At the Toronto Rock Anthletic Centre in Oakville, Ontario, the NLL held it’s 2013 draft. After the end of the 2012-2013 season, the Washington Stealth were reassigned to Vancouver, adding another Canadian team to the NLL, along with Toronto, Edmonton, and Calgary.
For the first time since 2008, the Stealth finally received a first round draft pick. At the eighth spot overall, Vancouver chose a lefty forward in Cody Bremner. Cody has been on their radar from the get go while playing two seasons with Nanaimo Timbermen in the WLA. He received Rookie of the Year in 2012 and recorded 123 points overall in two years.
Next, Vancouver made was a trade with the Buffalo Bandits. The organization traded away their last years 21st overall choice in Mitch Jones for the 20th pick and a fifth round draft choice in the 2015 NLL Entry Draft. They picked up Tyler Digby with their second choice of the night. Two selections later, Kevin Neufeld, a defender, was called upon to dawn the black and read at the podium. Using their 26th overall choice, the Stealth selected Brett Dobray out of the Junior A Langley Thunder. Ten slots later, defender Blair Goss was called up, adding another six foot defender to their squad.
Vancouver went to an American pick when they selected Josh Hawkins (Loyola ’13/Charlotte Hounds) with the 41st overall pick of the night. Another Langley Thunder product was drafted when the team chose Brendan Rouse. Ending their night with the 54th overall pick, the Stealth selected another offensive player in Chris Wardle from the Victoria Shamrocks.
The Stealth had a satisfying draft all around, picking up both lefty and righty offensive threats, along with two huge defenders and a few key transition players. One player I’m hoping to see do well is Hawkins. He’s one of the very few Americans drafted, who is a scrappy ground ball guy that can push the ball in transition on the outdoor field. It will be interesting to see how he does on the indoor turf. Bremner will help out greatly on offense, making the defense double think about what they are going to do in regards to slides and personnel.
