Les Wingrove's lunch Wednesday at his favourite spot, White Spot, comprised a plain hamburger (sauce on the side), a salad and a diet Coke.
His main staple the last 20 years was one monstrous helping of the Coquitlam Adanacs.
Then came Sept. 29. That day, he may not have eaten at all.
That's when new club president Ed Ponsart officially announced via an emailed press release that a new general manager, Randy Delmonico, had been hired to replace Wingrove, who was not mentioned in the release. The next day, Wingrove said he'd been fired "out of the blue" a few days after the Western Lacrosse Association squad's annual general meeting. (Ponsart did not respond to an opportunity to comment for this story.)
The 67-year-old Wingrove was not interested in firing darts publicly at Ponsart or members of the Adanacs' executive over a stunning dismissal, instead opting to cool his jets for a week before electing to talk only about the vast accomplishments the team achieved during his tenure and his many fond memories from having a huge 'A' emblazoned on his heart for two solid decades.
The tattoo has since been removed.
"I have about 20 Adanac golf shirts and a dozen or so ball caps, jackets and whatever," Wingrove told The Tri-City News in his first interview following his firing. "I'll probably give them to some of the players or, if not, there's always Goodwill."
Ironically, Wingrove was replete with goodwill while serving in his full-time volunteer GM post with the Adanacs, which included him attending "a trillion meetings" on the team's behalf, arranging arduous practice and game schedules, and ensuring the right coaches and players were in place to make the A's a first-rate organization.
In the 20 years with the accountable and accessible Wingrove at the helm, the A's made the playoffs 19 times, missing them for the first time this year by two points in a fierce seven-team, regular-season showdown for four berths. Under Wingrove, the A's went to the WLA finals 15 times, moving on from four of those to the Mann Cup national championship, and winning their one and only Canadian title in a seven-game thriller with the Brampton Excelsiors in 2001 at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum.
Colin Doyle's goal with 34.7 seconds remaining proved the winner in the 10-9 deciding game after the A's rallied back from an 8-4 third-period deficit in front of about 8,000 crazed fans. Undoubtedly, it was Wingrove's proudest, finest moment as the Adanacs' GM.
"The last three minutes of that game was a story in itself," Wingrove recalled. "We were down and out and all of sudden... bang.
"I actually showed the film of the last three minutes to city council of that day. We made a presentation to the mayor and I don't know what was going on there but there were a lot of people in [council] chambers. The people all stood up and gave us a standing ovation. It was quite exciting.
"I still have the game tape."
Wingrove's record not only speaks for itself, so does some of the many moves he made to bolster the squad to champion status.
He traded to acquire kingpins Dan Stroup, Russ Heard, John Wilson and Curt Malawsky, among many other notables. He signed Ontario-born Andy Ogilvie, Colin Doyle, Josh Sanderson, Troy Cordingley and Jim Veltman as coveted free agents. And he miraculously remained in constant contact with all his players long before cellphones and email became the norm.
"We had an advantage but it was because our club had a very good reputation and players wanted to play here," Wingrove said. "I remember having one [land line] phone and, when my mother was still alive, she could never get a hold of me because it was always busy. So I got a second phone installed just so she could call. I still have that number for my fax machine."
Wingrove paused to reflect on rising to the Sr. A's from the Jr. A's in 1989 with his son Trevor, a gifted player and, later, a city of Coquitlam official who lost his battle with cancer last year. At the time of Trevor's illness, Wingrove gave up his home-based picture framing business and his position as a scout with the National Lacrosse League's Colorado Mammoth.
"I did it so I could spend more time with Trevor, obviously, and continue working for the Adanacs," Wingrove said solemnly. "I wonder now if choosing the Adanacs was the right move."Wingrove is certain his next move will be the right one. He's taking his time while entertaining a handful of new lacrosse job offers, specifically two handsome ones from Jr. A and WLA squads.
"I think I'll still stay in the game but I want to be sure my duties are set in stone first," he said.
Wingrove prefers not to name names, even when it comes to paying tribute, due primarily to his ceaseless team-first philosophy.
But he offered these ones when pressed to respond to some best-of titles featuring ex-players:
Best leader - Pat Coyle: "[Current captain] Bruce Murray is going to kill me for saying that. Actually, all of our captains were good leaders."
Best pure talent - Jim Veltman: "He did things on the floor I've never seen before."
Best in the clutch - Colin Doyle, Dan Stroup (tie): "Colin's always been a winner and Dan scored some pretty big goals at key moments for us, too."
Fiercest competitor - Andy Ogilvie, Curt Malawsky (tie): "Nobody messed with Andy and Curt is just as intense as a coach as he was as a player."
Best team clown - Jason Wulder, Jamie Hackel (tie): "Jason was always pulling my leg.. and Jamie, well, there are some stories you just can't tell."
And there are some memories of the Coquitlam Adanacs that are only for Wingrove to cherish forever.
