1) Six Nations Arrows (8-1)
Last Week: 10-7 W over Mimico, 14-5 W over Mimico, 17-6 W over St. Catharines
The Arrows kept rolling this past week, as they should have, as their three games this past week where all against the two worst teams in the Junior A loop. Six Nations picked up back to back wins over the Mimico Mountaineers, who to their credit fought valiantly against the defending champs, before finishing their week off with a 17-6 win over the struggling St. Catharines Athletics. Six Nations continues to show their depth early on in the season, as their is arguably no weak link to this team. When the offense struggles, the defense steps up, when the defense lets up the goaltending has come up clutch. If its not one thing its the other for the Arrows, they continue to find ways to dominate their opposition. Doug Jamieson got the start in all three match ups, picking up three straight wins to give him a 8-1 record, with a league leading 5.58 goals against average. Despite Jamieson picking up all three wins, back up Keaton Dale did see action in two of the three games this week, lowering his GAA to 9.34. Leading scorer Austin Staats had a huge week despite appearing in just two games, picking up 5 goals & 8 assists for 13 points. Staats now has 40 points in eight games, which places him 5th in the Junior A loop in scoring. The depth off the Arrows offense is allowing them to run the score up on teams, as Josh Johnson, Dallas John, Joe Maracle and Jordan Durtson have all been fantastic. An now with the return of Brendan Bomberry (15 points in 3 games) and the emergence of AP Tehoka Nanticoke (14 points in 3 games) the Arrows are even stronger offensively. It’s going to be tough to beat the Arrows again this season, as their so deep, so skilled an so talented, there very few teams that can match up with them.
2) Peterborough Lakers (7-4)
Last Week: 12-11 W over K-W, 15-6 W over Barrie
While the Lakers may have played the most games in the OLA Junior “A” loop, along with Barrie and K-W, they’ve also rattled off three straight wins, and have won five of their last six, cementing themselves as true championship contender in 2015. A Tuesday night match up with the Whitby Warriors will prove huge for both teams, as the Warriors sit just one point back in the standings. With the Lakers there was never a doubt they’d be able to score this season, and it was expected they’d have a fairly solid defense, however the question marks where in goal, however Brett Lafonte and Patrick Pollock are proving their are reliable Junior A goaltenders, as there play at times has been crucial in the Lakers win streak. Rookie Zach Bryant led the Lakers offense this week, exploding for 7 goals & 3 assists in 2 games. Kyle Killen continued to impressive offensively with nine points in two games this week and 30 overall on the season. An then you have the usual suspects in Dan Michel, Cam Milligan and Jake Fox, who when combined are argubably one of the best five man offensive units in the league. Contributions from Zac Currier and depth players like Thomas Hoggarth and Matt Gilray, allow the Lakers to produce offense even when teams deny the Lakers top players quality opportunity. Defensively the Lakers continue to show inconsistencies however, as they go from allowing double digits one night, to complete shutting teams down the next night. Jake Withers, Bryce Sweeting and Tyler Roche will be looked upon to step up an pull the Lakers d-core together as the season wares on.
3) Orangeville Northmen (6-2-1)
Last Week: 8-6 W over Burlington, 5-3 L to Barrie
An interesting week for the Northmen, as the picked up a revenge win over the Burlington Chiefs on Friday night, before dropping an extremely low scoring affair on Sunday to the recently red hot Barrie Lakeshores. The Northmen had previously scored double digits in goals in 6 of the first 7 contests, but twice failed to reach that mark this past week, and it ultimately resulted in a loss against a team they should beat. The positive here for the Northmen is their defense continues to be stingy and their goaltending continues to impress. The Northmen have only allowed 10 or more goals against in a game on one occasion and that was in a loss to Burlington. In goal Nolan Clayton sits second in the league in Wins (6) and goals against average (6.52), while leading the league in save percentage with a 0.794%. Offensively there’s a lot of depth their for the Northmen, they boast at least eight top of the line offensive players in their lineup, and with the recent return of Dallas Bridle, the team should only get better up front. However they’ve been struggling to put it all together, as this may be case of the Northmen having to much talent to go around. Ian Mackay leads the crop of Northmen scorers, with 33 points in 9 games, while Davis Neal and Owen MacDonald sit second and third respectively in team scoring with 27 and 22 points. In Bridles two game since returning to the lineup he’s produced 2 goals & 1 assist for 3 points. While the Northmen may be struggling to put the ball in the net right now, its only a matter of time until this offense starts clicking, and when they do this team will be firing on all cylinders and very hard to beat.
4) Brampton Excelsiors (5-3)
Last Week: 15-2 W over St. Catharines, 10-9 W over K-W, 9-7 L to K-W
The Brampton Excelsiors on paper, may be the most talented squad in the league, however consistency issues continue to plague the uber talented Excelsiors. Brampton has been in this position before, highly touted with lofty expectations, and it seems as though every time they come into a season with these aforementioned designations the teams ends up struggling and bows out of the playoffs much to soon. While there’s no reason to panic in Brampton, it is a trend I’m sure the Excelsiors hope to buck in the coming week. The Excelsiors have played to the level of their opponent in my opinion, and while that’s okay against the Arrows, Lakers and Northmen, when you play down to the level of weaker opponents you become vulnerable to an upset, which happened to the Excelsiors this week in their loss to K-W, with a chance to improve to 6-2 on the season. Quintain Martin continues to be solid in goal for the Excelsiors, providing them with elite level goaltending, that will be needed down the stretch run an into the playoffs. Meanwhile the Excelsiors offense is extremely deep, and its lead by a pair of potent point producers in Zach Herreweyers (35 points) and Jeff Teat (38 points). However the fair is followed closely behind in point production from Clarke Petterson, Philip Caputo, Tyson Gibson and Tyler McKay. As mentioned in previous weeks the Excelsiors still are struggling to find an identity at the defensive end of the floor, as the turnover in players on the Excelsiors back end was fairly significant.
5) Whitby Warriors (5-3-2)
Last Week: 8-5 W over Barrie
It was a quite week for the Whitby Warriors, but the down time couldn’t have come at a better time, as the Warriors where just 1-2-1 in their last four games, before a crucial 8-5 win over the Barrie Lakeshores. Barrie had been quietly climbing up the standings, and had the Warriors dropped the game, the Lakeshores would currently sit ahead of them in the Standings. Despite a potent offense, lead by OLA leading scorers Austin Shanks and Ryan Keenan, the Warriors have not recorded double digits in goals in the last five games, and seem to be having some consistency issues up front. After Shanks, Keenan and Kearnan, the offensive production drops off significantly, as Luke Keenan and Tristan Rai are both over 15 points behind the Warriors big three in scoring. An well after the five aforementioned Warrior offensive guns, the Warriors offense is awful thin. Defensively the Warriors have been fairly sound, allowing double digits in goals against on just two occasions. The athletic, in your face, push the pace defense the Warriors play can overwhelm teams that are poor in transition, and its something every opposition needs to be well a ware of. While there may have been question marks in goal, Mike DeGirolamo has come up big recently, proving he may be the answer in goal for the Warriors moving forward. A crucial game against the Peterborough Lakers is on the schedule on Tuesday night, while next Tuesday the first place Arrows will be in town, for a rematch of last years OLA final.
6) Barrie Lakeshores (5-6)
Last Week: 12-10 W over Burlington, 8-5 L to Whitby, 5-3 W over Orangeville, 15-6 L to Peterborough
The Barrie Lakeshores are quickly making a name for themselves around the OLA Junior A loop, they’ve pulled upsets against Brampton, Burlington and Orangeville now, proving they belong in the conversation with Six Nations, Peterborough, Orangeville, Whitby and Brampton. Despite a sub .500 record the Lakeshores are playing much better lacrosse as of late, and while a 15-6 loss to the Peterborough Lakers to end the week is disheartening, the Lakeshores must have been running thing on gas as it was their fourth game in seven nights. Barrie has been getting admirable goaltending from Zach Rex, who sits with a 5-6 record and a 9.02 goals against average. The defense has been really barring down, with the Peterborough game being an obvious exception to that. Defensively the Lakeshores are a physical bunch, with know real big name player leading the defense core, the defense by comity approach is really working lately. Offensively the Lakeshores looked like they could be thin, and in trouble. However there getting strong contributions from a number of depth guys, with Nick Chaykowsky and Steph Charbonneau being notable surprises. Chaykowsky currently sits with 23 points in 11 games, while Charbonneau has chipped in with 13 points in 11 games. An of course there big guns are also producing right now with Austin Murphy leading the team in scoring with 30 points, and Spencer Pyke following right behind with 29. The Lakeshores host the Athletics and Chiefs this week, a 2-0 week could make a huge statement across the OLA.
7) Toronto Beaches (4-4-1)
Last Week: 12-9 W over St. Catharines, 11-8 W over Burlington
The Beaches needed a big week against opponents there expected to contend with this season, and they got just that. Toronto went 2-0, with wins over St. Catharines and Burlington, to put themselves right back in the playoff conversation. The Beaches have built there team for the past few years, getting increasingly more competitive as the years have gone on. While we cant expect the Beaches to continue to grow, the 2015 version boasts a great deal of young talent. In goal the tandem of Michael Lalani and Brayden Bell have been excellent early on, as both netminders sit in the top 6 in goals against average. The veteran Lalani is enjoying his best season of Junior A action to date, with a 3-3 record and an 8.67 goals against average. Offensively the boys from the Beach are able to put the ball in the back of the net with regularity this season, as the emergence of John St. John as an elite Junior A scorer has really helped the Beaches offense thrive. Youngster Bryce Keats, who has split time with the Markham Ironheads this season, has really impressed at the Junior A level, racking up a goal & eight assists for nine points in two games this week. With Garrett Lewis, Aaron Forster and Jake Cook continuing to produce, Toronto’s offense becomes increasingly harder to shut down. Defensively a number of players have returned and its making the process of them coming together as a unit that much easier. Look for the Beaches to peak right before the playoffs, giving some elite to all sorts of trouble in round 1. With St. Catharines and Peterborough on the schedule this week, the Beaches have every opportunity to be 6-4-1 at the weeks end.
8) Burlington Chiefs (4-6)
Last Week: 12-10 L to Barrie, 8-6 L to Orangeville, 11-8 L to Toronto
Having already beat Orangeville this season and Toronto and Barrie being competitors on the level of the Chiefs, Burlington had an excellent chance to move to 7-3 and establish themselves as a top tier team in the OLA Junior “A” loop this season, however it ended up going the exact opposite way for the Chiefs. Burlington went on to drop three straight games, and fell to 4-6 on the season, and dropped to eighth in the standings, just two points up on ninth place K-W. The Chiefs have been the definition of a Jykll and Hyde like team, playing to the level of their opponents on each night. Burlington has a strong goaltender in Dough Buchan, and an elite scorer in Andrew Kew, however the pieces surrounding those two players, just haven’t stepped up on a consistent bases. Kew sits with 51 points on the season, while Chiefs second leading scorer sits with just 23. As teams begin to key in on Andre Kew more and more, the Chiefs ability to score may grow even more difficult, unless the likes of Nolan Apers, Gianni Bianchin, Spencer Edler and Ryan Marchand are able to step up on a consistent bases. Ryan Lanchbury has 11 points in 5 games since returning an may help on the offensive side of things, while Justin Huggins, who was acquired from Toronto is expected to contribute on a consistent bases. The Chiefs need to find consistency and find it quick as they could really take advantage of their upcoming schedule, with seven straight winnable games.
9) K-W Braves (3-8)
Last Week: 12-11 L to Peterborough, 10-9 L to Brampton, 9-7 W over Brampton
The Braves got back to playing the lacrosse we expected to see from them this past week, and while they went just 1-2, the margin of their losses was so narrow, the arguably could have been 3-0 this week. The depth on offense seems to finally have started paying dividends, while Kevin Orleman has been great in goal for the Braves. While the likes of Chris Cloutier, Drake Smith and Shawn Lantz have consistently produced on offense this season, the Braves have got inconsistent efforts from the rest of the offensive guns in their line up. Sean Callaghan, Cody Hamley and Connor Cole need to find more consistency, while the recent offensive run by Ryan Willock has offset the quite week from Callaghan. Defensively the Braves returned some key guys, and as the season continues to run on, expect the Kitchener defense to tighten, as guys get more an more familiar with one another. Kevin Orleman will need to continue to be sharp if the Braves want to catch the 8th and final playoff spot in 2015. Wednesday night’s match up with Burlington is huge, as the following three games on the Braves schedule see them take on the Whitby Warriors, Six Nations Arrows and Orangeville Northmen.
10) St. Catharines Athletics (2-7)
Last Week: 15-2 L to Brampton, 12-9 L to Toronto, 17-6 L to Six Nations
A promising 2-1 start led many to believe the Athletics may be able to contend for the 7th or 8th seed heading into the 2015 playoffs, however six straight losses has dropped the Athletics into a tie with the Mimico Mountaineers for last place in the OLA Junior “A” loop. The good news is, the Athletic got the tougher half of their schedule over with early on, and despite their 2-7 record, they have every opportunity to get back into things, as their next three games are all winnable games against Toronto, Barrie and Mimico. With the exception of seeing Whitby and Six Nations once, all of the Athletics remaining games are against teams 6th or lower in the standings. In goal Jack Frost has been good, he’s give the Athletics a chance to win in almost every start this season, but still sits with a 2-6 record and a 9.55 GAA. Connor Anyon made his first start as an Athletic this past week, allowing 15 goals on 56 shots against the Brampton Excelsiors. Anyon would also see action against the Arrows as Six Nations bombarded the Athletics offensively. Up front Eric Fannell is among the leagues elite offense players and may become a prime trade deadline candidate for the Six Nations Arrows or any other contending team. Jeff Witting, Joe French and Cody Ward have all been regular contributors to the offense, while Charlie Sheehan’s return to the Athletics offense, gives them yet another option up front.
11) Mimico Mountaineers (2-7)
Last Week: 10-7 L to Six Nations, 14-5 L to Six Nations
A tough week for the Mountaineers as a back to back with the defending Minto Cup Champions is never an easy task. While both games where spirited affairs, the Mountaineers did come out on the wrong end in both match ups, The Mountaineers are showing a ton of heart, a ton of compete and deserve everything their getting this season, however they simply do not have the depth to compete with the elite teams in the loop this season. Riley Hutchcraft has been excellent in his time between the pipes for Mimico and is well on his way to becoming one of the better young netminders in the league. Dereck Downs, Tanner Thompson and Matthew Lee have been the Mountaineers leaders, as they where expected to be, while rookie Jonathon Donnville leads the team offensively with 20 points in 9 games and could easily one day lead this league in scoring. If Mimico could ever get Riley Matthews into the line up, their offensive depth would be even stronger, and likely enough to compete with the St. Catharines, Barrie’s and Toronto’s. Defensively Mimico is a gritty, physical bunch, just as they’ve always been known to be. Mimico gaining confidence with every game, and while the playoffs may be a long shot, its still not to wishful of thinking to assume the Mounties could get their in year one.
