NLL Insider

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Back in Ontario

I am back in Toronto for the 3^rd time this summer. I drove from Boston to Peterborough on Tuesday to catch game 6 of the OLA Finals. I think Google Maps said it would take 9 hours and 19 minutes, but I swear I was on the road for at least 11 hours.

I have been to a few rinks this summer, and without question Peterborough and Victoria are the most exciting to see a game. Tuesday night’s game was almost sold out at nearly 4,000 fans. Anthony Cosmo had a solid game in net for Brampton, while Blaine Manning stood out among an All-Star line up on the other end with 3 goals and 1 assist. READ MORE »

NLL Insider

Who’s In Who’s Out During NLL Off-Season

Kyle Laverty, who won the Champion's Cup last season with Buffalo, has already been picked up by Boston and then dealt to Rochester this off-season, his likely 2009 home. (Larry Palumbo)

We’re just over a week away from the NLL Entry Draft, where not only will a slew of pro up-and-comers get spread across the league’s 13 teams, but as always with this league, an array of deals involving current vets, usually high profile ball players, will no doubt have the switch flipped on ‘em too.

Actually, with the Arizona Sting re-Dispersal Draft and Boston’s Expansion Draft, which saw players swapped back-and-forth and everywhere else, the player movement before the Entry Draft this summer has been as fast and furious as the league has seen in quite awhile.

So, after the jump, check out the tic-tac-toe that’s already gone on this off-season and see what kinda player movement your crew has already gone through… READ MORE »

Road to the Mann Cup

One more game and then it’s showtime!

Well here we are! One game away from deciding the two combatants for the 2008 Mann Cup and it’s pretty obvious that this is exactly how the Ontario champs should be decided. For the third time in five years, the Peterborough Lakers and the Brampton Excelsiors are battling it out to face the B.C. champs in another much anticipated game 7 match up. Will the Lakers be able to win their 5^th straight MSL title? Or will the boys from Brampton make their first appearance at the Mann Cup since 2003? Regardless, if you are able to get to the game, I highly recommend that you do! READ MORE »

Road to the Minto Cup

Orangeville slips by Calgary 7-5 for a spot in finals

They had to do it in the closest game they’ve played yet at this Minto Cup tournament, but last night the Orangeville Northmen earned the spot in the finals that was expected of them with a 7-5 win over the Calgary Mountaineers.

“Full credit for the effort they put out there,” said Northmen head coach Matt Sawyer. “That was the best test we’ve had since we’ve been out here. Their goalie (Drew Dickie) was unbelievable. He stood on his head.” READ MORE »

Road to the Mann Cup, WLA

WLA: ‘Bellies are Ontario Bound

After finishing second in the Western Lacrosse Association (WLA) each of the previous two years, the Salmonbellies are finally headed to the big dance.

“Our goal is to win the Mann Cup,” added WLA Playoff MVP Ilija Gajic, after New Westminster captured the West title with a 4-0 series sweep of Coquitlam last Monday. “Winning this doesn’t mean anything.”

Winning the next best of seven series won’t be an easy task, however. READ MORE »

Ontario Junior A, Q&A

Zack Greer Q&A: Leaving Duke and heading for Bryant

Hey there indoor lax fans. Over on InsideLacrosse.com right now, we’ve got an exclusive Q&A with former Whitby Warrior/Duke Blue Devil Zack Greer. He talks about his time at Duke, how he explored playing hockey and lacrosse this year and how he landed at Bryant. It’s a good read, so check it out.

Inside Lacrosse: Zack Greer Q&A

NLL

Former Canadian Olympic boxer wants a team in Vancouver for 2011

Dale Walters is no stranger to sports in Canada, but he’s hoping to introduce himself to the world of box lacrosse.

The bronze-medal boxer from the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles tells The Province of Vancouver that he’s chasing a National Lacrosse League team to play out of Vancouver in 2011. Working with Geoff Hughes, the duo had its bid turned in to the NLL in June and is hoping to have plans finalized by the end of this year. “That gives us two full years to build the business, the team and get things going to enter the league in 2011,” Walters told The Province, adding that he’s eyeing the Pacific Coliseum as a home for the team.

• Knighthawks add Soudan, Cincebox to staff: Rochester D&C

NLL

Jeff Ratcliffe hangs ‘em up after pretty stellar pro career

First Jim Veltman had his going away tour during the 2008 season.

Then Pat Coyle decided to call it a career after the Mammoth touched down.

And now, the league is loosin’ another one of the guys that has played a pretty huge role in their history, former Philadelphia Wings, and more recently former New York Titans forward, Jeff Ratcliffe, who late last week made his retirement official.

Ratcliffe, one of the second generation (or third generation depending on how you shake that tree out) Canucks that stormed the NCAA ranks during a successful career at UMBC in the late 90’s, was a fourth overall selection in the 2000 NLL Entry Draft, of course going to the Wings, where he spent seven of his eight NLL seasons. READ MORE »

Major Series Lacrosse, Road to the Mann Cup

MSL: Game 7 showdown in Brampton

So it’s come down to this. Which is nothing really new or surprising when it comes to a seven-game Major Series Lacrosse series against the Brampton Excelsiors and Peterborough Lakers.

The Excelsiors on Tuesday night outscored the Lakers 4-0 in the third period en route to an 11-7 Game 6 victory that ties the series, 3-3. So that leaves us with a Game 7 — for the third time in five seasons — set for Thursday night at 8 in Brampton to decide which OLA team is heading to the Mann Cup. And just because the game is in Brampton, don’t count out the Lakers. Two of their three of their wins in the series have come on the road, but their inability to defend the pick-and-roll Tuesday night is what doomed the squad. “They got three goals like that tonight and it hurt,” Peterborough coach Jamie Batley told the Peterborough Examiner.

Blaine Manning led the winners with three goals and Jeff Shatler added a pair. For a photo gallery of Game 6, check out what the Peterborough Examiner has up on its Web site.

Road to the Minto Cup

Miners loss is Mountaineers gain as Victoria bumps Edmonton from Minto

Last night the Edmonton Miners had one last shot to get one more chance at the 2008 Minto Cup, and perhaps had it been a made-for-TV movie it would have turned out a little differently but as it was the Victoria Shamrocks blew by the Miners 11-5, handing them their third loss of the tournament and eliminating them from semi-final contention.

“The hardest part is saying goodbye to 12 hard-working young men that gave it their all for their last three or four years with the organization,” said Edmonton head coach AJ Jomha. “And not reaching the goals that we’d hoped to reach.” READ MORE »