Larry Mavety

Larry Mavety (born May 29, 1942) is a former professional ice hockey player, and former coach and executive in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), with both the Belleville Bulls and the Kingston Frontenacs.

Playing career

Mavety starting his minor league hockey career in 1963–64 season as a defenceman with the Toledo Blades of the International Hockey League (IHL), recording 20 points (7G-13A), along with 133 PIM in 70 games, and helped the Blades have the best record in the league. He added 2 points (1G-1A) in 13 playoff games as the Blades won the Turner Cup.

After starting the 1964–65 with the Syracuse Stars, an independent team, he returned to the IHL with the Port Huron Flags, earning 18 points (4G-14A) in 23 games, and he added an assist in 7 playoff games. Mavety returned in 1965–66, and recorded 62 points (19G-43A) in 69 games with the Flags, and added 12 points (3G-9A) in 9 playoff games as the Flags won the Turner Cup. In 1966–67, Mavety again improved his numbers with 73 points (25G-48A) in 71 games with Port Huron, as he won the Governor's Trophy as the best defenceman in the IHL. Despite his great season, the Flags did not qualify for the playoffs.

In 1967–68, Mavety joined the Vancouver Canucks of the Western Hockey League (WHL), and he recorded 25 points (2G-23A), along with 148 PIM in 72 games, as the Canucks failed to make the playoffs. He then moved on with the Denver Spurs, of the WHL, and in his first season with the team, Mavety had 33 points (5G-28A) in 74 games as the team did not make the playoffs. In 1969–70, Mavety recorded 57 points (10G-47A) in 72 games, and again the Spurs failed to make the playoffs. Mavety returned to Denver for the 1970–71 season, and finished 2nd in team scoring with 63 points (18G-45A) in 71 games as the Spurs qualified for the playoffs. He added 4 points in 5 playoff games. In 1971–72, Mavety joined the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, and recorded 53 points (15G-38A) in 62 games.

With the World Hockey Association (WHA) beginning play in 1972–73, Mavety began the season with the Los Angeles Sharks, however he played only 2 games with the club, scoring a goal. He moved on to the Philadelphia Blazers, where he went pointless in 4 games before finding a home with the Chicago Cougars, where he had 49 points (9G-40A) in 67 games. He returned to the Cougars for the 1973–74 season, registering 51 points (15G-36A) in 77 games and helped the club make the post-season. The Cougars then upset the defending champion New England Whalers in the division semi-finals, then beat heavily favoured Toronto Toros in the division finals before losing to the Houston Aeros in the Avco Cup Finals. Mavety had 12 points (4G-8A) in 18 playoff games.

In 1974–75, Mavety earned 32 points (10G-22A) in 57 games with the Cougars. He also spent a few games with the Long Island Cougars of the North American Hockey League (NAHL), playing in 4 games and scoring 2 goals before being traded to the Toronto Toros. He played in 17 games with the Toros, recording 9 points (0G-9A), helpin them to the playoffs. In 6 playoff games, Mavety registered 3 assists as the Toros lost in the first round.

Mavety split the 1975–76 season between the Erie Blades of the NAHL, getting 24 points (7G-17A) in 24 games, the Binghamton Dusters, also of the NAHL, recording 36 points (14G-22A) in 31 games, and the Denver Spurs of the WHA, getting 4 points (0G-4A) in 14 games. He then spent the majority of the 1976–77 season with the Dusters again, getting 67 points (16G-51A) in 59 games, and he also spent 10 games with the Indianapolis Racers of the WHA, getting 4 points (2G-2A). With Binghamton in the playoffs, Mavety had 10 points (1G-9A) in 10 games. Mavety then retired from professional hockey after the season.

Career statistics

Coaching career

In 1979–80, Mavety was hired by the Belleville Bulls, an expansion junior tier II team in the OHA. He led the club to a 24–18–2 record. In 1980–81, he led the Bulls to a 35–7–2 record, as the team won the league championship, defeating the Guelph Platers. The Bulls then went on to play for the national championship for the Manitoba Centennial Trophy, losing to the Prince Albert Raiders in the final game.

In 1981–82, the Bulls moved to the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) as an expansion team, where they finished the year with a 24–42–2 record, and missed the playoffs. In 1982–83, the Bulls improved to a 34–36–0 record and qualified for the playoffs for the first time, as the club lost to the Oshawa Generals in the first round. In 1983–84, the Bulls had a 33–37–0 record, making the playoffs again, and lost in the first round to the Generals again.

In 1984–85, the Bulls had their first winning season with a 42–24–0 record. They had another rematch against the Generals, this time beating them in 5 games. In the 2nd round, they got past the Cornwall Royals, before falling to the Peterborough Petes in the division finals.

The 1985–86 Bulls had another winning season, this time with a 37–27–2 record. The Bulls defeated Cornwall in the 1st round, tied with Peterborough in a round-robin matchup against the Kingston Canadians, defeated Peterborough in the division finals, before losing to the Guelph Platers in the J. Ross Robertson Cup finals.

The 1986–87 season was a rebuilding one for the Bulls, who had a 26–39–1 record, and lost to Kingston in the 1st round. In 1987–88, the Bulls rebounded with a 32–30–4 record, but again lost in the first round, this time to Cornwall.

In 1988 Mavety left the Bulls and joined the Kingston Raiders as the head coach. The club finished the 1988–89 season with a 25–36–5 record, failing to qualify for the playoffs. In the summer of 1989, the Raiders were renamed to the Kingston Frontenacs, and in 1989–90, the Frontenacs finished with a 42–21–3 record, and Mavety won the OHL Coach of the Year award. The Fronts had a disappointing playoff though, losing in 7 games in the opening round to Mavety's former team, the Belleville Bulls.

For the 1990–91 season, Mavety returned to coach the Bulls, who finished with a 38–21–7 record, and lost to the Ottawa 67's in the first round of the playoffs. In 1991–92, the Bulls fell to a 27–27–12 record, losing to the North Bay Centennials in the opening round. The 1992–93 Bulls had a rough season, finishing with a 21–34–11 record, and lost to the Generals in the 1st round.

In 1993–94, the Bulls finished with a winning record, with a 32–28–6 record, and defeated the Frontenacs in the first round, the first time since 1986 that Mavety won a playoff round. The Bulls then fell to the Centennials in the 2nd round. The 1994–95 Bulls had a 32–31–3 record, and won their opening round against North Bay, then defeated Kingston before losing to the Guelph Storm in the 3rd round. In 1995–96, Belleville had a 35–26–5 record, and defeated Oshawa in the 1st round, Ottawa in the 2nd round, before falling to Guelph in the 3rd round. In 1996–97, the Bulls slumped to a 22–37–7 record, and lost to Ottawa in the 1st round.

In 1997 Mavety returned to the Kingston Frontenacs, and the club finished the 1997–98 season with a 35–27–4 record for 3rd place in the OHL East, and won a first round playoff series over Oshawa, but fell to the London Knights in the 2nd round. In 1998–99, the Fronts fell to a 22–42–4 record for 5th place in the East, losing to the Barrie Colts in the opening round. He then helped Kingston rebound in 1999–2000 with a 38–22–5–3 record, however they lost in the opening round to the Sudbury Wolves. The Fronts then played .500 hockey in 2000–01 with a 28–28–11–1 record, losing to Belleville in the opening round. In 2001–02, Kingston slumped to an 18–37–9–4 record, and lost a tie-breaker game to North Bay 6–2 to miss the playoffs. Mavety stepped down halfway through the 2002–03 season to focus solely on being the GM of the team.

With Mavety as the general manager, Kingston finished the 2002–03 season with a 25–37–2–4 record, missing the playoffs. The Fronts rebounded in 2003–04 with a 30–28–7–3 record, but lost to Barrie in the 1st round. Kingston missed the playoffs in 2004–05 with a 28–33–4–3 record, but had a strong season in 2005–06 with a 37–24–4–3 record, however, lost to Sudbury in the opening round of the playoffs. The Fronts in 2006–07 qualified for the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row, finishing 5th in the Eastern Conference with a 31–30–7 record, but lost to Oshawa in the first round.

After a 2–9–1 start by the Frontenacs in 2007–08, the club fired head coach Bruce Cassidy and Mavety took over coaching for the remainder of the season. Under Mavety, the Frontenacs played better hockey, and finished with a 23–32–1 record, however, they were unable to rebound from their poor start and failed to qualify for the post-season.

Mavety returned as head coach of the team for the 2008–09 season, however, after Kingston began the year with a 5–13–5 record and in last place in the Eastern Conference, he resigned from the position to focus on his general manager duties. Mavety hired former Toronto Maple Leafs captain and Kingston-born Doug Gilmour to coach the hockey club. Under Gilmour, the Frontenacs improved, however, they fell short of the playoffs. Kingston rebounded in 2009–10, as the team finished with a 33–30–5 record, and returned to the playoffs, however, the club lost to Brampton in the opening round. The Frontenacs struggled during the 2010–11 season, going 29–30–9, however, they made the playoffs for the second straight year. Kingston then lost to Oshawa in five games in the first round. After the season, Mavety stepped down as general manager, as Doug Gilmour was named to replace him. Mavety is now a senior consultant with the Frontenacs.

Coaching record

References

• Larry Mavety's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database