With the draft about three months away and the Philadelphia Wings not picking until round 3 (19 & 22 overall) the wish list is kind of thin. This draft the Wings could have had the fourth and thirteenth overall pick, but they will go to the Edmonton Rush via the Brodie Merrill trade and the Kevin Ross deal respectively. So fans will be saying we could have had….but then they wouldn’t have Brodie Merrill.
The Wings need to look hard in one area, GOALTENDER. Brandon Miller isn’t getting any younger, and we all saw what happened last season. Experimentation with Kevin Croswell was a bust, in which caused the release of Steve Fryer. The only goalie that is on the draft board is Dillon Ward, and he is projected by ILIndoors Stephen Stamp to go to the Washington Stealth (Mock Draft). So if that does happen, would Washington release back-up Matt Roik? Would Johnny bring in the one time starter here in Philadelphia back? I know Matt would love to come to Philly, he loves the passion that the fans have. Or does the coach look north of the border, maybe bringing back some of the eight that were here last season during camp. Maybe even bring back Fryer after a summer of seasoning. The Wingsstill have the playing rights to Mikey Thompson, will he come out of retirement? Or do they look at a trade?
Other areas of interest are of course the offense. One can say, Mundorf missed 10 games last season which was a big part of the offense, but this team has the talent to pick up that slack. Paul Rabil’s first year on the offensive side was very productive as he posted his second highest point total of his NLL career after switching from transition. For Rabil and his talent this should have a huge upside for the offense. Ethan Farrell showed some promise with his time in the lineup, still a bit raw, but good potential. Need a big strong forward to crash the middle and open it up.
On the defense side the Wings could use another big defenseman, I would even go as far as saying an enforcer. This team doesn’t have a Paul Dawson or Geoff Snider enforcer. Too many times the opposition was able to make there way into the middle, and get extra chances.
Wings first two picks are 19 & 22 overall. Three players that stick out are
Mitch Wilde, RD, Whitby Warriors and Robert Morris
A big defender, Wilde is an unpolished gem whose draft stock will be greatly impacted by how much his game is refined this summer. He had a strong 2012 season for Whitby and could be a high second-round pick in a draft that’s a bit short on shut-down defenders. He has a year of college eligibility remaining but is likely to enter the draft this year.
JoJo Marasco, LT, Syracuse
An athletic midfielder with a desire to play pro indoor lacrosse, Marasco will be a project but could pay dividends with some seasoning.
Rob Pannell, RF, Cornell
The sublimely talented attackman will face the usual challenge for a field player transitioning to the box game, but reports are that he wants to play indoors and his skill set should allow him the opportunity to try.
All can help, whether they are available….we shall see
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