NLL Insider

NLL Insider

NLL All Access: Opening Night

By now we’ve all seen the final score from Saturday in Denver and are busy poring over the game stories and highlights to glean some more insight into how the Mammoth and the Roughnecks may fare over their next fifteen games.

Opening night of the salvaged season certainly lived up to everyone’s expectations: A frustrating and physical contest that ended with a furious comeback by Colorado to deny their most hated rival a victory on the road.

But, as usual, there’s more to the NLL than just the game.

I had the best seat in the house at the Pepsi Center – just a few feet away from Bob McMahon on the Mammoth bench - and was able to get unfettered access to just about every part of the night, from the pre-game turf installation to the post-game party (check out the photo gallery from opening night here).

After the jump, we’ll take you through the opening day and night of the 2008 NLL Season…
READ MORE »

The Beat

Lessons in losing

Losing isn’t fun, but it can be educational.

That’s why Calgary Roughnecks general manager Kurt Silcott isn’t too disappointed with Saturday night’s loss to the Colorado Mammoth. When the ‘Necks arrived in Denver, they were already without veteran defenders Andrew McBride (shoulder) and Devan Wray (work commitments). Then they lost Ryan McNish to a game misconduct.

Still, the ‘Necks were able to take the Mammoth down to the wire and that’s the kind of effort that has Silcott amped for the rest of this season, he told The Calgary Sun.

The Buzz

B2 needs to BBetter

Finally! The season’s underway. It always seems like an eternity between the Champion’s Cup game and the start of the next season. And when you’re a player or a coach, the pre-season feels like it will never end. You tend to get a little stale when your preparation is predominantly practice with next to no game action.

I took in last night’s ’08 season debut via the B2 broadcast. Although it was great to be able to take in the game on live video, the broadcast was lacking in a number of areas.

READ MORE »

NLL Insider

Mammoth 4th Quarter in Colorado

17, 811 fans showed up for game one of the 2008 NLL season and although the Mammoth Fans had a scare, they eventually went home happy. The Mammoth overcame an 8-4 deficit to score 6 straight goals enroute to a 10-9 victory. NLL refs have a tough job - especially with rules changing every year- so I try not to bash them. However I thought that they were “whistle happy” on Saturday and the game’s turning point was a double minor against Curt Malawsky at the end of the third quarter. With the score 8-5 for Calgary and seconds remaining in the quarter, Calgary forced a turnover deep in the Colorado end. After a couple of quick passes Curt Malawsky was in alone on Nash. The buzzer went seconds before his shot beat Nash and referee Rick Lum correctly waived off the goal. However he also gave Malawsky a minor for “delay of game” and an additional minor for “unsportsman like” (which I’m sure Malawsky earned). Given the crowd noise, how quickly Malawsky shot after the buzzer, and the fact that it was a harmless inside shot; I was very surprised that he got a penalty. Jamie Shewchuk scored 2 goals while Malawsky was in the box and the momentum was all Colorado’s for the rest of the game.  The Mammoth went on to score a short-handed goal, an even strength goal and another power play goal.  Gee Nash also came up big in the last minutes of the game to preserve the victory.
READ MORE »

Shanny's Power Rankings

Shanny’s Power Rankings: Week 1

Week 1

1 (1)	Rochester Knighthawks 0-0-0 Defending champs
2 (2)	Colorado Mammoth 1-0-0 Squeezed out opening game win.
3 (3)	Buffalo Bandits 0-0-0 How much will Greenhalgh’s injury hurt?
4 (4)	Calgary Roughnecks 0-1-0 One bad quarter Saturday.
5 (5)	San Jose Stealth 0-0-0 No surprise this year.
6 (6)	Philadelphia 0-0-0 If they don’t move up this year - they never will.
7 (7)	Toronto Rock 0-0-0 Looked good in pre-season. Might surprise.
8 (8)	Minnesota Swarm 0-0-0 Always tough. How good will Point be?
9 (9)	Edmonton Rush 0-0-0 Playoff bound?
10 (10)	Portland Lumberjax 0-0-0 Dawson might have something to say about this.
11 (11)	Chicago Shamrox 0-0-0 If anyone falters, Batley’s crew will pounce.
12 (12)	New York Titans 0-0-0 No where to go but up.

The Buzz

Classic Rock

Brian Silcott may be none too pleased with the news, but Rock fans can breathe a sigh of relief as the Toronto Sun reports that their team is returning to the defense-heavy playing style that has served them so well in the past. With that question mark answered, Rock fans can go back to worrying about what really matters: whatever happened to Sister Satellite, and are they available Saturdays?

On the sad news front, the Rocky Mountain News has the story of the funeral for the Colorado Mammoth usher who was brutally killed several weeks ago in Denver.

In other Mammoth news, Dan Carey will be going One on One on the radio: coloradomammoth.com

And Rochester’s John Grant will be dropping the puck at tonight’s Amerks game: knighthawks.net

NLL Insider

Calgary and Colorado Reignite Rivalry in Season Opener

Watching the first and second half of the Calgary Roughnecks and the Colorado Mammoth was like watching two different games. In the first half there was an aggressive and physical Calgary defense that stifled any offensive opportunities Colorado could generate. And in the second half, the Mammoth decided to show up, coming away with a come-from-behind 10-9 win. A lot has yet to be learned about these two teams as the season moves on but a lot was learned at the Pepsi Center tonight as well:
READ MORE »

NLL Insider

Where’s the Respect?

It has been a long time since I was a rookie, but for six or seven years it seemed as if I was some one’s rookie every year. Whether it was lacrosse or hockey, junior, senior, field or box, I had my head shaved more then my fair share of times. I had to drink a lot of warm beer and tequila through a straw out of a stainless steel popcorn bowl that was being heated by a Bunsen burner. I ran around icy parking lots without any clothes on carrying a marshmallow passenger in some unmentionable place that some other rookie (who was slower then me) was likely going to have to eat. My parents found me duct-taped to our front porch one year, mostly unclothed, thoroughly soaked with the garden hose. I’ve slow danced in public places with more then my share of dudes at the behest of some group of chuckling veterans.

Funny thing is I’m still alive to tell the stories and I learned a whole lot about respecting my sporting elders, aka vets. I might have learned it the hard way but I learned it never the less.

READ MORE »

NLL Insider

Calgary & Colorado, the definition of lax rivals

Rivalries based on geographical proximity are cool I guess, but serve me up somma that hate based stuff that only comes outta the best playing the best over-and-over until the roofs about to blow off.

Oh yeah, that stuff!

And we got that kinda war comin’ at us tonight when Calgary jets over to Denver to dance with the Colorado Mammoth. No doubt bloods gonna be drawn early this year, literally and figuratively. READ MORE »

The Beat

Dispersal collateral and pre-season wrap-up

Feeling firsthand the effects of the dispersal draft and subsequent roster trimmings, Arizona Sting draft pick Jamie Pilon (must…not…joke) told the Windsor Star how it felt to lose his rookie spot to veteran players. And since he was left out in the cold instead of the desert, he had no choice but to show off his lacrosse skills on ice.

On the other side of the fence, Matt Brown is nothing but smiles over how the labour dispute helped his situation, reports the Denver Post.

In other news:

• The Rochester Knighthawks capped off pre-season action with a last-minute 14-13 victory over the Toronto Rock: knighthawks.net
• The San Jose Stealth, who were apparently celebrating some sort of professional sports teams’ opposite day, have lowered ticket prices: sjstealth.com

From the Stands

Miles to go until we cheer

One of the best experiences that a fan in the NLL can enjoy–apart from the action on the field–is to venture to an opponent’s city to follow their NLL team. Now there are stories throughout the years of beer baths in Buffalo, battery chuckers in Philly, teenagers talking like truckers in Toronto, and rude grandmas in Rochester. Some of these are factual and some just add to the legendary tales from the road. One thing stands above all of this, though: to truly experience the NLL, you must go on roadtrips.

I would say the team that taught the rest of us how to do it is the PWFC in Philadelphia. Obviously they’ve been doing it the longest and have the most stories to share, but as the years roll along other cities have grown their roadtrip resumes. In Rochester, we are proud to boast that there has never been an advertised game without at least one Knighthawks fan in attendance. From Moline, IL to Charlotte, NC there has always been Knighthawks fans there to cheer on our guys.
READ MORE »

NLL Insider, The Ballers

Opening Night

I don’t think that I could have scripted a more perfect way to ring in the 2007/2008 National Lacrosse League season if I had written the schedule myself. Not only do we get to travel to my favorite U.S. city but we get to battle our beloved Mammoth in front of 18 or 19,000 crazy fans screaming obscenities at us.

Let’s not forget about the couple of guys that always seem to end up right behind our bench spewing verbal diarrhea for sixty straight minutes. Reminding me and my teammates how much we suck and pointing out each of our mistakes for us. I love those guys!!

READ MORE »

NLL Insider

NLL Insider Picks: Week One

With the opening of the season at hand, the Insiders have been hard at work cutting up film and analyzing all the angles in tomorrow’s Colorado-Calgary matchup. There’s only one game on the docket, and the Insiders like the Mammoth.

Here are this week’s Staff Picks: READ MORE »

The Buzz

Time to get down to business!

So I have just spent the last few days enjoying time with friends and family, stuffing my face with delicious homemade turkeys with all the fixings and, if you are like me, a fair share of Christmas libations. But starting today it’s nothing but business for all 12 teams!

Wednesday was a yearly tradition: Boxing Day, while watching the future of Canadian hockey open the World Junior Hockey Championships. With a dominating win over the host Czech Republic, 3-0, the game gave us a glimpse of the next one, 17-year-old John Tavares. He scored two goals in his first tournament, showing the world he can play on the big stage. Ironically enough, in a few weeks, Uncle John Tavares will be taking his step on the big stage as he gets set to break the all time goals mark in the Bandits’ first two games, a huge opening home-and-home against I-90 rivals, Rochester Knighthawks.

READ MORE »

InsideLacrosse.com Video

Colorado Mammoth- Westward Success

This weekend, the 2008 NLL season begins in a city that has become an unlikely success. The Pepsi Center in Colorado will be rocking with some of the best fans in the league, creating an atmosphere that is unlike any other. Inside Lacrosse on ESPN produced a piece about the Colorado Mammoth and how they have become so successful out west for our TV show last year.

We take a look at the road the franchise went through before finally landing in Colorado, including Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Washington. We get the players’ views of the city and fans. And we get a financial history of the franchise from President/GM Steve Govett.

Take a look at the feature segment below-

NLL Insider

Shanny’s Opening Game Breakdown.

 What a great way to start the NLL season. The Rocky Mountain Rivals, the Colorado Mammoth facing the Calgary Roughnecks. These teams have had many monumental battles over the past 5 years. Including the playoffs, they have played each other 15 times, with Colorado winning 8 times to Calgary’s 7.  Its also interesting to note that the only two times they have met in the playoffs, the victor has gone on to win the NLL championship.

Before I give my predictions let me give my disclaimer. Don’t blame me for jinxing your team when I pick you to win.  While no NLL coach  has ever tried to sway me to predict good things for his  team I’ve had some ask me to “dis” their team. Coaches love the “nobody gave us a chance” speech. Over the years I’ve had players thank me for picking them to lose. I thought the Calgary Roughnecks were going to give me a Championship ring in 2004 when I predicted them to lose each week in their playoff run. And please remember when I “pick” a team to win, I am  not “voting for” or “cheering” for that team. Of course I will give you an “I told you so” now and again (I picked Rochester last year) but there is so much parity in the NLL that a coin flip would probably do as well as any “expert”.
READ MORE »

The Beat

Friday’s Scouting Report

Here’s a scouting report I recently received on the season opener between Calgary and Colorado. It’s from a reliable source who knows both teams well… READ MORE »

The Life

Your Insider guide to a Colorado road trip

As one of the greatest sports cities in North America with one of the top teams in the NLL, Denver, Colorado has certainly earned its spot on the lacrosse roadtripper’s wish list. Whether you’re heading into town to cheer on the Mammoth boys or to try and drown out 18,000 fans in the stands with nothing but a visiting team jersey and an improbable dream, NLLinsider–with the help of Colorado’s captain–has the scoop on where you’ll want to go, what you’ll want to do, and how to increase your chances of spotting Gavin Prout around town.

Your ultimate destination:
The Pepsi Center, home of the Mammoth and their faithful, is conveniently located in the middle of Denver’s major metro area. I know this must be a very exciting and confusing time for anyone who has ever made their way to an Arizona Sting game so read on for directions. The arena is next to the I-25 and has two main entrances: Speer Boulevard and Chopper Circle, and 7th Street and Auraria Parkway. The Pepsi Center website informs me that from the I-25 North you’ll want to take the Speer Boulevard South exit 212 A. At the second stop light, turn right onto Chopper Circle.

READ MORE »

The Buzz

Locked and loaded in Denver

Mammothlogo

Bob McMahon is really liking the Christmas present he got in Denver.

“This is probably the most talented team I’ve seen in the league in the last six or seven years,” says the coach of the Mammoth, who open their NLL season Saturday night against the Calgary Roughnecks.

Denver’s first-year coach told The Denver Post of the expectations he’s put on himself and his team, which he expects to see atop the West Division.

In other news:
Big challenges for big names: The Canadian Press
Mammoth reach radio deal: Rocky Mountain News
Cordingley making the adjustment: The Mississauga News

NLL Insider

Brett Bucktooth injury update

NLLInsider.com received confirmation from Buffalo Bandits’ Head Coach & GM Darris Kilgour that the injury that has put sophomore forward Brett Bucktooth on the physically unable to play list is not as serious as was first reported.

Bucktooth, who actually played injured for much of his rookie campaign, is currently expected to make a return to the starting lineup either during the Bandits’ opening weekend (Jan. 11 & 12), which sees them battlling Rochester twice in a home-and-home series, or the week after when Buffalo hosts New York (Jan. 12). Whatever his return date actually ends up being, he is at most only going to miss a small handful of games. READ MORE »