Admirals welcome Sykes as team’s new general manager

By Ron Giofu

The Amherstburg Admirals have a new general manager.

The local Jr. C hockey franchise have hired Andrew Sykes as the new GM, with former GM Greg Crain to focus on ownership duties with fellow co-owner Matt Fox. Assistant general manager Craig Russett will be given a new role in the organization.

Sykes comes to Amherstburg after spending nine years as the head scout and assistant general manager of the LaSalle Vipers Jr. B hockey club. He said he worked closely with Vipers general managers Bill Bowler and John Nelson during his time there. He was also a regional scout for the Windsor Spitfires.

“My involvement has been in a scouting and team/player management capacity, and those are areas I feel I excel in and can bring that ability to the Admirals organization,” said Sykes.

Sykes said the faith and interest that Fox and Crain showed in him was what helped attract him to the job. “They pegged me as someone they felt would be good for the job, and having aspired to take on a role like this, I was pretty flattered and intrigued by the offer to say the least,” the 37-year-old Oldcastle resident said. “Beyond hockey, the Town of Amherstburg is a place I’m constantly visiting and one that I consider to be a personal happy place because of the people, the scenery, and all the great businesses and establishments that are here, so I’m hoping to add an exciting hockey team to that community.”

The opportunity to become the general manager was unexpected, he said. Nelson, the current Vipers GM, told him of the Admirals’ interest so he reached out to Crain and an interview was set up with Sykes, Crain and Fox. Nelson told him of the Admirals’ interest Good Friday and an offer was made the following Wednesday.

“It was all a pretty big surprise to me, but something I decided to act on quickly and I’m glad I did,” said Sykes.

Sykes said teams always look to add pieces that they hope will make the team better, no matter if they’re a championship team or a contender.

“Certainly, I’ll be looking to make some adjustments to the roster and add good people and good players that will help the team improve upon last season,” he said.

Believing it is too early in the off-season to start labelling exactly how the team will look, Sykes added there is an idea of a team that he hopes to achieve.

“Ideally I like a group of players whom you never have to question their work-ethic and desire,” said Sykes. “I like players who know who they are, can think the game, and are driven to compete and help the team by making sure they are doing whatever it is they do well to the best of their ability. I think the more players you get who fit that description and add to a positive culture and a team-first approach, the more success will follow.”

As for the coaching search, Sykes indicated he hopes to have a permanent head coach in place by the team’s spring camp

April 24-26 but if that doesn’t happen, it will have to occur after that.

Sykes plans on it being “a very busy summer.”

“In order to get the players we want and in order to put the very best team that we can on the ice come September, I’ll need to do my part in putting in all the due diligence and all the time that goes into it,” he said.

His message to the fans and community is that the Admirals are going to strive to put a product on the ice that fans and everyone coming to the rink will enjoy and be proud to be a part of.

“Championships don’t happen overnight, but success can come in different ways,” he said. “I plan on the Admirals being a fast, hard-working team that is fun to watch, with my overall vision being that even when we lose a tough game, fans will leave the rink still feeling good about it because the direction the team is heading will be clear and on the up.”

Fox said the Admirals are pleased to get Sykes as their new general manager.

“Andrew has been a target of ours for the last few years,” said Fox. “He’s been scouting this area for a long time. I think he’s going to be a tremendous asset to our organization.”

Fox added: “Whenever you can add a good person to the organization, it’s a positive.”

Fox and Crain will “take a step back and let Andrew run the show,” and emphasized the team landed their number one candidate for the job.

“It’s a great start to the offseason,” said Fox.