Net gain for Spitfires
Is there an Ontario Hockey League team with a better set of goalie gurus than the Spitfires? Well, it might be tough to top the Windsor instructor tandem of Bill Dark and newcomer Stan Matwijiw.
A Windsor native, the 50-year old Matwijiw has just been hired as the goalie coach for the Spitfires. HIs background as a goalie coach is both lengthy and impressive, totalling eight years with the University of Michigan Wolverines and eight more with the erstwhile Plymouth Whalers and their follower Flint Firebirds of the OHL.
Matwijiw and Dark loom as the duo of all duos as far as goalie coaches in the OHL go.
Dark, who resides in London, will continue his duties as the director of goaltending in charge of scouting and development for the Spitfires.
As a goalie coach, Dark has been part of OHL championship teams with the London Knights, Hamilton Bulldogs and Windsor. Besides the OHL titles with three different teams, Dark was also the goalie coach for Windsor when the Spitfires won the Memorial Cup in 2009.
And to be sure, Dark is thrilled to now be associated with Matwijiw and working together with the Spitfires.
“Stan is a great hire for our goaltenders,” Dark relayed to Hockey News Windsor. “I coached against him for many years when he was with Plymouth and he always had his goalies prepared and performing at a high level. There are goalie coaches and goalie trainers … Stan is a coach. I am looking forward to working with him.”
Standing to benefit from having both Dark and Matwijiw as instructors are the fleet of goalies that the Spitfires have in their system.
At the top of the net chart — at least for now — is Joey Costanzo, who has a 2005 birth date. Costanzo has already appeared in 98 OHL games — 81 of them with Windsor. The Spitfires acquired the former second round pick of the Niagara Ice Dogs from the 2021 priority selections draft via trade two years ago. Costanzo has a career record of 41-41-5 over three OHL seasons.
Next in line is Carter Froggett, who has a 2006 birth date. A sixth round pick by Windsor at the 2022 OHL priority selections draft, Froggett has since played for the London Jr. Knights of the Under 18 level Hockey Alliance and the London Nationals of the Greater Ontario Jr. Hockey League. He also got into two OHL games with the Spitfires in ’23-24 and is known for his pure athleticism.
Windsor also took a goalie at the 2023 priority selections draft, opting for Gabe Donohue in the 10th round. Donohue has a 2007 birth date.
And the Spitfires took two goalies at the 2024 OHL priority selections draft, getting Chicago native Jake Windbiel in the seventh round before snagging Sault Ste. Marie area lad Cam Ingram in the 13th. Windbiel and Ingram both have 2008 birth dates.
Then, at the subsequent 2024 OHL supplemental draft, Windsor added yet another goalie when it made Michael Newlove the first overall pick. Newlove has a 2007 birth date.
