Scott Stewart and his transition to transition
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Photo Credit: Cory Shannon
“Well, yeah it kind of frustrates me because at the beginning of my career I sort of started off as the guy in the headlines and then I stepped back and took on a different role,” he says. “To go from a goal-scorer to a guy who does more than scoring goals…you never get any credit for it, really.”
Frustrating or not, Stewart didn’t hesitate to slide into an entirely new role with the Portland Lumberjax. Head coach Derek Keenan didn’t hesitate to put him there. Stewart has now gone from goal-scorer to full-floor warrior, running end-to-end to dig out looseballs, push the transition, make big plays on the press and still occasionally employ his scoring touch. He became something that Dan Dawson last year labeled the X-factor.
“I remember exactly our conversation last year,” says Keenan. “We looked at his strengths and said we need to do something different with him, and he really welcomed it. He said he didn’t like the idea of just running out on the floor, doing 30 seconds of work and then coming off. He felt like he had more to bring to the table than that. He can run the floor like nobody else and he has the skills to be able to finish the transition, to make good plays and good decisions. I think his biggest challenge is defensively, and that’s a totally new adjustment for him and a new role.”
While Keenan is quick to sing Stewart’s praises, in February of 2006 he dealt Stewart to the Minnesota Swarm in exchange for Ryder Bateman. Before Stewart departed, Keenan challenged him to get into better shape. He went at it so hard that he’s now a certified personal trainer and in the best shape of his life.
“I hurt my knee because I was out of shape; I’d been taking it for granted,” Stewart says. “After that I kind of made it my goal to be in the best shape I could be. I do intervals and I do CrossFit, which I know John Tavares does. I actually went and got my papers to be a personal trainer, so I’ve kind of revolved my whole life around getting in shape.”
Stewart’s efforts didn’t go unnoticed, and when the opportunity for the Jax to reacquire him came up before the ’08 season, it wasn’t even a question. Though he may be flying under the radar these days, the Portland Lumberjax are acutely aware of his value, particularly in his new and improved everyman role.
“[His teammates] see what he does, the jaw-dropping things that he does with his athleticism,” says Keenan. “They definitely appreciate what he brings. They just know that there’s nobody else on our team who can do the type of things he does athletically, and that’s with Brodie Merrill on our team, if you can imagine that. He’s very much appreciated by our team, for sure.”
Ward began covering lacrosse for The Lacrosse Journal in 2005 and became its editor-in-chief a year later. Email her at lauren.ward@nllinsider.com.Rate This Story:
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