Before every draft in any sport, people like to talk about how deep it is or if it is weak. The majority of lacrosse experts have said that the 2013 draft will be rather deep. But is it the deepest draft in years? Let’s take a look at the past three drafts, first and second rounds.
2010- First Round
1. Rochester – Cody Jamieson – Syracuse University
2. Boston – Kyle Rubisch – Dowling College
3. Calgary – Curtis Dickson – University of Delaware
4. Minnesota – Andrew Suitor – R.I.T.
5. Rochester – Jarrett Davis – Bellarmine University
6. Calgary – Dan MacRae – R.I.T.
7. Boston – David Brock – University at Albany
8. Calgary – Brandon Ivey – Orangeville, ON
9. Buffalo – Travis Irving – New Westminster, BC
10. Rochester – Ryan McClelland – Colgate University
SECOND ROUND
11. Colorado – Ned Crotty – Duke University
12. Rochester – Josh Ruys – Burlington, ON
13. Buffalo* – Ben McCullough – SUNY Potsdam
14. Toronto – Glen Bryan – Orangeville, ON
15. Minnesota* – Scott Rodgers – University of Notre Dame
16. Toronto – Sean Robinson – Hobart College
17. Calgary – Derek Hopcroft – Bellarmine University
18. Minnesota – Josh Gillam – Dartmouth College
19. Philadelphia – Brodie MacDonald – Coquitlam, BC
20. Philadelphia – Max Quinzani – Duke University
21. Buffalo – Wayne Van Every – Six Nations, ON
Jamieson, Suitor and Rubisch have become superstars. Jamieson has two champions Cups while Rubisch has two defender of the year titles and Suitor is the Swarm captain. But every draft has those elites. What about later on?
Jarrett Davis is a regular NLLer in Edmonton. Dan MacRae is in Calgary still while David Brock has been in Buffalo and then Philadelphia as a regular. Brandon Ivey and Travis Irving are out of the NLL right now while RyaN McClelland has been up and down.
The second round gets a bit shaky. Ned Crotty is an NLLer, but looking back is he a second round pick? Josh Ruys hasn’t seen much NLL time while Scott Rodgers, Sean Robinson, Wayne Van Every and Max Quinzani have seen none. Derek Hopcroft was in CLax to start 2013 and Josh Gillam has been injury prone. Brodie MacDonald, now in Edmonton, was probably the best player in that second round.
2011 FIRST ROUND
1. Philadelphia – Kevin Crowley – Stony Brook University
2. Rochester – Stephen Keogh – Syracuse University
3. Colorado – Adam Jones – Canisius College
4. Minnesota – Jordan MacIntosh – Rochester Institute of Technology
5. Rochester* – Johnny Powless – Six Nations, ON
6. Minnesota – Evan Kirk – Hobart College
7. Calgary – Travis Cornwall – Coquitlam, BC
8. Colorado – Dan Coates – Canisius College
SECOND ROUND
9. Buffalo – Jeremy Thompson – Syracuse University
10. Rochester – Joel White – Syracuse University
11. Calgary – Greg Harnett – Orangeville, ON
12. Minnesota – Corbyn Tao – Robert Morris University
13. Colorado – Jordan McBride – Stony Brook University
14. Colorado – Jamie Lincoln – Hofstra University
15. Buffalo – Jeff Cornwall – Conquitlam, BC
16. Colorado – Tye Belanger – Peterborough
17. Toronto – Jesse Gamble – Cornell University
18. Calgary – Frankie Scigliano – New Westminster, BC
This first round was pretty elite. Kevin Crowley, Stephen Keogh, Adam Jones and Jordan MacIntosh are already stars. Johnny Powless has two Champions Cups and Evan Kirk has been a starting goalie at a young age. Travis Cornwall and Dan Coates are also regulars with their teams.
In the second round, Jeremy Thompson has been traded to Edmonton but is a regular. Joel White is a Rochester stud and all of the second rounders have seen NLL action. This draft was deeper than 2010 to be sure.
2012 FIRST ROUND
1. Edmonton – Mark Matthews (Denver University)
2. Minnesota – Brock Sorensen (Ohio State University)
3. Minnesota – Kiel Matisz (Robert Morris University)
4. Minnesota – Shayne Jackson (Limestone College)
5. Buffalo – Dhane Smith (Kitchener, ON)
6. Calgary – Joe Resetarits (University at Albany)
7. Calgary – Matthew Dinsdale (Coquitlam, BC)
8. Edmonton – Curtis Knight (Whitby, ON)
9. Colorado – Colton Clark (Bellarmine University)
10. Minnesota – Alex Crepinsek (Rochester Institute of Technology)
SECOND ROUND
11. Washington – Tyler Garrison (Coquitlam, BC)
12. Washington – Billy Hostrawser (Orangeville, ON)
13. Buffalo – Hayden Smith (Orangeville, ON)
14. Toronto – Bradley Kri (Orangeville, ON)
15. Edmonton – Michael Cudmore (University of Hartford)
16. Buffalo – Jordan Critch (Orangeville, ON)
17. Calgary – Jackson Decker (Burnaby, BC)
18. Buffalo – Carter Bender (University of Hartford)
19. Washington – Justin Pychel (Six Nations, ON)
20. Toronto – Mike Lum-Walker (Whitby, ON)
This is the most recent draft so the jury could still be out. The first six were about as solid as you can get, with Matthews breaking the Edmonton record for goals scored in a single season. Curtis Knight was an impact for the Rush as well, while the fifth pick Dhane Smith was a bright spot for Buffalo.
In the next round, Tyler Garrison was a great get for Washington with just a second rounder. After that Carter Bender saw some time, but Mike Lum-Walker, who projected to be a steal, tore his ACL and was out for the season. This ranks behind 2011 but ahead of 2010.
Now we prepare for 2013, and who knows how deep this draft will be? Prospects like Jason Noble, Logan Schuss, Tor Reinholdt, Robert Church and others sure make it seem like it can compete with 2011 for the deepest draft in years.
