Rush's relocation, Evans trade highlight NLL season preview

The 2016 National Lacrosse League season kicks off Friday in Colorado as the Mammoth host the recently-relocated Georgia Swarm. The 2015 season saw an emotional end as the Edmonton Rush (now Saskatchewan Rush) claimed their first Champion’s Cup over the Toronto Rock before leaving town for Saskatoon. Here’s a team-by-team look at what this season has in store.

You can watch every game streamed at TSN.ca and catch some all-Canadian matchups on TSN throughout the season. 

 

Toronto Rock

Last Season: 14-4, first in East, lost in Champion’s Cup final

It was an emotional 2015 for the Rock. General manager Terry Sanderson passed away a month before the season and captain Colin Doyle missed 17 games with injury. Josh Sanderson took over as captain and led the team to a first-place regular season finish and a Champion’s Cup appearance. Doyle is back at the age of 38, but Sanderson is starting the season on the PUP list, while he ponders his future on the floor.

Players to watch:

Rob Hellyer

After a breakout season in 2014, Hellyer managed to score 90 points in just 14 games last season. He was second in team scoring behind Sanderson and only took one penalty. The 23-year-old forward looks to continue his education under veterans like Doyle and Kasey Beirnes to keep his young career growing.

Brett Hickey

Amazingly, it took the Rock until last season to have a 50-goal scorer on the roster. Hickey managed the feat, producing a career season. After scoring five goals in nine games over three seasons with the Stealth in Washington and Vancouver, Hickey came out of nowhere to be the fourth-leading goal-scorer in the NLL. Without Doyle and Garrett Billings in 2015, Hickey’s performance was key to the Rock’s first-place finish.

Stephan LeBlanc

Without Sanderson and with an aging Doyle on the Rock’s left side offence, LeBlanc may be Toronto’s best southpaw option. The Dundas, Ont., native has scored 30 goals in four of his first six seasons and will see heavy minutes in Sanderson’s absence this year.

Key Offseason Transactions: Traded F Kevin Crowley to the New England for F Dan Lintner and a 2016 second-round pick, F Josh Sanderson placed on physically unable to perform list

 

Saskatchewan Rush (formerly Edmonton Rush)

Last season: 13-5, first in West, won Champion’s Cup

It’s not too often a team wins the championship and leaves town, but that’s exactly what the Rush did, moving from Rexall Place in Edmonton to the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon. The new fans have plenty to cheer about as their new team defends the Champion’s Cup with a stellar team on the floor. The Rush posted the NLL’s best offence and second best defence last season and return their entire team in 2016.

Players to watch:

Mark Matthews

At the age of 25, the 6-foot-5 sniper with an ability to run like a spooked deer might be the NLL’s next great player. Matthews was second in points last season before leading the Rush offence to playoff glory, scoring 13 goals & 14 assists in 5 postseason games. He should be in the running for NLL MVP this season and truly is one of the most exciting players in the world.

Chris Corbeil

Known for his aggressive loose ball pick-ups, toughness and leadership, the captain of the defending NLL champs has the full respect of his teammates and opponents. Corbeil is a tenacious defender and adds a touch of offence in the transition game, using his 6-foot-3 frame to shut down attackers and force turnovers.

Aaron Bold

Alongside Rochester’s Matt Vinc, Bold has been among the NLL’s top goaltenders for years. The Victoria, B.C., native has the luxury of a stellar defensive group playing in front of him, led by Corbeil, that helped him play the most minutes, register the most wins and have the best goals-against average in 2015.

Key Offseason Transactions: Moved from Edmonton to Saskatoon

 

Rochester Knighthawks

Last season: 12-6, second in East, lost in Division finals

The Knighthawks were a 10-minute tiebreaker game away from their fourth straight trip to the Champion’s Cup, but the Toronto Rock crushed that dream and sent them back to Rochester. With basically no off-season moves, the Knighthawks are sticking with a roster that won three straight Champion’s Cups and had the NLL’s number one defence in 2015.

Players to watch:

Cody Jamieson

Jamieson stepped off the floor and behind the bench in the summer as a member of the Iroquois Nationals’ coaching staff at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships. After finishing second in rookie scoring in 2011, Jamieson has been the offensive leader for the Knighthawks along with Dan Dawson. His 92 points in 2015 was tenth best in the NLL.

Dan Dawson

Dangerous Dan is back for more. The 34-year-old forward won gold as one of Canada’s most senior members at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships this summer and he’s back with his trademark size and awesome athleticism. Dawson scored 85 points last season and another 13 in four playoff games.

Matt Vinc

For the third year in a row, Vinc led the NLL in save percentage and claimed his fifth goaltender of the year award. The 33-year-old has been one of the league’s most consistent players for almost a decade. You can count on him to be solid behind a veteran team and be a key to Rochester’s attempt at reclaiming the Champion’s Cup.

Key Offseason Transactions: drafted D Graeme Hossack, drafted D Adam Bomberry

 

Buffalo Bandits

Last season: 11-7, third in East, lost in first round

It’s a new era in Buffalo. All-time everything leader John Tavares called it quits this off-season at the age of 46 after spending every season with the Bandits since their inception in 1992. With three players finishing among the top seven NLL scorers last season and the East division’s best offence, the Bandits are in good hands.

Players to watch:

Ryan Benesch

In the first eight seasons of his career, Benesch broke the 35-goal mark once. In 2015, he scored a league-best 55. The late career breakout is just in time for Tavares’s departure and for a spot on team Canada at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships this summer. It took a little while longer than he expected, but Benesch is becoming known as one of the game’s best.

Dhane Smith

With established veterans like Benesch and Steenhuis around him, the 6-foot-3 23-year-old is a ray of youth in the Bandits’ locker room. Size, speed, skill, athleticism; Smith is the whole package and you can expect him among the NLL’s leading scorers again in 2016 after 107 points in 2015.

Mark Steenhuis

Known for his curly orange hair flowing out the back of his helmet, Steenhuis is one of the most versatile players in the league thanks to his speed and explosiveness. The St. Catharines, Ont., native scored 95 points last season, but a torn ACL in June caused him to miss the summer season with the Peterborough Lakers (Major Series Lacrosse). It may take some time to work back to his usual productive self.

Key Offseason Transactions: F John Tavares retired, signed F Daryl Veltman

 

Colorado Mammoth

Last season: 9-9, second in West division, lost in first round

With the clock ticking on 41-year-old living legend John Grant Jr., the Mammoth will be pushing to not just make the playoffs, but win a championship while the face of their franchise can still lead them to the promise land. A .500 record was good enough to make the playoffs last season, but the eighth first-round exit in nine years wasn’t good enough for Colorado.

Players to watch:

John Grant Jr.

Arguably the greatest offensive lacrosse player of all time, Grant put up an impressive 91 points last season at age 40, passing Gary Gait as the NLL’s second all-time leading goal scorer. You can count on him to do everything he can to get the ball in the net, but after 15 seasons, he can’t do it all on his own anymore.

Adam Jones

Last season, Jones joined Grant Jr. among the NLL’s scoring leaders with an impressive 51 goals in 16 games; third most in the league and number one in goals per game. Jones uses his small size, great speed, and anticipation to find space in shooting lanes and nail the clutch shots. He and Grant Jr. form one of the deadliest left sides in lacrosse.

Key Offseason Transactions: signed F Callum Crawford, signed D Greg Downing, D John Gallant retired

 

Calgary Roughnecks

Last season: 7-11, third in West division, lost in division finals

The biggest news on the Calgary turf this off-season is the departure of reigning MVP Shawn Evans. Veteran faceoff specialist Geoff Snider, 30-year-old forward Daryl Veltman, and 33-year-old defenders Jeff Moleski and Andrew McBride all left the franchise for various reasons. But the Roughnecks didn’t come away empty-handed. Six-foot-three 245-pound forward Tyler Digby and rookie forward Wes Berg will look to replace Evans alongside leading goal-scorer Curtis Dickson.

Players to watch:

Curtis Dickson

Last season, Dickson and Evans were one of the most dynamic offensive duos, combining for 227 points in 18 regular season games.  The 27-year-old, known for his combination of size and skill, notched his third straight 40-goal season in 2015. With Evans gone to New England, Dickson will be the face of the franchise in 2016.

Tyler Digby

Coming over from the Black Wolves in the Evans trade, Digby provides a presence on the floor quite unlike the man he’s replacing. While Evans stands 5-foot-9, Digby towers over him at 6-foot-3, but watching the big man beat opponents with his impressive stick skills is a thing of beauty that will help Calgary fans forget the highlight-reel goals of Evans.

Wesley Berg

Along with fellow top-10 pick Reilly O’Connor, Berg will have high expectations in his rookie season as they try to replace the offence of Evans and Veltman. The 22-year-old New Westminster, B.C., native scored 188 goals in 73 career games at the University of Denver.

Key Offseason Transactions: F Shawn Evans traded to New England for F Tyler Digby and two first-round picks, F Daryl Veltman signed with Buffalo, D Jeff Moleski signed with Vancouver, T Geoff Snider released, D Andrew McBride retired

 

Georgia Swarm (formerly Minnesota Swarm)

Last season: 6-12, fourth in East division, did not qualify for playoffs

Georgia may not be the most traditional of box lacrosse markets, but the Swarm is chalked full of traditional lacrosse stars. Moving from St. Paul, Minn., to Duluth, Ga., (a suburb of Atlanta), the Swarm will be led by a group of young First Nations players who led the Iroquois Nationals to a second-place finish at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships in the summer.

Players to watch:

Johnny Powless

The 22-year-old forward was nominated for the 2014 Lou Marsh Award as Canada’s top athlete, but had a bit of a down year in 2015, scoring 40 points in 17 games while splitting time between Vancouver and Minnesota. Powless won three titles in his first three seasons and Georgia will look for that experience to lead them to a playoff appearance.

Lyle Thompson

Drafted first overall in this year’s entry draft, Lyle joins his brother Miles in Georgia after leading the Iroquois nationals in goals at the WILC. Along with Powless, his brother Miles, and fellow rookie Randy Staats, who lead Iroquois in points at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships, Lyle will have a rookie season to watch.

Key Offseason Transactions: Traded F Logan Schuss to Vancouver for F Johnny Powless , Traded F Shane MacDonald to New England for D Drew Petkoff, Signed head coach Ed Comeau, drafted F Lyle Thompson, F Randy Staats

 

Vancouver Stealth

Last season: 5-13, fourth in West division, did not qualify for playoffs

The Stealth ended their 2015 campaign by trading 2014 Lou Marsh Award nominee Johnny Powless to the Swarm for former first overall pick Logan Schuss. The team followed that move in the off-season by acquiring local boy Garrett Billings, who held out from the Rock last season before being traded to New England. After winning the title in 2010 (as the Washington Stealth), the team hasn’t reached the postseason

Players to watch:

Garrett Billings

The Langley, B.C., native sat out the first half of the 2015 season in a contract dispute with Toronto before being dealt for Kevin Crowley at the deadline and posting 36 points in eight games with the Black Wolves. The first player in league history to record three consecutive 100 point seasons and a  Champion’s Cup winner, the 29-year-old forward will be leaned on to lead his local team.

Rhys Duch

Duch put up a rookie-record 89 points in 2009 and hasn’t looked back. The 29-year-old Victoria, B.C., native had his best season in 2015, finishing fifth in league scoring with 41 goals and 62 assists. That made him the first player in the Stealth’s franchise to have a 100-point season since 2009.

Corey Small

At 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds, he lives up to his name in stature, but not on the scoresheet. The St. Catharines, Ont., native is one of the elite outside shooters in lacrosse. Small was traded from the Rush to Vancouver early last season and finished with 75 points, reaching the 30-goal mark for the first time in his five-year career. He and Duch are one of the elite lefty-righty combos in the NLL.

Key Offseason Transactions: Traded F Tyler Digby and a 2017 second round pick to New England for F Garrett Billings, Traded F Johnny Powless to Minnesota for F Logan Schuss

 

New England Black Wolves

Last season: 4-14, fifth in East division, did not qualify for playoffs

After finishing at the bottom in their inaugural season, the Black Wolves made big splashes in the off-season by trading for two-time NLL MVP Shawn Evans from Calgary, forward Kevin Crowley from Toronto, and hiring new head coach Glenn Clark. Expectations will be high for the former MVP to move New England out of the basement.

Players to watch:

Shawn Evans

The Peterborough, Ont., native asked for a trade to be closer to home in the off-season. Now he’s in Uncasville, Conn., with the NLL’s worst team from 2015 on a mission to turn it around. Evans is coming off his second NLL MVP award in three years and a record-setting season. The 29-year-old forward is the most talented attacker the New England crowd has had a chance to cheer for and he’s poised to give them plenty to be excited about.

Kevin Crowley

Crowley put up 52 points in 10 games for New England last season before joining Toronto at the trade deadline on the way to a Champion’s Cup final appearance. He’s back in Connecticut now with a new toy in Evans as well as some old one with Pat Saunders and the Buchanan boys rounding out the Black Wolves’ offence.

Evan Kirk

Despite allowing the second most goals in the NLL last year, New England was led by their goaltender who logged the fourth most minutes in the league behind a shaky defence. With the offseason additions and a bout of confidence from coach Clark, Kirk could provide be a big piece of this season

Key Offseason Transactions: Traded for F Shawn Evans from Calgary, Traded for F Kevin Crowley from Toronto, Signed F Garret Thul, Signed D Derek Suddons, D Mike Manley placed on PUP