Earlier today, the Barrie Colts announced that Assistant Coach Dylan Smoskowitz will take over as Head Coach effective immediately. He replaces Marty Williamson, who will stay on with the club as Vice President and GM of Hockey Operations moving forward.
"I am beyond thrilled to be given this opportunity," said Smoskowitz. "Becoming a Head Coach has been a longtime goal of mine, and to do so with the Colts organization is incredible."
Smoskowitz is a home-grown product so to speak. Not only has he acted as an Assistant Coach under Williamson for the past three seasons, he also played for Barrie for two years between 2010 and 2012.
As a player, recorded 141 points in a total of 255 games split between Barrie, Mississauga and Oshawa. He went on to play for York University as well as the Gwinnett Gladiators in the ECHL for a brief time.
The nascent Head Coach will have big shoes to fill in Barrie. During his 16 years of coaching, Williamson never missed the playoffs and sits seventh on the all-time wins list amongst OHL coaches with 603.
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Keeping that kind of experience around will only serve to help Smoskowitz who views Williamson as a mentor.
"Having Marty stay on in his new role is the best possible scenario," said Smoskowitz. "I've learned so much from him over the past few years, and I'm excited to step into this role with his continued support."
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This season, the Colts finished second in the Eastern Conference during the regular season and made it to the Eastern Conference Final before being eliminated by the Oshawa Generals. They will likely still have a strong core going into next season.
Part of the reason Barrie found success this season can be traced directly to Williamson's aggressive moves as GM. For example, he acquired Dallas Stars prospect Tristan Bertucci before the season even started, adding him to a roster that included Utah Mammoth prospect Cole Beaudoin and fellow Stars prospect Emil Hemming.
"I'm very much looking forward to working with Dylan in his new role," said Williamson. "He knows the game, leads by example and connects extremely well with our players ... This move allows me to focus on the GM role fully, and I believe it's a great step forward for our organization."