This week we unveiled two early mock drafts- one from Mike Mackley and one from Chris Vale. Both are top lacrosse talent evaluators and have a pulse on what might happen in the draft. However, their drafts vary. My job is to interpret their drafts. At least, the first three rounds of them. There are going to be 1,000 mock drafts we do this summer. If you hate mock drafts,…
The other day, Mike Mackley brought you an early full mock draft. Today, Chris Vale gives you his top three rounds. Later in the day we will compare the two early drafts. 1. Georgia Swarm – (O) Lyle Thompson 2. Rochester Knighthawks – (O) Randy Staats 3. Georgia Swarm – (O) Jesse King 4. Calgary Roughnecks – (O) Wesley Berg 5. Georgia Swarm – (D) Graeme Hossack 6. Georgia Swarm…
While the Buffalo Bandits ended their 2015 NLL regular season on a positive note with their respectable 11-7 finish and making the playoffs, it was their abrupt exit in the first round to the defending NLL champion Rochester Knighthawks (who also swept the season series with the Bandits) that left Banditland fans scratching their heads and asking what happened? Offense: The Buffalo Bandits offensive efforts this season was truly a…
The National Lacrosse League has announced three finalists for the 2015 NLL Rookie of the Year Award. The Edmonton Rush’s Ben McIntosh, Colorado Mammoth’s Jeremy Noble and Georgia Swarm’s Miles Thompson were voted as the top trio of players from this year’s rookie class.McIntosh led all rookies in goals (37), assists (49) and points (86) during the regular season and tied for second with 69 loose balls. McIntosh’s 37 goals…
The New England Black Wolves of the National Lacrosse League have named Glenn Clark the second head coach in team history. Clark will be joined on the bench by assistant coaches Jim Veltman and Tracey Kelusky. “We are very excited to have Glenn Clark join our young team as head coach and we are equally enthused about Tracey’s return and the addition of Jim Veltman to the coaching staff,” Michael…
It’s June, so that means the NLL draft is about three months away. Why wait around for a mock draft then when you can have one now? Here’s our first projection, based off of our scouting team. 1. Georgia Swarm – (O) Lyle Thompson 2. Rochester Knighthawks – (O) Jesse King 3. Georgia Swarm – (D) Graeme Hossack 4. Calgary Roughnecks – (O) Wesley Berg 5. Georgia Swarm – (O)…
Although the Rookie of the Year nominees won’t be revealed until tomorrow, we can still take an educated guess at to who the candidates will be. Third pick overall Miles Thompson had a great rookie season for the Minnesota Swarm with 27 goals and 62 points. Thompson was second on the Swarm in both categories and 28th overall in the NLL. His strong rookie campaign bodes well for his ability…
With all of the NLL award candidates being revealed, its also time to start thinking of which players should and could get elected to the hall of fame in September. A plethora of legends have recently retired, leaving us with a huge pool to decide from. In 2014, the elections were former Toronto Rock and Colorado Mammoth player Pat Coyle and former Calgary and Vancouver head coach Chris Hall. Before…
As the offseason continues, the NLL is continuing to release the candidates for the league’s various top honours. On Thursday the Goaltender of the Year nominees were revealed. For the second year in a row, Aaron Bold of the Edmonton Rush was nominated. For the second straight year, Bold led the league in goals against average, at 9.44, and wins, with 12. Brandon Miller of the Toronto Rock was nominated…
Are faceoffs important in the NLL? The answer is yes… and no. Faceoffs determine initial possession of the ball. However, they do nothing to keep possession. Furthermore, possession does not equate scoring; that is dependent on several factors including accuracy of the shooter and the skill of the goaltender. The slight increase in possession increases the scoring chances but is no guarantee. So, where winning the faceoff and the slight…