The National Lacrosse League has announced the NLL All-Rookie Team for the 2013 season. With Buffalo Bandits transition player Dhane Smith the lone representative from the East Division, six of the seven rookies honored represent the West Division including Calgary Roughnecks forward Joe Resetarits, Colorado Mammoth transition player Joey Cupido, Edmonton Rush forwards Curtis Knight and Mark Matthews, and Minnesota Swarm forward Shayne Jackson and transition player Kiel Matisz.
Smith scored a team-high 24 goals, tied for third-most among NLL rookies, and finished fifth in rookie scoring with 44 points (24+20) in 15 games played for the Bandits. The Kitchener, Ontario native, who was Buffalo’s first-round (5th overall) selection in the 2012 NLL Entry Draft, won one Rookie of the Week award.
Resetarits finished sixth among NLL rookies in both goals (8) and scoring with 24 points (8+16) in 14 games played for the Roughnecks. The Hamburg, NY native, who played collegiately at the University at Albany, was Calgary’s first-round (6th overall) draft pick in 2012.
Cupido led all rookies and ranked 11th in the NLL with a team-high 101 loose balls, tied for 10th in the league with 20 forced turnovers and finished eighth in rookie scoring with 15 points (6+9) in 15 games played for the Mammoth. The Hamilton, Ontario native was Colorado’s fifth-round (38th overall) selection in the 2011 Draft. Cupido becomes the first player drafted in the fifth round or later to be voted on to the NLL All-Rookie Team since Brian Langtry, a sixth-round pick in 1998, made the team as a rookie in 2003.
Knight ranked fourth in both rookie scoring with 46 points (19+27) and assists (27) while finishing fifth in goals (19) and tied for sixth in loose balls (51) among rookies in 16 games played for the Rush. The Oshawa, Ontario native, who played collegiately at University of Guelph and was Edmonton’s first-round (8th overall) draft pick in 2012, won two Rookie of the Week awards.
Matthews led all rookies and ranked fifth in the league with a team-high 38 goals, third-most by a rookie in NLL history, while scoring in all 16 games during the regular season. Matthews, Edmonton’s first overall pick of the 2012 Draft, led all NLL rookies and finished second on the Rush and 15th in the league with 69 points (38+31). The Oshawa, Ontario native, who played collegiately at the University of Denver, won three Rookie of the Month, one Offensive Player of the Week and two Rookie of the Week awards. Knight and Matthews become the first players in franchise history to be voted onto the NLL All-Rookie Team.
Jackson finished second in rookie scoring, third on the Swarm and 19th in the NLL with 63 points (24+39) while leading all rookies with 39 assists, which tied for 13th in the league. Minnesota’s first-round (4th overall) draft pick in 2012, Jackson tied for third among rookies with 24 goals and ranked fifth with 54 loose balls in 16 games played. The Bowmanville, Ontario native, who played collegiately at Limestone College, won two Rookie of the Week awards.
Matisz ranked second among rookies in goals (29) and assists (33) and third in rookie scoring with 62 points. Matisz led all rookies and finished tied for seventh in the league with 11 power play goals and ranked fifth in the NLL with a .230 shooting percentage. Among NLL rookies, Minnesota’s first-round (3rd overall) pick in the 2012 Draft ranked second with 70 loose balls and fifth with eight forced turnovers. The Stoney Creek, Ontario native, who played collegiately at Robert Morris University, won one Rookie of the Month award and four Rookie of the Week awards.
The 2013 NLL Season Awards are determined by a vote of the league’s Board of Governors, General Managers and Head Coaches.Due to a tie in the voting, the All-Rookie Team was expanded to seven players this year.
The announcement of Season Awards continues on Tuesday with the All-Pro First and Second Teams followed by the Rookie of the Year award on Wednesday and Most Valuable Player award, presented by Reebok Lacrosse
, on Thursday.The East Division champion and defending NLL champion Rochester Knighthawks take on the West Division Champion Washington Stealth in the 2013 NLL Championship Game, presented by Reebok Lacrosse, on Saturday, May 11 at 7 p.m. ET at Langley Events Centre, live on CBS Sports Network.
