Curt Malawsky: An Ode To Vancouver

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Vancouver Warriors fans have been through it all when it comes down to recent success. The team hasn’t reached the playoffs since 2017 and has struggled since. Fans thought that with the signing of former National Lacrosse League championTroy Cordingly as head coach for the 2022-23 season, they would see a blink of success. It was far from that as they ended the season with a record of 4-14, landing themselves last in the NLL West Division. Warriors fans were lost by the fact that not even a championship level coach could save the team, but that was until an announcement last summer. Vancouver was parting ways with Cordingley and bringing in a new face. It wasn’t just any face, but another one with an NLL championship under his belt.

Curt Malawsky was coming off an impressive run with the Calgary Roughnecks, winning NLL Head Coach of The Year last year, and it was time for him to move closer to home. It just so happened that his hometown Vancouver Warriors had an empty void in the head coaching slot. Coming home was appealing to Malawsky, as he wanted to bring a whole new level of competition to Vancouver. The question  to be answered was if he was finally what Vancouver needed to succeed. Only time would tell and boy, has Malawsky ever proven himself.

The 2023-24 regular season is coming to an end with only two games left for the Warriors, and they are teetering on the outside of the playoff picture, with only one game behind. They began a rocky season hanging around the bottom of the standings, leaving fans to wonder when it will genuinely be Vancouver’s time to shine. The season was not even halfway over and hope began to fade.

Then something snapped and momentum became fully tilted in favour of the Warriors. They picked up a win against the defending champion Buffalo Bandits, and then the landscape began to change. The Warriors followed it up with a loss before firing off four straight wins to put them into a playoff race. The season is not over but Malawsky has already delivered with seven wins on the season, marking the highest total since 2017. Malawsky says lacrosse has a big impact in B.C.

“The fan support is just outstanding. My heart is jumping out of my chest when I see the kids and I see all of the fans. Vancouver deserves to have a (lacrosse) team (it) can get around, but for us lacrosse guys, it’s just really nice that we can have our fans support us, the B.C. guys feel good.”

Over 20 percent of the Warriors roster is from the Lower Mainland and it just keeps growing. Overall,B.C. is well represented on the roster as captain Brett Mydske, Matt Beers, Ryan Martel, and many others are all hometown heroes. The whole Warriors organization is in full swing and support for Malawsky as head coach. Warriors stars Keegan Bal and Adam Charalambides are two of the hottest players in the league today. Bal has nothing but praise for the job Malawsky has done.

“He’s the best coach in the world and there’s no doubt about that. To know that it starts from the top down, I think that builds a ton of belief and resilience within the room and to know (the coaches) are gonna put us in the best spots for us to succeed and we just need to go out the next games,” said Bal. 

Charalambides agreed with his teammate, noting that Malawsky’s attention to detail really stands out. “It’s awesome, he’s a player’s coach and (for someone who) coaches (at) as high as a level he does, he just gives you so many little layers and little nuances (that) he sees as the game goes on and allows us to make those in-game adjustments, noted Charalambides. “I think it’s why you see us get so many good looks, you know third quarter, second quarter, first quarter. We were playing with those minor adjustments (that) Curt gives us and we just stick to our process and systems, it’s working out for us.”

Representation matters for the Warriors, as they continue to put out banger after banger on the turf field. Malawsky’s coaching ability and style is unlike any other, with his main emphasis being defensemen alongside young talent. The rising Warriors stars are what Malawsky sees as the future, but it’s not just the youth on the team that he cares about. The youth and children involved in the Coach Curt’s Corner Program also mean a ton to the general manager and head coach. The Warriors partnered up with Malawsky to run the program and at every home game, he and the team host a child and their family from B.C Children’s Hospital to attend the game and meet the bench boss. He’s a big believer in supporting his community as he builds a genuine connection with the youth. As soon as he meets up with the child and their family, the whole ruthless, aggressive head coach feeling is gone, and the father in Malawsky comes out.

“It’s amazing, I met little Ollie and his friend today and my heart just goes out for them. He’s in a real tough circumstance (and) if we put a smile on his face (then) that’s what it’s all about. I got to hug him (andthen) he takes his mask off and under there was the biggest, best smile that you could believe. I feel very fortunate and humble that I’m in the role that I’m in, so any opportunity that I can, or our guys can, to do good will for anybody, we want to do that.I It’s important, and it’s meaningful. It’s not, ‘Let’s just give 15 minutes here,’, it matters and I hope the families enjoy it.”

Malawsky should not be leaving Vancouver anytime soon, at least in my opinion. He continues to better the team and organization with a new sense of attitude and competitiveness fans haven’t seen in a long time, and he continues to run his Coach Curt’s Corner program, being a leader for the next generation.

 

 

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