The 2014 MLL Collegiate Draft is upon us, literally, less than 12 hours away. With what is not the deepest class to choose from, there are still many players who can make an impact for their team.
Hamilt…. Err… Florida rather, is one team to watch. With most of the former Hamiltons still on the squad, the Launch has some work to do. They had a decent supplementary draft, picking up Florida resident Chazz Woodson, midfielders Billy Eisenreich, Brett Graber, Kyle Wimer and Nick O’Hara. They also snagged attackmen Grant Kaleikau and Zach Palmer, and FOGO Chris Mattes to back up Mike Poppleton. Defensively, Florida grabbed one guy in Steve Panarelli. Other players they picked up were midfielders Scott Kahoe and Trevor Timmerberg and attackman Mario Ventiquattro.
Florida will start out the draft with the number five overall pick, following Ohio, Rochester and New York’s two back-to-back picks. They do not have selections in the third and fifth rounds, with two coming in the second.
Hamilton made a run to championship weekend last year and has tons of talent on their roster. With a lot of NLL players on the squad, where do you go? Also, how does the move of the team impact the traveling of players (Canadians)? Questions out the wazoo for the Launch heading into tonight.
With their first pick though, they’ll have to make a very strong impact with it. Not having Brodie Merrill and MJ Kiekebelt and not protecting Sid Smith opens up the defensive positions. However, we have to also keep in mind that with players in the NLL, mainly offensive talent, they may swing that way as well. If I’m Florida, I’m going defense.
Florida Draft Slots:
Round 1 – No. 5
Round 2 – No. 10
No. 12
Round 3 – No Pick
Round 4 – No. 29
Round 5 – No Pick
Round 6 – No. 45
Round 7 – No. 53
Round 8 – No. 61
Don’t forget to tune in tonight at 8:30 pm on the MLL’s YouTube channel for live coverage of the draft. If you’re in the Philadelphia area, the draft is free and open to the public, so come on down!
