The Ottawa Senators have hired goalie coach Maciej Szwoch to serve as coordinator of goalie scouting and development. Szwoch spent 10 seasons working with Farjestad BK of Sweden’s SHL from 2015 to 2025. He also served as a consultant for the Detroit Red Wings from 2015 to 2022.
Szwoch most notably oversaw the rise of Team Italy’s Olympic starter and Anaheim Ducks prospect Damian Clara during his time in Farjestad. Clara served as Farjestad’s backup in the 2024-25 season and finished the year with nine wins and a .879 save percentage in 21 games. He also led NHL prospects Mans Goos, Carl Lindbom, and Melker Thelin on recent Farjestad rosters.
Szwoch began his coaching career with the Vaxjo Lakers’ youth teams in 2007. He climbed to Vaxjo’s men’s squad two years later, while also intermittently working with Norway’s Frisk Asker. With pro footing under him, Szwoch moved to MoDo Hockey in 2011 – taking reign over a goalie room that featured Linus Ullmark and Anton Forsberg. He continued to oversee their growth until his move to Farjestad.
Ottawa will now reconnect Ullmark with his former goalie coach after the former Vezina Trophy winner posted the first sub-.900 save percentage of his NHL career. A fresh face in the Senators goalie room could help Ullmark get back on track while also seeking out some upside to work into the Senators’ backup role.
How do you even say that name! And the other names he’s helped develop don’t exactly inspire confidence. I mean Clara looks good probably more of a backup. Good has done nothing, Lindbom looks like a 1B possibly a 1A if he develops more. Oh well these teams know way more than I do so I’m sure there’s reasons they chose him. Great name though!!
It’s very easy – Szwoch
MA-chay Shvock or Shvoch.
It appears to be Polish, so I’m leaning on my knowledge of Slavic languages broadly here. Polish is a very funny language though, they have all kinds of neat sounds. It could be Hungarian too though, and that’s a whole nother can of worms.
Sz is often how š is anglicized, makes a “sh” sound but with more of a Z inflection. J is often a Y sound in Slavic language. Jasmina is a common Balkan name, for instance; “Yasmina”. Ch as a “ck” sound is very Germanic, but it may also be an anglicized ć which is a “ch” sound. Like Nedeljković.
W is a V sound in nearly every language BUT English.