Ethan O’Connor, a first round pick in the 2013 NLL draft, shone in his rookie season with the Toronto Rock. However, he won’t be back in Toronto for 2015 after he was traded to the Minnesota Swarm for Brock Sorensen.
“I am very excited to start camp with the Swarm.” said O’Connor. “It has been awhile since my last summer games with Oakville, which means I’ve had a lot of down time to train and get ready for year two. Having a year of NLL experience and getting the opportunity to take on a bigger role during the summer I feel I’ve been able to learn a lot about the game of lacrosse and I can’t wait to put it into practice with a new team.”
The Milton, Ontario native scored nine points in 17 games to start his NLL career. He also put up 26 penalty minutes and 133 loose balls.
“It was certainly not something that I saw coming but I couldn’t be happier to be a part of the Swarm organization.” O’Connor said about being traded. “Since the trade, they have been very welcoming to me and it feels good to know that they saw enough in my play to want to bring me in and make me apart of their future plans. I’m looking forward to showing them that I can be a significant contributor to the team both on and off the floor.
“It’s going to feel different playing for a new team. Getting used to playing with new teammates and systems will be a challenge but I’m going into camp ready to learn and be open to any role that they ask me assume.”
The Swarm have built their roster primarily with drafted and young players. On their roster for this season are four second year players, including last year’s first overall pick Logan Schuss.
“Going in to camp though I think the expectation is that I will help to contribute to Minnesota’s transition game.” said O’Connor. “First and foremost, I think my responsibilities will focus on playing solid defence, working to get stops and turnovers. But, when the opportunity presents itself I’ll be able to chip in offensively. In addition, I’m looking forward to taking on any other role that I might be asked to assume whether it’s on the floor through man down and face off teams or off the floor as teammate in the locker room.”
