Spitfires All Decade Team

By Gus Lagrandeur -- Jan. 19th 2010.

                  The TSN poll had Detroit Red Wings as the team of the decade and Alexander Ovechkin as the player of the decade. The NFL had New England Patriots and Tom Brady as their top picks. Every league and every true sports fan gets involved in these great debates on who was best over the past while.

                  Not to be outdone by anyone, it is time to select the best of the best in regards to the Aylmer Spitfires in the first decade of the 2000’s. A general list of forwards, defenseman, and goaltenders was distributed to several people for their input. They have all been involved with the Spitfires since their inception in 2003-04.

The numbers were crunched and the stats scoured over resulting in nine forwards, six defensemen, and two goalies making up the Spitfire All Decade Team.  And here they are.

FORWARDS

1.  Rob Vanwynsberghe – Nilestown. Played 2003-08. Rob was the team points leader in ’06-07 and ’07-08. He was selected as the West Division and Team MVP in 2007-08. Rob was always a threat offensively even when killing penalties. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Rick Nash.

2.  Adam Scott – Port Stanley. 2003-06. Adam was the team points leader in ’03-04 and ’04-05 and won the Team MVP in both those seasons. Adam was a work-horse for the Spits. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Doug Gilmour.

3.  Graham Spriel – Dorchester. 2007-09. Graham was the West and Team MVP in ’08-09. He led the team in points last season and was team captain. He had a blinding wrist shot that often found his trademark location- high glove side. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Joe Sakic.

4. Jeff Gardner – Port Stanley. 2004-08. In 2005-06 was the team MVP and top point’s scorer. Jeff was a gifted scorer and also played well in the defensive zone. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Mark Recchi.

5.  Nathan Gavey – Aylmer. 2003 – 08. Nathan won Most Improved player in ’03-04 and was Team MVP in 2006-07. He was team Captain for two seasons. Nathan played with great emotion, heart, and was a true leader. NHL comparison – Mark Messier.

6. Matt Lynch – Port Stanley. 2003-06. Matt was a great two-way player and was called upon to take important face-offs and shut down the opposing top line. NHL comparison – Cam Neely.

7. Adam Vandepoele – Aylmer. Adam won the Most Improved player in ‘07-08. An original Spitfire, Adam was selected as Team Captain in his last season. Always in top five in team scoring. NHL comparison – Milan Lucic.

8.  Scott Borrows – Dorchester. 2003-07. Scott was Rookie of the Year in ’03. NHL comparison – Kevin Stevens.

9.  Johnny Chung – London. 2003-05. Johnny was a crowd favourite. Not blessed with great size, Johnny used his natural speed to compete 100% every game out. NHL comparison – Paul Kariya.

DEFENSEMEN

1.  Eric Hamilton – Aylmer. 2003-06. Eric won the West Division and Team Top Defensemen in ’03-04 and ’04-05. He was Captain for the first three years of the Spitfires team. Eric was from the old school of defenseman. He blocked shots, was not afraid to defend his goalies or teammates, and played through numerous injuries. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Scott Stevens. 

2.  Vance Stark – Port Stanley. 2004-06. Vance won West Division and Team Top Defenseman in ’05-06. Another player not blessed with powerful size but strong positioning and game smarts made the game seem easy to Vance. Named on all ballots. NHL comparison – Ray Bourque.

3.  Ryan Fletcher – St Thomas. 2004-08. Ryan won West and Team Top D-man in ‘06-07 after winning Most improved the year before. Ryan was a power play specialist from the blue line and often gave out thundering open ice body checks. Named on all ballots.  NHL comparison – Al MacInnis.

4.  Jason Geerts – Dorchester. 2003-06. Jason was a bone crushing blue liner and team leader from the defense corps. NHL comparison – Dion Phaneuf.

5. Caleb Bosma – Aylmer. 2005-06. Caleb was a smooth skating defenseman with the ability to make that quick pass to the forwards. He was another player reliant upon his hockey sense and skill to offset size. NHL comparison – Bryan Rafalski.

6. Brandon Harbour – Aylmer. 2008-10. Brandon won West Top Defenseman and Most Sportsmanlike Player last season. He also won the Team Top D-Man award and Rookie of the Year in ’08-09. In first season with Spitfires, Brandon called upon to shut down opposing top scoring lines. NHL comparison – Robyn Regeher.

GOALIES

1.  Brandon Rohrer – Tillsonburg. 2005-10. Brandon was the Most Improved player in 2005-06 and has been the top goalie in all four seasons he has been with the Spits. Named on all ballots. NHL Comparison – Roberto Luongo.

2. Scott Van Bommel – Norwich. 2004-05. Scott was a solid number one goalie who kept his young team in the games on many nights. NHL comparison – Ryan Miller.

COACHES

1.  Scott Brooks – Aylmer. Coached 2003-05. Scott won the West Division Coach of the Year in ‘03 and ’04.

2.  Brian Abbey – Belmont. Coached 2005-07. Brian also won the Coach of the Year in 2005-06.       

TEAM of DECADE

                  The 2007-08 Spitfire squad has to be the Team of the Decade. They have been the only team to come in first place in the Niagara West Division. They had a record of 23 wins, ten losses, one tie, and two overtime losses.

                   So there you have a list of good quality hockey players that has done the Spitfire organization proud. There has been many more quality players that did not quite make the list but all are an important part of the young Spitfire tradition.

                  And quality begets quality. When you have quality people from the top of the organization to the last volunteer, it is very easy to produce a quality franchise.

                  Let the debating begin on the Spitfire All Decade team and here is to looking forward to the next decade.