Lot’s of NLL Movement 2

ARTICLE BY GARY GROOB | COLUMNIST AND CO-HOST OF NLL LACROSSE TALK ON SPANGLISH SPORTS WORLD AND SPANGLISH WORLD NETWORKS

TORONTO. - This week’s editorial continues to look at team lineups heading into training camp.

Buffalo Bandits:

The Bandits once again were a powerhouse in the league last season and will be a force to reckon with this year as well. With an offense that has Dhane Smith, Josh Byrne, Chris Cloutier, Tehoka Nanticoke, and Chase Fraser, not a lot of addition was needed. The defense will have more competition with the addition of David Brock, and Greg Harnett to an already strong core of Ian MacKay, Steve Priolo, Matt Spanger, Ethan O’Connor, and Bryce Sweeting.

An interesting battle will be for the backup goalie position. While Matt Vinc obviously has the starting job. Doug Buchan had a great summer in Peterborough, being an integral part of the Mann Cup victory, but Devlin Shanahan also had a terrific summer with the Nanaimo Timbermen. The future is definitely with Shanahan, does that mean Buchan will be on the move?

Georgia:

The biggest news that Georgia made was the retirement of Mike Poulin from their nets. Craig Wende will be excellent replacement as the starting goaltender, with Ethan Woods as a very competent backup.

On offense, Lyle and Miles Thompson are superstars. Add to them Shayne Jackson, Brendan Bomberry, Jordan MacIntosh, Jordan Hall, Stephan Leblanc, and newly acquired Andrew Kew, and this will be a powerful lineup to deal with.

Defense has not really changed with Joel White, Kason Tarbell, Adam Wiedemann, Robert Hudson, Ryan MacSpadyen, and the addition of Mike Manley for even more veteran presence.

New York:

The Riptide made their big splash last year retooling their lineup entirely. This year, added to Jeff Teat, Callum Crawford, Connor Kearnan, Larson Sundown, a healthy Dan Lomas, and a leaner Jake Fox, is Reilly O’Connor for a very balanced attack.

Defensively the Riptide have kept their core together, adding former Bandit Kevin Brownell, and former Saskatchewan Rush Jordi Jones-Smith for depth.

In net Steven Orleman will take the bulk of the work, with Gowah Abrams as his backup.

Calgary:

The Roughnecks lost a big part of their offense when Curtis Dickson signed with San Diego, and Marshal King went to Las Vegas. They have put some good pieces back adding Brett Hickey, and drafting Seth Van Schepen. Jesse King is a perennial All-Star, Dan Taylor, and Taylor Pace should be able to handle a bulk of the load, but look for them to still be active in increasing their offense.

Defensively the Roughnecks added Jeff Cornwall to a ferocious group. Shane Simpson, Reece Callies, Eli Salama, Liam LeClair, Mitch Wilde, with All-Star Zach Currier will be a steady group in the back end.

Christian Del Bianco is a bonafide star in net and will be able to steal a few victories by himself throughout the year.

Colorado:

The defending champions decided to add a number of PLL players to their roster. Signed are Logan Wisnauskas, Daniel Bucaro, Keegan Kahn, and Asher Nolting. If these stars can adapt to the close play of box lacrosse, Colorado will be dominant on the floor once again. Returning to the Mammoth is a core that won the championship. Ryan Lee, Eli McLaughlin, Zed Williams, Connor Robinson, Tyson Gibson, and Chris Wardle. There will be no shortage of scoring on this team this season.

On defense Captain Robert Hope will lead a group consisting of Warren Jeffrey, Joey Cupido, John Lintz, Anthony Joaquim, Tim Edwards, and Jordan Gillies. This group was able to stifle a high octane Bandits squad in last year’s final and should be able to frustrate even the best offenses in the league this coming year.

Dillon Ward will do the majority of the goaltending, with Tyler Carlson being his backup.

Panther City:

With Dan Teat leaving as the offensive coordinator, enter Kyle Goundrey. Goundrey won two championships with Calgary as a player and has a long list of accomplishments as a coach as well.

A potent lineup that found their mojo midway through last season looks to pickup where they left off. Patrick Dodds, Cam Milligan, Phil Caputo, Dean Fairall, Nathan Grenon, and Will Malcom are the core. Add Mathieu Gautier from the Edmonton Miners Minto Cup team, with Evan Messenger, and Cole Pickup, and this team has a chance to be really special.

Defensively, the addition of Tyler Burton, Ryan Fournier, Tony Malcom, Brooker Muir, and Adam Perroni will make this camp a very competitive process. Chad Cummings leads a core group which consists of Liam Byrnes, Liam Patten, Connor Sellars, Josh Medeiros, as well as Liam Phillips, and Jeremy Thompson.

In net Nick Damude should get the nod as a starter with Kevin Orleman as his backup. Kaleb Martin, and Cam MacLeod will make camp very competitive, however.

Saskatchewan:

The Rush kept their core together with Robert Church, Mark Matthews, Josh Currier, Ryan Keenan, Dan Lintner, and Marshall Powless. Add Austin Madronic, Cam Badour, and Jeremy Searle and camp should be interesting.

The defense took a hit when Chris Corbeil signed with Toronto, but a core group of Kyle Rubisch, Mike Messenger, Matt Beers, Ryan Dilks, and Holden Garlent should be able to keep things stable in the back end.

Goaltending is another story. With five goalies in camp, the job is anybody’s at the moment. Alex Buque, Eric Penny, Adam Shute, Cam Dunkerley, and Laine Hruska are all in camp. Although Hruska is the future, is that future now?

Things should get more interesting as we get close to training camp, and even more interesting heading into opening weekend at the beginning of December.

One thing is certain, we the fans are in for very exciting, competitive lacrosse game in, game out all season long. Stay Tuned!