The Brampton Excelsiors and Oakville Rock have come together to swing Major Series Lacrosse’s first blockbuster trade of the offseason. The trade sees the Oakville Rock acquire Brodie Merrill, Kevin Ross and Dan MacRae from the Brampton Excelsiors, in exchange for Ethan O’Connor, Patrick Miles, Mike Mawdsley and a second round pick in the 2017 MSL Draft.
The trade was the first of recently named Oakville Rock’s General Manager Josh Sanderson’s career as a GM, and it continues the trend of the Oakville Rock acquiring players who ply their trade in the NLL with the Toronto Rock. It also continues a trend we are seeing in Brampton, as they continue to add young, local talent to their roster.
The Oakville Rock have been on the cusp of the Major Series playoffs since their move from Ajax to Oakville and this latest move may get them over that hump. Despite Brodie Merrill’s main summer lacrosse commitment being to the MLL’s Boston Cannons he is expected to suite up for the Oakville Rock when he can this season, and make a full commitment to the club come playoff time. Dan MacRae has been plying his trade with the Victoria Shamrocks of the WLA for the past few seasons. While MacRae did not play summer ball last season, he had spent the 2011, 2012 and 2013 seasons with the Shamrocks, after spending the 2010 season with the Brampton Excelsiors. MacRae is a native of Mississauga, Ontario and played his junior lacrosse with the Oakville Buzz Jr. B’s and the Burlington Chiefs at the Junior A level. Meanwhile Kevin Ross comes to the Oakville Rock after playing his last four summer seasons with the Brampton Excelsiors. The 2014 season was Ross’ first season of MSL action since the 2011 season, where he won a Mann Cup with the Excelsiors. Ross has spent his MSL career between the Six Nations Chiefs, K-W Kodiaks and Brampton Excelsiors. He is a two time Mann Cup winner and former 40 goal scorer with the Toronto Beaches Junior A club.
With Brampton undergoing an extensive rebuild since they last won the Mann Cup in 2011, the additions of O’Connor, Miles and Mawdsley continue the Excelsiors trend of building through the draft, acquiring young local talent and protecting their graduating junior players. The Brooklin Redmen fell on down times in recent years, and used the same formula to get back into the upper tier of MSL teams. If the Excelsiors continue the path they’re on they should find themselves back competing for MSL and Mann Cup titles in no time. Defender Ethan O’Connor is the most noticeable piece of the trade for the Excelsiors as he is the lone player acquired currently spending his winter months in the NLL. O’Connor will be entering his third season of MSL action this summer after beginning his senior career with the Brampton Excelsiors in 2013, before being moved to the Oakville Rock last season. Patrick Miles spent last season with the Oakville Titans of the Ontario Senior B loop, and was excellent for the club in a defensive role. The 5’11” Brampton, Ontario native will bring toughness, athleticism and transition skills to the young Excelsiors squad. Finally, Mike Mawdsley had a fairly impressive rookie season with the Rock as he racked up 23 points in 18 games playing in both a transition and pure offensive role for the club. Mawdsley’s versatility will help balance the Excelsiors roster. Currently Mawdsley is suiting up for the Barrie Blizzard in the Canadian Lacrosse League, where he has racked up 11 points in four games.
Essentially this is a win/win for both teams involved. While the Rock get the more noteworthy talent, at the end of the day it was unlikely that any of the three players Oakville received in the deal would suit up for the Excelsiors in the 2015 season. The Rock GM stated that he is hopeful that MacRae will decide to join the Rock this season, while Merrill and Ross are committed to the team in varying capacities for the 2015 season. O’Connor, Miles and Mawdsley are all expected to suit up for the Excelsiors in 2015, so essentially the Excelsiors gained three young talented players who will be active this season, for three players who would in all likelihood never have touched the floor for the team this season.
