NLL Insider

So we got our first taste of the new National Lacrosse League season last weekend and what did we learn?

Casey Powell doesn’t need training camp. “Practice? We’re taking about practice?” Well, to be fair, we’re not gonna put the words of Allen Iverson in CP’s mouth, but dude more than proved he’s ready to go at the drop of a hat. We also learned that Kevin Croswell is a very capable goaltender for the Minnesota Swarm, the Buffalo Bandits are more than ready to defend their bling, the Portland LumberJax have some work to do on offense without Dan Dawson on the floor and the changes to the roster in Toronto are producing the kind of offense that was missing the last season or two.

So what’s up for this weekend, the first full weekend of games for the new season? Read on and find out what the league’s coaches had to say as they got together for the league’s weekly conference call. It includes talk of whether or not the much-hyped American rookies (Matt Danowski and Paul Rabil) will be in uniform.

Colorado at Portland, 10:30 p.m. (EST) Friday
Portland at Colorado, 9 p.m. Saturday

The Mammoth are bursting with eagerness to get their new look on the floor, while the LumberJax are eager to get back on the floor to fix the problems they saw in last week’s opening loss to Minneosta.

“You can practice all you want,” says Colorado coach Bob McMahon. “But for the new players, the noise and the speed of the game can’t be duplicated in practice. So that scrimmage we had was helpful.”

Both ends of the floor are in good hands for the Mammoth, with Dan Carey, Brian Langtry and Gavin Prout handling the O. Jed Prossner is adapting to his new role as a transition leader to replace the retired Josh Sims, and Gee Nash anchors the back end in goal with a steady corps in front of him. But the biggest question mark for the Mammoth and fans around the league is how much to expect from rookie Danowski. He’s the heralded rookie coming outta Duke and while his field game is unquestioned, how’s he coming along in the box?

“He’s getting better and better with each shift,” McMahon said. “He’s eliminating the things he got away with on the field. He’s renowned as an exceptional feeder and he’s learning to do that in the tight quarters.”

For the LumberJax, coach Derek Keenan says there’s some cleaning up to do.

“We were sloppy with our shooting and finishing,” he said of last week’s opener. “We looked like a team that hadn’t played a game in eight months.”

Better shot selection and better execution of opportunities when they’re presented is a matter of getting into game-shape and Keenan’s confident that’ll come together this weekend. If it doesn’t come together Friday, the Jax will get another shot to clean it up the next night in Colorado for the second game of the home-and-home series.

Calgary at San Jose, 10:30 p.m. (EST) Friday

Lots of new faces on both benches for this opener for both squads, but the biggest question has gotta be if Paul Rabil will be running with the Stealth.

“He’s got a couple of practices in,” said new Stealth coach Jeff Dowling. “I’d say there’s a good chance he’ll be in the lineup, but I can’t say for sure.”

Either way, the Stealth have a pretty healthy offense with Colin Doyle, Jeff Zywicki and Rhys Duch. “We’ll be very spread out with our offense,” Dowling said. “We’ll move the ball and be very unselfish. We’ve got a lot of 2-man and 3-man and off-ball stuff. No one on our team needs to take that 15 shots a game.”

Calgary assistant Dave Pym says the Roughnecks will have a good idea of what to expect. Dowling and his assistant, Chris Hall, spent time in Calgary so the Roughies hope that plays into their hands defensively.

Buffalo at Toronto, 7 p.m. Saturday

It’s a battle of East Division heavyweights and the Rock proved in last week’s win over New York that they’ll bring a new offense that can finish. Besides the six points, new addition Luke Wiles gave the Rock what they’re looking for: size, athleticism and creativity on offense. “He gives us that big shot and opens space for Blaine Manning (the NLL’s Overall Player of the Week with seven points, including the game-winner),” said Toronto coach Glenn Clark. “We needed guys who were more creative.”

And speaking of offense, Ryan Benesch was a healthy scratch last weekend and isn’t guaranteed a roster spot this weekend, either. Clark says evaluations are done during practice and since the team practices Wednesday nights, nothing’s been decided roster-wise for the visit from the Bandits.

Bandits coach Darris Kilgour said his team’s win last weekend against the Philadelphia Wings was “the most professional and under-control game” he’s seen his team play. Keeping their wits about them will be key against the Rock, a team that’s won four straight against the Bandits. Oddly enough, as dominant as Buffalo has been in recent seasons, the Bandits have not beaten Toronto since early in the 2006 season.

Boston at New York, 7:30 p.m. Saturday

There’s plenty of adrenaline among the Blazers to on the floor and it’s not so much getting ready for the Titans that’s challenging Boston. It’s getting themsleves ready. Coach Tom Ryan says his focus has been on getting his squad ready, but some early scrimmages against the Titans have helped. Having Dan Dawson and goalie Anthony Cosmo in the lineup is something he hopes will help offset the eagerness of the young guns.

Ed Comeau says it’s tough to view Boston as an expansion team with the likes of Dawson and Cosmo. Getting a win against Boston is important, he says, because the last thing he wants to do is fall into an 0-2 hole in the East Division after last weekend’s loss to Toronto. Powell, the NLL’s Offensive Player of the Week after his 10-point performance in Week 1, certainly will help.

San Jose at Minnesota, 8 p.m. Saturday

Minnesota coach Duane Jacobs was happy to see goalie Croswell, the league’s Defensive Player of the Week with 42 saves, fill in the way he did in last week’s win over Portland, but what he’s enjoying even more is watching the relationship up top of Ryan Ward and Sean Pollock. They’re giving the Swarm an excellent 1-2 punch. “Ryan is more the skilled player with the outside shot, while Sean gives us tremendous grit and inside play. The way they complement each other is a natural fit.” The duo combined for 10 of Minnesota’s 31 points.

Dowling, while confident with his spread-out and unselfish offense, says he’ll be on guard for what he says is a very underrated Minnesota defense.

Philadelphia at Rochester, 8:05 p.m. Saturday

The Wings discovered just how tough the offense will come without Athan Iannucci in the lineup, but is playing your opener against perhaps the league’s best defense a fair gauge? Maybe, maybe not. But the challenge for coach Dave Huntley and the Wings in Week 2 is solving the mystery that is the revolving roster of the Rochester Knighthawks.

New Rochester coach Paul Gait is trying to implement a system that is without the injured John Grant Jr. and Scott Evans, so his focus has been on finding the structure up top and in the transition game. “We’re not exactly sure what we’ve got yet,” said Gait, whose had a little more than two weeks on the job. Having brother Gary Gait will help ease the loss of Grant and Evans on offense, but finding that effective transition game to get the ball up top presents a hurdle to clear.

Gait says he’s not so worried about devising his own game plan as he is trying to find the winning formula. He’s relying on his experience with past championship teams and what’s worked there. As for Huntley and the Wings, he’s hoping to avoid having the pace of the game dictated to him like it went down in Buffalo last week. “We just have to worry about the Wings,” he said.

Edmonton at Calgary, 9 p.m. Saturday

If ever a team defines a busy off-season, it’s the Edmonton Rush. Coach Bob Hamley has been a monster on the phone phone since taking over the team midway through last season. So as the 2009 season approaches, he’s amped. He’s well aware of the pressure to win in Edmonton, too, and is confident the offensive struggles have been addressed.

“We’re gonna do it by committee,” he said. “Andy Secore is a great passer with great vision, but we’re also gonna have to create our opportunities.”

Hamley said Secore is healthy and ready to roll, but the team will definitely miss the stick of Lindsay Plunkett. He called Hamley on New Year’s Eve and said his involvement with the team will be limited, if not non-existent, because of a job back East. It requires him to work weekends, so he’s on the hold-out list but Hamley is hopeful Plunkett will be able to make some games once he’s more established at the job.

As for the ‘Necks, Pym knows exactly what kind of team is coming to Calgary. “Bob is an extremely competitive guy and that’ll come out in his players,” he said. The ‘Necks hope to have more consistency on both ends of the floor but the one thing he’s NOT concerned about is Tracey Kelusky. TK is healthy again after some concussion issues in 2008 and “we don’t have to challenge Tracey,” said Pym. “He challenges himself and he’s looking forward to quieting some of people who questioned if he can still play.”

Rate This Story:

(+61 rating, 13 votes)

 Loading ...