Windsor Spitfires name new head coach

New Windsor Spitfires head coach, Greg Walters (Chris Campbell/CTV Windsor)

Greg Walters has been named the new head coach of the Windsor Spitfires.

Walters is a native of Toronto, Ont. with 13 years of Ontario Hockey League (OHL) coaching experience, most recently with the Owen Sound Attack.

“I feel so honoured and it is a privilege to coach one of the top organizations in junior hockey.” Walters said. “I am very excited to meet everyone, connect with the players, staff, and community.”

The team made the announcement one day after Walters' six month OHL suspension was lifted.

The suspension was issued on December 12, 2023 as a result of a breach of the league’s Code of Conduct with a team staff member while Walters was serving as Head Coach of the Owen Sound Attack in October.

"Hockey's an emotional, emotional game. And sometimes you say things that you don't mean and you regret, and I definitely took full responsibility for that," Walters said.

"I've done over 30 hours of sports psychology through that time. And honestly, I wish that I had done that before, but also the game's changing," Walters said. "The world is changing. And, I think every coach should put that time in to understand how to coach these young kids and how the world is moving here. This will be the last blemish on my record, I'll tell you that."

According to Spitfires management, Walters' hiring completes the coaching staff on the bench for the 2024-2025 season.

According to the Spitfires website, Casey Torres will stay on the coaching staff as an Assistant Coach, while Kris Newbury will remain on the bench. Behind the scenes, Johnathan Moran will return as video coach as well as Kathy McLlwain as skating coach and Brian O’Reilly as the team’s culture & high performance coach. A goalie coach will be named in the near future.

The Spitfires will return to the ice for their first preseason game on September 6th at the WFCU Centre.