It was a big weekend in Owen Sound with newly appointed OHL Commissioner Bryan Crawford stopping at the Bayshore as part of his tour across Ontario. Crawford spent a few days in the Scenic City getting a feel for what the team means to the community, meeting with City officials, the players, the staff, the fans, the media and even the Attack Pak crew. I had a chance to chat with him just before the ceremonial puck drop at Saturday’s game against the Kitchener Rangers. Here’s a recap of what we covered before he got to see the Bayshore faithful and the no-quit bears in action.
Welcome to the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre. Walking through these doors into one of the smallest markets and smallest buildings in the league what are your first impressions?
Thanks! I know Owen Sound pretty well from having a vacation property in the area. I have a very good friend from university who lives in Owen Sound and I’d been to Cobble Beach but had never had a chance to come to a game. This is my first opportunity to see the building in action and get that sense of what it means to be from Owen Sound and to be a fan of the Attack. It’s great to see the importance this club has for the Owen Sound community and the Grey Bruce region as well. It’s been really, really fantastic just to see how well loved and supported the club is. That’s ultimately the superpower of our league and to see it on full display here is pretty special.
The crowd at the Bayshore is known as loud and dedicated to this team. They had a rough week last week. What do you think OHL teams mean to smaller markets and communities like this one?
Obviously it’s pretty tough to lose your captain but you got a great return—some great young players and some draft picks. There are bright days ahead. The OHL needs to be a driver in every community that we’re in, small and large. It’s a representation of what it means to be from that community; what it means to be from Owen Sound. It’s representative of that shared experience of being from a place and, ultimately, it’s the team’s job to drive that galvanization of the community. To bring people together, to give them an opportunity and an outlet. The team is not just an entertainment product on a Saturday night. It’s something that brings people together to talk and to strengthen the bonds of community. That is done so well across the entire league. Last year the league raised over $7 million for community partners. That’s really what the league is about: Developing the young people that are part of our league and supporting and leading in our communities.
You’re in the early stages of a tour of all the OHL arena’s and teams. Where you have you been so far and what are your early impressions of the league in person?
I started last week in Saginaw for their first game of the season and their banner raising, and then headed up to London for their banner raising and their home opener as well. And now I’m here in Owen Sound so that’s three really, dramatically different markets. First our U.S. market, and a team that has been building for over 22 years towards what they achieved last year. People questioned whether it could work there and the team, the leadership team and the ownership group has proven that it can. They’ve built a fan base and are a premier example of what’s possible for our league. And then, obviously, London is a big building in a big market and a flagship franchise. Then to come here and see what our small market can do is awesome. It’s really cool to see those three different examples right off the bat and get to see some best practices in each one that are can be applicable to other markets. That’s what we need to do; learn from each other when it comes to the boardroom, so that we can implement strategies to improve our businesses and improve the league as a whole.
Owen Sound is admittedly in a rebuilding year. You’ve had a lot of experience with player development and as an athlete yourself. Have you ever faced a situation like that and do you have any words of wisdom for a team on this path currently?
I have fortunately been part of some really good teams in my life, in university and early in my career in the CFL. But I definitely had some years where it was tougher and that can be hard. People can start playing more for themselves instead of playing for the team. That’s one of the biggest challenges for a coaching staff; to make sure that everybody buys in and sticks to the process and the vision. It’s not always about the wins and losses. It’s about sticking to the process and believing that you’re going to get to the goal at the end. A young group is exciting. They can grow and flourish and what you are at one point of the season is not what you will be at another point. At times you just see it just click and then the sky’s the limit. When this team won the championship back in 2011, I think they had missed the playoffs the year before and then turned around and won the won the title the next year. That’s how quickly it changes. That’s how much parity is in our league and that’s what makes this league great. Anybody can win in any given year.
With that said, is it you we should speak to about the power rankings? (laughs)
I can honestly say that I have absolutely nothing to do with the Power Rankings (laughs).
That’s a relief. It’s actually going to be a fun year to watch because there are so few expectations on this group around the league.
That’s pretty cool, right? When the shackles of are off and there isn’t the weight of expectation, sometimes you just go out and do it. You just play free and build the right way. Sometimes when there are big expectations, it’s harder. If you think about the run that this team and this franchise has had of being in the playoffs and being consistent, it’s pretty impressive and pretty enviable around the league. I think they’ve got all the right people in place to ensure that success is never too far at hand.
The league prides itself on how many players they graduate to the NHL. How closely does the league work with NHL teams to facilitate players progress?
The leagues are extremely close and work together very closely. The NHL supports our league and development, and not just with players, but with officials and coaches. We are a feeder system for the NHL in all aspects of hockey. We have very close relationships in charting the course and ensuring that we’re supportive of them and they’re supportive of us. That relationship is only going to continue to strengthen in support of the great young players that get a chance to be drafted and go to the NHL. We’re developing people, first and foremost, and the hockey is a byproduct. But of course, we want our best players to have an opportunity to play in the NHL. Players that have a chance to go to NHL camps and play, and even the ones that stay into the season and then ultimately come back, they come back better for it. They come back riding a high. They come back more motivated. They come back better leaders, ready to contribute and continue their development here. So I think that is to be encouraged. Obviously we want as many players from our league as possible to have an opportunity to play at the next level.
News broke recently about an upcoming NCAA vote to grand Canadian Major Junior Players eligibility. How do you see this impacting the league and how do you see it changing opportunities for Canadian players?
For Canadian players, it no longer requires a 14 or 15 year old and their family to make a decision about what they want in the future right away and about their development pathway. It gives them more flexibility and more choice to pursue the options that are right for them. For us, it really opens up a pathway for players that previously haven’t played in our league to play here and still have opportunities to play in the NCAA should they choose to go that direction. I think that’s an incredibly positive change. It’s incredibly positive for players to have additional opportunities upon graduating from the OHL. Lots of changes and adjustments will need to be made if that rule goes through but for now we will continue to focus on what we can control. That means focusing on our league and ensuring that our player experience is second to none and that we’re continuing to develop the best players in the world. That’s ultimately how we’ll respond. It’s a really exciting time for our league. The quality of the on ice product is better than it’s ever been,
As a former CFL player, what drew you to take on this key position with this league?
I’ve come most recently from the PGA Tour of Canada running the RBC Canadian Open—one of the largest sport events properties in our country. I spent about five years with Canada Basketball and working with the National Program prior to that running events, business operations and domestic development. I spent eight years prior to that with Ontario University Athletics. So I really started my career post-football in student athlete centered sport and university sport which is very similar to our league. We had 20 universities in many of the same markets and 23 sports for men and women, so we actually just ran a league but with more sports and certainly on a different size and scale from the OHL and the CHL. The mission of developing young people who are contributing to their communities in really meaningful ways while also having the opportunity to still run a sport and entertainment business is really unique and really exciting. That is what really drove me to want to pursue this opportunity when it was brought to my attention. I think that’s a a unique blend and a really noble mission that is harder to find in sport administration. The opportunity to be part of an institution that is so critical in our sports system and our Canadian hockey system is one that I couldn’t pass up.
What’s it like stepping into a role that’s been filled by the same person for several decades?
It’s a big change, right? Transitions are hard normally and that’s a big change for everyone and certainly for our staff at the OHL office and our teams. To have somebody new in the position that is ultimately going to have different perspectives on things and is going to have a different voice and different ideas. I have to be an authentic leader in the way I choose to go about the job and choose to be a leader and ultimately I want to make sure we are in the best possible place for success. My job is about galvanizing everyone around a shared vision and mission. It’s about putting the right people in the right seats and providing the right support so that we can achieve really great objectives.
What did you get up to in Owen Sound? Did you see the salmon jump?
I didn’t not get to see the salmon but it has been a busy few days. We went to Shoresy’s yesterday for lunch.
Wait did you say Shoresy’s? (laughs)
Yah, that’s not right is it? (laughs)
No but I really like it...
Right. Shorty’s and Friends was great. We went to Cobble Beach today. We had lots of great meals at lots of great establishments including the Boot and Blade for breakfast. I had lots of time with the with the hockey office staff and the business operations team. I got to speak to the coaches and meet the boys which is great. I spent lots of time with media members like yourself and I got to sit down with the Mayor and the City Manager as well. So I’ve had lots of time learning about all of the community pieces. I got a chance to walk the path along the water today just to get some air. I’ve been to the community lots of times and I love it here.
Perfect. Now to some really hard hitting stuff. The Bayshore is known for having the best French fries in the league. Have you tried them yet?
I’ve been told by everyone that fries here are second to none. Apparently I am going to get fries tonight and tweet about it (laughs).
Thanks so much for your time and coming to Owen Sound. I hope you enjoy the Bayshore and the game.
Thanks!