NLL Insider

So what do you call the players on a lacrosse team who stand 6-foot-10, 6-8, 6-6 and 6-5? Well, “sir” would be a safe start.

But for our purposes, we’ll call ‘em the Portland LumberJax and lest you’re fooled by that 6-10 record they sported during the regular season last year, you can’t be anymore. Sure, the 1-5 start to last season didn’t really open eyes, and even the 5-5 mark the rest of the season didn’t really scare anyone. But they did enough to get into the playoffs and when they did, they won a pair of games to land in the National Lacrosse League title game, where they came up just a bit short against the Buffalo Bandits. But you know what they say about success. Get a taste of it and you want it even more.

So that’s what’s on the mind of these LumberJax as they get ready for 2009, but they’re gonna have to chase down that success without the services of one of the game’s most dominant forces in Dan Dawson.

Gone is Dawson, who’s in Boston now thanks to the expansion draft, but general manager/coach Derek Keenan has all the confidence in the world that last year’s run to the title game has left enough of a residue with the returning Jax to keep that fire lit.

“We kind of finished last year the way I thought we should have been playing all season,” Keenan says. “Now we need to build on that, but we have a huge hole to fill with Dawson gone.”

Dawson posted 81 points in the regular season, but he was lights out in the playoffs. In three games, he poured in an amazing 31 points with 15 goals and 16 assists. Keenan’s right when he says you don’t just replace those numbers with another player and there’s no doubt the Jax will miss Dangerous Dan.

“There’s a lot of very good players in our league but the difference between them and the superstars is that they make your whole team better,” Keenan says. “With Dan, it was never about how many goals or points he gets. He helped everyone on the floor.”

That job now falls on Ryan Powell. RP was No. 2 on the team with 20 playoff points and 64 during the regular season. He’ll have plenty of help on offense with Derek Malawsky back on the floor, along with  Peter Jacobs, who turns all of 19 in November and excels in his off-ball game. Another youngster, 20-year-old Cory Conway got some valuable Minto Cup experience over the summer, and top draft pick Tim Campeau is expected to contribute right away, says Keenan. A trade with Edmonton brings another producer for the offense in Matt Brown.

The Jax have also added veteran Dan Stroup to the lineup. Stroup scored 21 goals for Edmonton last season and “he’ll come in and give us some veteran leadership on the right side,” says Keenan.

Still, RP’s gonna be the unquestioned leader for this offense and it’s not just a name game.

“He loves the game,” says Keenan. “He’s learned how to play the indoor game and he’s always trying to do things that make him better. He knows how to drive to the cage, so he’s worked on his perimeter shot. He takes a lot of pride in his game and he’s always asking and wanting to learn.”

Getting the ball up top shouldn’t be a problem with the fella named Brodie Merrill. We all know that transition game and what it’s capable of. His 211 loosies last season surprised no one, but it’s his work on the back end that allows guys like Richard Morgan, David Morgan, Scott Stewart, Pat Jones and Tyler Codron to lock thing up on defense.

“Stewart is probably the most naturally gifted athlete in the league,” says Keenan. “He’ll be busy on both ends of the floor for us. Pat Jones is a stay-at-home defender for us and Codron is a great athlete, too. He was a defensive back in football and has great feet. He’s such a great defender and that allows Brodie more freedom because we always give him the top defensive assignment.”

Bringing the ball into Portland’s back end can be downright scary. The goal is set with Matt Disher being backed by Joel Weber and Dallas Eliuk, but remember the whole size thing we mentioned earlier? Specifically, that would be a reference to David Morgan (6-10), Richard Morgan (6-8) and Peter Morgan (6-6), who sees more time up front as a forward. Still, that leaves 6-5 Bruce Alexander and Merrill at 6-4. That’s a tall forest to run your two-man game through.

Still, the Jax had that same kinda lineup last year and the size didn’t always translate to success, at least during the regular season. That’s what has got to change this season, says Keenan. Specifically, more home wins would be nice. The squad was 3-5 at home and 3-5 on the road, but the home victories are what’s gonna get the right kind of momentum.

“We have to establish an identity early,” Keenan says. “We’ve got to be grinding and scoring in transition and on special teams. We’ve gotta be good off the hop, not 9 or 10 games into the season.”

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