NLL Insider

Casey Powell is currently on pace to hit 152Pts in 2009 (Photo: Dave Sanders)

Another new feature we’ll be posting on NLL Insider this season is our NLL Market Watch, a week-to-week look at whose stats went through the roof and which ones took a major hit.

It’ll all be based solely on stats, but not necessarily just the O ones, so we’ll also be including keepers, transitional guys and maybe even defenders.

So with two weeks in the books and a bunch of guys posting some insane numbers already, check out this week’s Bears and Bulls of the NLL, after the jump.

THE BULLS

+3.78PPG
After struggling for really any substantial minutes in Chicago last year, forward Kevin Ross, now a regular with the Minnesota Swarm, has increased his points per game average by almost a full four digits. He’s on pace for 80 points in his sophomore season and wasn’t even picked up in the Shamrox Dispersal Draft. The Swarm signed him after the Rox cut him loose earlier in the off-season… bonus!!

7Pts in 2 Games
Last year Dane Dobbie scored just seven points in five starts with the Calgary Roughnecks during his rookie year. This year, after the Necks’ double header season opening weekend, Dobbie has already matched those seven and looks to be a staple in Calgary’s rejigged O in 2009.

+6Pts versus Colorado (Part II)
Ryan Powell, most people’s pick to lead the Portland Lumberjax in scoring this year, was held pointless in the team’s opener last week against Minnesota and then scoreless this past Friday night against Colorado. Coming outta the Jax’s 12-10 loss against the Mammoth, Powell had zero goals on 18 totals shots. The next night, Powell took the proverbial bull by the horns and upped his game, scoring a hat-trick and also aiding on three others.

+2.71PPG
Sidelined partially due to a foot injury in 2008, Philadelphia Wings forward Drew Westervelt has almost equalled his entire 2008 point out-put (9Pts) in just two games with the Wings this year (8Pts). He also came away with the game winner in a high scoring affair against Rochester on the weekend. Westervelt is on pace to break the 60 point plateau in just his second year in the bigs.

Hat-Trick x2
Toronto Rock secondary scoring threat, Kasey Beirnes, has so far been the team’s most consistent offensive presence, averaging a hat-trick a game, after averaging less than a goal a game in 2008. Beirnes had just one hat-trick in all of 2008.

19Pts in 2 Games
With an insane 19Pts in just two games in 2009, New York power forward Casey Powell easily leads the league in scoring and is on pace for a record shattering 152 Pts this year (John Tavares currently holds the single season points record with 115). At this pace, he’d even top Athan Iannucci’s 71 goals from last year by a single. With the expansion Blazers on deck again this coming weekend, can he keep up this ridiculous level of play?

+5G
After being criticized online by the fans for his ten-shot-zero-goal performance in the Portland Lumberjax’s debut in 2009, Cory Conway took his game to another level in the Mammoth doubleheader, going off on one of last year’s best D’s with five goals and nine points in Week 2. Guessing this guy will be on everyone’s fantasy team by “yesterday”.

5G
Gary Gait with five goals in his return to the NLL. Not too shabby for a guy some have said only returned so the Hawks could sell more seats. Turns out he still has a few more legendary showings left in the tank.

THE BEARS

-9G
After scoring a combined ten goals in the New York win, the Toronto Rock’s big three on O; Blaine Manning, Lewis Ratcliff and Luke Wiles, had just a single goal in the Buffalo Bandits’ L at home in front of over 15K.

1 Goal in 2 Games
With Dan Carey back to 100% this year, many felt the Colorado Mammoth’s underachieving O was gonna do big things in 2009 with their stud sniper back. Carey had just one goal in the Mammoth’s home-and-home series against Portland on the weekend, with his crew down 12-1 at one point on Saturday night.

18.01GAA
Anthony Cosmo sits with maybe his most inflated GAA digits in his entire career after the Titans flirted with the 20-goal mark in the Blazers opening night loss.

0G
After averaging two goals per and close to 3.5 points per game in his explosive sophomore season with the Minnesota Swarm, Andy Secore was held scoreless against Calgary, but did post three helpers in the OT loss to the Necks.

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