Last week, when the Owen Sound Greys season came to an end, I had a lengthy chat with Greys coach & General Manager Brian Warrilow.
Over the span of almost half an hour, we got into a lot of topics as it pertains to the Greys, but there were two things that have stuck with me since.
One dealing with the short & long term future of the Greys, the other dealing with the calibre of junior hockey player available in Grey & Bruce.
Looking ahead, Brian Warrilow suggests that the Greys hockey program is, and has forever been, a year to year event.
That is, both the hockey operation and the financial aspect of the club is a yearly proposition, and the concern is that if either end of that equation is lacking, then the Greys could wither, and conceivably be gone forever.
And if the Greys ever did depart, that would create a huge void for players from our region to play top level junior hockey in their own backyard.
The logical extension of this was a question I asked in light of the Greys missing the playoffs over four consecutive seasons; is there enough talent in Grey & Bruce to field a Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League club ?
The answer, from Brian Warrilow, is an unequivocal ‘ YES ! “
He cites all kinds of examples, including the league MVP Greg Virgo of Saugeen Shores who plays at Cambridge for the Winterhawks.
In Brian Warrilow’s view, there’s no sound reason why any 16 to 18 year old from our region, who’s good enough, should play anywhere but with the Greys.
I totally agree.
I’m Fred Wallace