NLL Insider

Previous to 2008, Lewis Ratcliff had beefed up his stats every year since entering the bigs in 2003 (45-71-86-91-104-92).

It was a steady progression until last season, when Ratcliff fell short of the ridiculous 104 points he posted in 2007. In his defense however, not only is 104 a tough nut to crack every winter, he wasn’t exactly finding himself in the healthiest of O situations either. 

Ratcliff played 12 games in 2008 for a Calgary team that was hampered by the loss of captain Tracey Kelusky and keeper Steve Dietrich, both sidelined with concussions, and an offense that struggled to find its groove with high profile healthy scratches sending fans into a rage mid-season. Although Ratcliff played well, it wasn’t the same kinda environment that saw him post close to 200 points over the previous two seasons in Alberta, and at times it showed.

The former WLA MVP and Mann & Champion’s Cup winner then found himself in an offense that was struggling even more than the one he left in Calgary, that of course being Toronto after being dealt in a blockbuster swap for Josh Sanderson. Again, Ratcliff himself posted some decent digits, including seven goals in his last two games of the year, but the Rock themselves were drowning in inconsistency as they went from a post-season sure thing to one of last winter’s biggest busts.

Ratcliff is currently running on a 47-game consecutive goal streak (playoffs included), dating back to the 2006 season when he was held scoreless against Arizona in a 11-10 loss for the Necks. Since then however, it’s been next to impossible to put a leash on him.

After his five starts in Toronto, where he averaged 5.6 points per game, Lewis went on to tackle double duty in the summer, scoring a very impressive 23 goals in only 11 starts with the MLL’s San Fran Dragons, ranking him second on the team in goals behind only new Rock teammate, Bill McGlone (25 G… and trust us Rock fans, you are gonne love this guy).

Ratcliff also tossed up 56 points in only 11 games with the Victoria Shamrocks, by far the West’s best points per game average, which woulda had him at 91 points had he played in all 18 of Victoria’s games. 91 also woulda easily won him the scoring crown too.

With the Rock looking better than they have in years and an offense that now has several guys that can pick up the slack on any given night, what kinda digits will Ratcliff, who is living in TO during the NLL season, post this winter? With 89 total goals scored in 2008, 2009 could be one helluva year for one of the sport’s most natural and gifted goal scorers.

Does Ratcliff belong in the NLL Insider Top 50? Hit the boards and let us know what your Top 50 looks like heading into the 2009 NLL season…

#50 Matt Roik, San Jose Stealth
#49 Jon Sullivan, Minnesota Swarm
#48 Billy Dee Smith, Buffalo Bandits
#47 Steve Toll, Rochester Knighthawks
#46 Jarett Park, New York Titans
#45 Bruce Murray, Colorado Mammoth
#44 Shawn Evans, Rochester Knighthawks
#43 Peter Lough, Toronto Rock
#42 Matt Vinc, New York Titans
#41 Jeff Shattler, Calgary Roughnecks
#40 Craig Point, Minnesota Swarm
#39 Scott Ranger, Calgary Roughnecks
#38 Brian Langtry, Colorado Mammoth
#37 Sean Pollock, Minnesota Swarm
#36 Jake Bergey, Boston Blazers
#35 Pat O’Toole, Rochester Knighthawks
#34 Kyle Sweeney, Philadelphia Wings
#33 Luke Wiles, Toronto Rock
#32 Ryan Boyle, New York Titans
#31 Chris White, Buffalo Bandits
#30 Jordan Hall, New York Titans
#29 Shawn Nadelen, Philadelphia Wings
#28 Cam Woods, Toronto Rock
#27 Mike Accursi, Buffalo Bandits
#26 Dan Carey, Colorado Mammoth
#25 Pat Maddalena, New York Titans
#24 Andy Secore, Edmonton Rush
#23 Ryan Ward, Minnesota Swarm
#22 Tracey Kelusky, Calgary Roughnecks
#21 Josh Sanderson, Calgary Roughnecks
#20 Shawn Williams, Rochester Knighthawks
#19 Blaine Manning, Toronto Rock
#18 Nick Patterson, Minnesota Swarm
#17 Eric Martin, San Jose Stealth
#16 Scott Evans, Rochester Knighthawks
#15 Scott Self, Edmonton Rush
#14 Anthony Cosmo, Boston Blazers
#13 Geoff Snider, Philadelphia Wings
#12 Lewis Ratcliff, Toronto Rock

Hit this link for NLL Insider’s Top 50 archive and keep checkin’ back every week as we countdown the top 50 best in the pro game, with #1 being named just before the NLL season kicks off.

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