Monday night was all about the future of the NLL. Tuesday night the cream of the crop gathered at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre to recognize the league’s current stars, and honour three of its all time best.
The league had previously invited fans to the awards night but this year also invited them to the draft. Probably 25 or so came for the draft but many more were present for the awards. Recognizable fans came from Peterborough to support Tracey Kelusky, and a large contingent from Banditland drove up for John Tavares. The two, along with Josh Sanderson, had many family members in attendance. Sanderson was also supported by many of his Toronto Rock teammates.
The awards seemed low-key this year. Perhaps it was due to awards being presented by league staff as opposed to team staff or players. It also could have been the technical difficulties early on in the presentation. Mostly, it seemed that a lot of award recipients were missing, and fewer players overall attended.
Nominees were introduced via video highlight packages and then the winner was announced. Each winner gave a short thank you speech.
Sportsmanship Award: Karsen Leung, Kiel Matisz, Ben McIntosh
Media Person of the Year: Teddy Jenner
Executive of the Year: Mike French, Lee Genier, Scott Loffler
GM of the Year: John Arlotta, Steve Dietrich, Rich Lisk
Les Bartley Award for Coach of the Year: Glenn Clark, Troy Cordingley, Derek Keenan
Air Canada Wingman of the Year: Callum Crawford, Rob Hellyer, Dhane Smith
Teammate of the Year: Joel McCready, Mike Poulin, Andrew Watt
Transition Player of the Year: Jordan MacIntosh, Brad Self, Jeremy Thompson
Defensive Player of the Year: Chris Corbeil, Ryan Dilks, Steve Priolo
Goaltender of the Year: Evan Kirk, Nick Rose, Dillon Ward
Rookie of the Year: Wesley Berg, Jesse King, Randy Staats
Most Valuable Player: Shawn Evans, Mark Matthews, Dhane Smith
Teddy Jenner, Ben McIntosh, Brad Self, Ryan Dilks, and Evan Kirk were not present at the awards. Scott Self accepted his brother Brad’s award. The pair were just split up as the Rochester Knighthawks traded Brad at the draft to the Buffalo Bandits. Ryan Dilks’ grandfather, affectionally known as @poppadilks on Twitter, accepted Ryan’s award on his behalf.
Dhane Smith called up several Buffalo teammates in the audience to accept his award with him, acknowledging that the MVP award is really a team award. Dave Brock, Billy Dee Smith, Andrew Watt, and Steve Priolo joined Smith on stage.
“What I will remember most is being in the dressing room with these guys, battling with these guys,” Smith said. “This is a team award. I’d like to thank all 23 members of the Buffalo Bandits… you’re only as good as the people you surround yourself with.”
The awards are a special end to the previous NLL season and a time to honour the years’ best contributors. But the part of the evening everyone looked forward to most was the Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Three of the best to ever play lacrosse were honoured this year. They were introduced with a video and then a tribute speech by close friends.
John Grant Jr. introduced his best friend Tracey Kelusky. The pair grew up playing lacrosse together in Peterborough. This summer, Kelusky spoke at Grant’s jersey retirement ceremony with their hometown senior Lakers. Grant returned the favour on Tuesday, saying that Kelusky’s heart is what made him such a great player.
While it was only the first speech of the night, Kelusky’s was the most emotional, especially when he began speaking of his father who passed away in 2013, and had to take a moment to compose himself.
“My dad was a mechanic at Coca-Cola for 30 years,” Kelusky reflected. “He’d go in early to work to fill up all the trucks full of gas to start all the trucks in the wintertime when it was minus 25, minus 30. To be clear, my dad wasn’t a truck starter. He wasn’t a gas filler-upper but what he did is he went above and beyond so that the people he worked with respected him and
that was something I wanted to be. I wanted to be that respected around my workplace like my dad was. And he wasn’t a pro lacrosse player, he was a mechanic, but I’ve always taken that with me.”
There were a few sniffles during Kelusky’s speech in the audience, too.
Next, Josh Sanderson was introduced by former teammate Bruce Codd. Sanderson was inducted just a year after his father, Terry, was inducted. Terry passed away in late 2014 and was honoured posthumously. Josh spoke for his father on that occasion and Tuesday spoke for himself.
He honoured all the people who had a hand in his development, further reinforcing just how small the lacrosse community is and how much it feels like a family.
“A big thank you to all my coaches who helped me get to the NLL and helped me get better throughout my career: Lindsay Sanderson, Bob McMahon, Bob Hamley, Matt Sawyer, John Lovell, Troy Cordingley, and of course my dad, all have their fingerprints all over me being up here tonight,” Sanderson said.
He also thanked a long list of his most valued teammates.
“Between chemistry on the floor and leadership on and off the floor and friendship, I believe you all have a piece of me being up here tonight so thank you very much for keeping me accountable on and off the floor,” he said.
John Tavares, the final inductee of 2016, was introduced by Lance Winn, a childhood friend and sports broadcaster. Winn’s moving tribute detailed Tavares’ long career and painted a true picture of perhaps the best ever NLL player in history.
The league’s all time leading scorer is a humble man, close to his family and grateful for the opportunities his parents gave him and the support his brothers, sister, and wife and kids give him every day.
“When I played minor lacrosse, I never thought I’d be a professional lacrosse player let alone be inducted into the hall of fame,” Tavares said. “I truly just played for the love of the game. It’s amazing where heart and passion can take someone in life.”
The awards and hall of fame ceremony officially conclude the 2016 season. Teams now begin looking forward to training camp in November to kick off the 2017 season.
