team and organization to be top of the league.
The tragedy we faced as a team and a community this year will never be forgotten. I have personally known Mickey since I was in grade school. We played on many school teams together and coming to Windsor he was the best friend I had on the team. We drove together every day and worked out at the gym during off-season. He was a great friend to me and has touched so many people like this throughout our city. As a team we have bonded like no other team has and even though we lost a great friend and teammate he will always be with us.
We finished the season tied with the Soo for the division lead and we were very proud as a team. Though playoffs did not go as planned, we will all take this as a learning experience and grow from it. The team will be taking a few weeks rest mentally and physically and I will report back when the training has started. Thanks for taking the time to read this I will talk to you in May.
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Off-Season Journal #2
May, 04, 2008
Hello again everyone, this is Harry Young writing my second journal. The month of April went by very fast for me and a lot of the guys. I know everyone has been following the playoffs very closely wishing we were still a part of them. If one thing can be said for having a long off season like we do, it's that we have more time to train and prepare for next season. I took a few weeks off mentally and physically but now I'm back in the gym and on the ice. Everyone on the team is working hard to ensure that by this time next year we are still competing.
Right now I am working out with a handful of guys that are local or decided to stay in Windsor. We are personally trained by Rob Maggio Monday through Friday. His methods of training are proven to be the best around and you can really see the difference already. He works on strength, conditioning, flexibility, coordination, and many other important aspects of training including diet and the mental aspects of the game. My personal goals I would like to accomplish in the off season are gaining weight and working on foot speed.
Aside from hockey, I recently started working at a new job. All the guys staying in Windsor have had help in finding summer work. It's incredible the support the Windsor community gives our team. My work has been great accommodating me with time off for working out and playing hockey. I work every day 8 until 2 then I usually get to workout by 2 30. After workout I head home for dinner and on certain nights I have skates. I typically have a skate on weekends but that is mostly time for me to relax and hang out with my friends.
The last few days have been exciting for the team with the OHL Draft. It looks as though we have picked up a lot of great players this year just as we have in years previous. The scouting staff and coaching staff have done such a great job acquiring players and the future of this team looks very bright. I'm sure all the players will be very excited to come to such a great organization and I'm looking forward to meeting all the new prospects.
I'll write back at the beginning of June to let you know how things are going. Thanks for taking the times to read this.
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Off-Season Journal #3
June, 03, 2008
Hello again, this is now my third journal in the off season and it's going by quickly. Right now I am still working out with the boys 5 days a week and it's getting pretty intense. We have been doing some interesting workouts including sprints at the hill and plyos at the beach. I feel like my strength and endurance have increased greatly this past month. All the boys are working out hard right now and we have our fitness testing midway through this month. It will be great to see all the guys again and hangout for the weekend. Other than workouts I have been skating a few times a week. I have been playing pick-up with some really great groups that have lots of professional players. I have also been doing power skating and skills with Powerpoint Hockey.
Outside of training I have been keeping busy with my job Monday to Friday. It's going really well and I couldn't ask for a better staff. I have also participated in a few events around the community including the Windsor Minor golf tournament. I found out pretty quickly that golf is not my best sport. I tried to switch hands halfway through the day but I didn't have any left handed clubs.
Last weekend I was called by a San Jose scout for a fitness test and a meeting. Doing the testing with me was also Matt Martin from Sarnia and when asked if we knew each other I let him know that we had met a few times this year at center ice with our buckets off. He thought it was pretty funny and so did we but Matt and I keep all that on the ice. We both did very well in the fitness testing and I had a good meeting afterwards. Good luck to all the boys up for the draft in a couple weeks. The team will be well represented at the draft and hopefully all goes well for everyone involved.
It should be a fun month with all the boys coming down and I'm looking forward to meeting our new player Dale Mitchell as well as all our newly drafted players. Thanks for taking the time to read this and I will write again next month.
Harry Young #55