Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Lakers and Kodiaks complete four-player trade

Matt Crough is one of 3 Peterborough players headed to Cobourg in
exchange for Joel Matthews. (Photo: Tim Prothero)
The Cobourg Kodiaks have completed their first Major Series Lacrosse trade just days after moving from Kitchener-Waterloo. Cobourg sent righty forward Joel Matthews to their new Highway 28 rivals the Peterborough Lakers in exchange for a trio of young players. Right forward Matt Crough, lefty forward Dylan Goddard and defender Pete Rennie are headed to the Kodiaks. Peterborough had acquired Goddard recently from the Brampton Excelsiors for goalie Don Alton, whom they drafted last year but who never played for the team.

The trade gives the Lakers some size up front. Peterborough GM Paul Day is also a coach with the National Lacrosse League's Rochester Knighthawks, where Matthews plays in the winter. “We saw him play in Buffalo two years ago. He drove us nuts one night so as soon as he became available we grabbed him,” Day said of the KHawks acquiring Matthews.

Day has been impressed with how Matthews adapted to what was needed of him in the NLL and believes he will capably fill a similar role for the Lakers. “He's 24, you know he's just ready to make the next step, he works so hard on his fitness and his game,” Day said. “In junior he was a guy who carried the ball. Now he's a guy who words hard inside like a Cory Vitarelli for us, works off ball. Not many goal scorers will change their game. He's completely morphed his game. We need someone to open up some space for some of our O guys.”

Monday, January 25, 2016

Kodiaks moving from KW to Cobourg


The Kodiaks are starting a new chapter in their history and it will be written in Cobourg. The team, which debuted in Kitchener-Waterloo with a highly successful three-year Senior B run before moving up to Major Series Lacrosse in 2006, is heading to the Eastern Ontario city starting this summer after its proposal to move was approved by the MSL board at the draft meeting held on Sunday.


Owner Al Orth said the opportunity to move to Cobourg arose in discussions with the group that staged KW's “home” game in the city last summer, when about 1,800 fans showed up to see the Kodiaks play the Peterborough Lakers. Another game was being arranged for Cobourg this summer and the talks grew into a permanent move with a trio of co-owners coming aboard.

“I am really excited about the future for the Kodiaks in Cobourg,” Orth said. “The three new owners joining me are John Webb, Eric Graham and Chris Galbraith. They are great lacrosse people with diverse business backgrounds and a shared passion for the game. The tremendous fan support we experienced when we hosted a regular season game vs the Lakers last summer tells me the Kodiaks will be well supported in their new Cobourg home.”

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Major Series Lacrosse draft results

It's draft day in Major Series Lacrosse. Below is the order of the draft, which will be updated as selections are made starting shortly. Keep refreshing your browser to see who takes who once the draft gets underway.

Draft Order

Round 1
KW  John St. John, LF, Toronto Beaches
Brooklin  Daniel Craig, LF, Barrie Lakeshores
Brampton  Tyson Bell, LD, St. Catharines Athletics
KW  Adam Bomberry, LD, Akwesasne Indians Jr B
KW  Seth Oakes, RF, Akwesasne Indians Jr B
Oakville  Eric Fannell, LF, St. Catharines Athletics
Round 2
Brampton  Anthony Joaquim, LT, Toronto Beaches
Brooklin  Josh Johnson, LF, Six Nations Arrows
Brampton  Brooker Muir, LD, Brampton Excelsiors
Oakville  Doug Buchan, G, Burlington Chiefs
KW  Fred Hartley, LF, Gloucester Griffins Jr B
Oakville  Ryan Wagner, LT, Niagara Thunderhawks, Jr B
Round 3
Brampton  Darryl Robertson, RD, Whitby Warriors
Brooklin  Ryan McSpadyen, LT, Toronto Beaches
Brampton  Ty Carvalho, LF, St. Catharines Athletics
Oakville  Ryan Fournier, G, Orangeville Northmen
Brampton  Billy Saxton, D, St. Catharines Athletics
KW  Keegan Letourneau, LD, Six Mimico Mountaineers
Round 4
KW  Tyler Roche, LD, Peterborough Lakers
Brooklin  Austin Murphy, LF, Barrie Lakeshores
Brampton  Riley Campbell, RD, Peterborough Lakers
Oakville  Nicholas Beaudoin, RT, St. Catharines Athletics
Peterborough  Chad Levick, LF, Toronto Beaches
Six Nations  Greg Longboat, RD, Six Nations Arrows
Round 5
Peterborough  Zach Hopps, LF, Akwesasne Indians Jr B
Brooklin  Tanner Theede, D, Whitby Warriors
Oakville  Joe French, RF, Oakville Buzz Jr B
Brooklin  Ben Pitchforth, RD, Clarington Green Gaels Jr B
Peterborough  Ryan Lee, RF, Toronto Beaches
Six Nations  Andrew Kelly, LD, Barrie Lakeshores

Get ready for today's MSL draft, courtesy of IL Indoor

John St. John is the top graduating scorer available in the 2016 MSL draft.
(Photo: Tim Prothero)
The 2016 MSL draft is just hours away. With four graduating juniors protected by each team and the league's members boasting unprecedented depth, there aren't a lot of players available who are going to be able to make immediate impacts this summer. That doesn't mean there aren't some players who can help, though. 

The staff at IL Indoor have been preparing for the draft. Editor Stephen Stamp provides a run down of the top players available."Some of the most appealing players in the draft include: Akwesasne Jr B Indians defender Adam Bomberry and forward Seth Oakes; St. Catharines Athletics defender Tyson Bell; Six Nations Arrows forward Josh Johnson and defender Sawi Longboat; Toronto Beaches forwards Ryan Lee and John St. John; and Barrie Lakeshores forward Daniel Craig."

For Stamp's full report, click here

IL Indoor staffer Mike Mackley followed up with a look at the needs of each team and how they may address them at the draft. "With the Major Series Lacrosse draft on the schedule for Sunday afternoon, it's time to take a look at each team's needs heading into the 2016 season. In a draft that has some quality depth to it and some fairly high profile names, teams are sure to boost their depth, which will only raise the skill level across the league."

Read Mackley's full story here

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

MSL draft to take place Sunday January 24



Major Series Lacrosse's six teams will gather this Sunday, January 24 for their annual draft of graduating junior players. Each team is able to protect four players graduating from its affiliated team. The protected players from each club are listed below.

Six Nations Chiefs (junior affiliate: Six Nations Arrows)
Jordan Durston
Joseph Maracle
Leo Stouros
Shane Simpson

Peterborough Lakers (Peterborough Lakers)
Zach Currier
Holden Cattoni
Jake Withers
Bryce Sweeting

Brooklin Redmen (Whitby Warriors)
Austin Shanks
Ryan Keenan
Matt Hossack
Jordie Jones-Smith

Oakville Rock (Orangeville Northmen)
Ian MacKay
Brandon Clelland
Brandon Slade

Brampton Excelsiors (Brampton Excelsiors)
Philip Caputo
Zach Herreweyers
Quintan Martin

Kitchener-Waterloo Kodiaks (KW Braves)
Jake Pleon