What to say about the 2012 MLL season? Well, it definitely ended with the two teams most thought would be in the championship game. However, not before things got interesting. More stick checks and gear checks occurred more than I have seen in the past, which I believe is a good sign. It gives the younger generations of lacrosse players the mindset that cheating is never the answer.
Two new teams were incorporated into Major League Lacrosse this season and made a decent first impression. Gaining and then losing one draft pick and one trade may have been the difference in Long Island’s departure of the postseason. Hamilton’s season ends in disappointment, but on a good note. Rochester makes things interesting. Boston tries to defend title. Denver’s big come from behind win versus Lizards left them with a quarter tank of gas in the title match. Coach Cottle makes a statement with Chesapeake.
Let’s start with the two new teams, the Charlotte Hounds and Ohio Machine. Despite Ohio finishing last, they had a strong fan base and ended the season by giving them a show. The Machine lost their last five games, but not without a fight. The largest margin they lost by was six and the smallest by one, and only lost by two in their final game against the defending champs, which is a great sign for the future. 2-12 is not the best record for a new team to end on, though they placed second in EMO and have a team that can only get better. With players like Steele Stanwick, Kyle Hartzell, Joe Cummings, Chazz Woodson, and Connor Martin, they can only get better, right? A few offseason moves could be the disparity of another 2-12 season or a 12-2 season. Ohio faces the dilemma of, what changes do we make and who do we trade/cut/draft?
The Charlotte Hounds proved they belonged in the MLL, placing sixth over Ohio and Hamilton. They had big wins. Two wins against Ohio and one stellar win over future champion Chesapeake. Then they ended the season going 2-0, defeating Hamilton and ending Rochester’s hopes for a postseason run. Since their arrival in Charlotte, the Hounds have made a positive impact.
Lacrosse has been growing in North Carolina with Duke University and the North Carolina Tar Heels becoming fighting programs in the NCAA. Now that the MLL has shown landed in NC, there’s nowhere to go but up for the sport of lacrosse. The one problem that the Hounds will have to work out is consistency in every area of the field. That was their killer all season and has to be fixed. Some trades and good draft picks are going to help Charlotte get to premier status. I see the Hounds becoming contenders, if not next year, then definitely in 2014. The Hounds’ challenges are: do we trade/draft another goalie? How do we fix the transition game and stay consistent?
Hamilton Nationals had a disappointing season to say the least. The talent on the Hamilton squad is tops, but that can only help you so much. Many factors played into their unfortunate season, but none bigger than the end of the NLL season overlapping into the beginning of the MLL season. Â Hamilton had the most players inactive due to the NLL season. As a matter of fact they had 19 players out before the start of the 2012 MLL season. Out of those 19, three, Cody Jamieson, Stephen Keogh and Joe Walters were on the NLL Champions Rochester Knighthawks roster. Brodie Merrill continued his dominance, becoming the all time ground ball leader.
If that didn’t hurt them, then their goalie play did. Brett Queener and Scott Rodgers are good goalies, they happened to not play at the top of their game this season. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a change in the goalie rotation next season and possibly see a new face on cage. On a good note though, they ended their 2012 campaign dominating Long Island 18-8. The Nationals have a powerful team, they landed the number one spot for EMO and the 2013 draft will be interesting for the Hamilton organization. Question on everyone’s mind for Hamilton is, will Casey Powell be back?
Next on the recap is Long Island. What a come from behind season for the Lizards club. Big bad news hit the team at the start of the season when Max Quinzani opted not to play this summer. Then the number one overall pick in the 2012 MLL draft, Rob Pannell, decided to return to Cornell for his last year of eligibility, after a foot injury ended his 2012 NCAA season. Two offensive guns were gone in the blink of an eye. Nicky Polanco and Brian Spallina went to Chesapeake, leaving two big holes on defense for the Lizards. Adding insult to injury, the Lizards opened up 2012 without an owner and an 0-2 start. Â Things did not look good for Long Island.
Somewhere in the midst of the dark forest that was Long Island, the Lizards found a light when Co-Owners Medallion Financial Group and NFL and National Lacrosse Hall of Famer Jim Brown took over the Lizards organization. It sparked something for Long Island. With Coach Joe Spallina at the helm and Jim Brown in the office, they brought the team together.
Another light that was seen on Long Island were the rookies. Out of Yale came Rookie of the Year Matt Gibson, who made his presence known throughout the lacrosse world. Tommy Palasek from Syracuse and Will Mangan out of Rutgers showed up to play and help their team to the postseason. CJ Costabile helped at the LSM position, grabbing 20 ground balls, along with Michael Skudin nabbing 17 and Tim Henderson scooping up 30. These rookies had great leadership, especially at attack with old timer Brian Langtry. He helped the young attackmen adapt to the MLL game and transition to the pro life. Greg Gurenlian was the biggest key to this team’s success, winning 230-382 (60%) faceoffs. Drew Adams held the defense strong, posting an 11.91 GAA and making 52% of the saves he faced. The questions facing Long Island, will Quinzani jump back into the lacrosse world and will the organization claim Pannell?
The other New York team, Rochester Rattlers, had their future in their hands, but came up just a little short. John Galloway played like John Galloway pretty much the entire season. It took him a game or two to get back into the groove of things, but when he caught the spark, he blew up in net and made saves no one else could. His Syracuse teammate, Joel White, came out swinging this year after he won the NLL Championship with Rochester. He recorded 4 goals and 7 assists, totaling 11 points and 59 ground balls. Tom Montelli, John Lade and Mike Manley turned out to be a great trio in front of Galloway. Doing everything they could to stop the opposition. They communicated well and worked as a unit. Their one on one defense wasn’t the best, but they slid well for one another.
Kevin Leveille was back to playing like his old self, while Steven Boyle and Ned Crotty did what they know how to do. Matt Striebel added another year to his entertaining career, becoming the longest active player to play in the MLL, as he was part of the 2001 season. Rob Rotanz, Jordan MacIntosh and Brad Ross stepped up big for Rochester and helped the team make a great run. Roy Lang and Steve DeNapoli dominated in the short stick defense position. Lang is turning out to be one of the best transition middies in the league and has a very bright future. Faceoffs were the weak point for Rochester. Tim Fallon did his best and will need to work harder to get better. With that said, Rochester has to answer the questions: do you trade/draft another faceoff guy? Who will be the backup goalie when Galloway is at Duke? Will Striebel come back to continue his streak?
The defending champs gave everyone a scare by almost not making the post season. Paul Rabil recorded 72 points, becoming MLL’s Single Season Points leader with 72 points (27G, 7 2pt, 38A) and was named the MLL Offensive Player of the Year. He altered his game this season, becoming a complete player by adding assists to his game. That opened the door for his teammates and led to more goals. The Cannons had a very good team this season with Jordan Burke in net, guarded by Kyle Sweeney, Brian Farrell, PT Ricci and Jack Reid. These guys could all play offense and defense with a long pole. Burke didn’t have a great year, but he played well for what he did in net.
There was a good amount of attackmen inverted to midfield for Boston, which made their shooting deadly. Ryan Boyle was the quarterback, and has been the quarterback since joining the Cannons. Mike Stone was the biggest surprise up in Massachusetts and he made his name known by defenders. Â Matt Poskay, Kevin Buchanan, and Ari Sussman did what they normally do, score goals and try to win games. Buchanan had his best MLL season yet in 2012, tallying 42 points (31G, 1 2pt, 10A).
A weakness I saw in Boston was their composure. Physicality has nothing to do with slashing your opponents arm repeatedly. Yes, you want to be physical, but no, you don’t want to kill your man. There’s a time and place for everything, but sometimes Boston’s tempers flared, and it showed when Rabil got upset and was hit with an unsportsmanlike during the Chesapeake game on June 23. So Boston has to ask themselves, how do we stay calm and collected? Can Burke come out of his sophomore slump and return better next year?
The number two team in 2012 turned out to be the Denver Outlaws. A team that everyone knew would make the postseason. I knew they would, but remembered past years and how Championship Weekend has not been kind to them. They were the team I wanted to win the championship game (no offense to the Bayhawks), only because they had not won a Steinfeld Cup/Trophy in the three times prior to the final game, which is now at four. Unfortunately a late injury to Brendan Mundorf and a very exhausting come from behind win over the Lizards tore down the Denver Empire.
Peet Poillon had another insane year, making plays that no one else would dare to. Lee Zink, Defensive Player of the Year, destroyed everyone he went up against. He made his staple in winning the award during the semifinal versus Long Island. Matt Gibson tried taking him one on one and he did a ding-dong check and stripped Gibson like he was peeling a potato. Jesse Schwartzman had another great year, but still came up short on the championship. Josh Sims and Jeremy Sieverts complimented each other very well, along with Terry Kimener and Jordan McBride with his dunk goals.
Stephen Robarge, Anthony Kelly, and Dillon Roy did a phenomenal job for the Outlaws all season long, or, for Kelly, when they joined the team. As a unit, they won 205-430. To their respect, going up against Alex Smith in the last game of the season wasn’t exactly fair for them, but to be the best, you have to play the best.
This Denver team was also piloted by a group of rookies in Mark Matthews, Chris Bocklet, Colin Briggs and Drew Snider. They all have a bright future in the MLL. Matthews needs to work on his speed when going to cage. Bocklet will grow even more and become better because he now has experience. Briggs and Snider will be assets to Coach Stagnitta’s formula for midfielders.
Questions Denver has to ask the team and organization: What happened during the Championship game? How can we get better when playing two games in two days? Who will be step up guy when Mundorf or another big name player goes down? How do you only score six goals in a championship game?
Lastly, the 2012 MLL Champions, the Chesapeake Bayhawks. What a season this team had. First year Head Coach Dave Cottle took his mad science skills to the pro’s and put together team chemistry and skill that couldn’t be stopped. First midfield line of Kyle Dixon, Steven Brooks and Michael Kimmel made other teams quiver. Kimmel helped support Brooks and Dixon, setting them up for their shots. Dixon dominated the two point arc and Brooks was a sniper and rocket launcher tied into one. Unfortunately, when Brooks’ shooting was off, it made for a closer game.
How about Ben Rubeor? Doesn’t score a hat-trick all season and then lights up the net the entire weekend at Harvard. He tallied 8 goals in the two games and won MVP of Championship Weekend. Not too shabby for a guy that started the season as a second line midfielder and ended as a starting attackman. Then you have Drew Westervelt and Danny Glading who molded perfectly together. Their lacrosse IQ and skills compliment, not only each other, but everyone on the field. Let’s not forget about big John Grant Jr. The shots this guy pulled off all season could not have been done by anyone else. If there’s a way to score, this guy will find it and make it look easy.
Matt Mackrides represented himself well, showing his speed and agility. He will need to learn how to harness that speed and add a stronger shot into the mix. Matt Abbott is one of the best transition midfielders in the game. He is very slick on the field and mindful of his surroundings. He uses his speed to his advantage and will beat his defender one on one in the open field. Jeff Reynolds allowed himself to become a great defensive midfielder.
Nicky Polanco, Brian Spallina, Michael Evans, Dan Hostetler, and Barney Ehrmann. The first two names alone should make you run for the hills. Age and experience were on the Bayhawks side this season. When these guys had tough assignments, they took them without question. Behind them were the eyes and voice of Kip Turner. He had a lot to live up to after taking over for retired goalie Chris Garrity and after he lost his starting job to Jordan Burke. He lived up to it.
Adam Rand did a tremendous job at the faceoff x for Chesapeake. Unfortunately, come championship weekend, he acquired an injury that kept him out and Alex Smith took over. Not that Rand wasn’t good at his job, but when other faceoff guys see Smith’s name on the roster, there’s a chance they may only win three faceoffs.
Chesapeake questions: Will you keep both Rand and Smith? What will your draft picks look like after such a successful year? Do you disrupt the chemistry of your team? How do you start to prepare for next year?
2013 will be a season of changes now that other equipment manufacturers are allowed to be worn by players. Do we see the return of LXM players like Kyle Harrison? Where will the next expansion team(s) be? Who knows. The 2013 draft will be interesting and so will the season.
