“Now the Brine Edge looks like a shovel…” Classic! I also love how Crowley only gets a sponsor shout out in at the end, and really focuses on the key aspects of stick tech. Well done to all involved!

This week’s POTW comes to us from our usual suspect, Tommy Gilligan, who stood tall through these same elements to capture this great shot that just speaks to the competition going on in front of the lens.

Pure determination and dedication no matter what the element.

Have a photo you want to share with the lacrosse world? Drop it in our Tipline!

Photo Credit: Cecil Copeland

Sure, I can see how one win doesn’t mean that the Cannons are “back”, but if you look at the way they did it, you too may become a believer.

The Cannons have long had excellent leadership on the team, and their veteran players definitely brought it against Rochester. Ryan Boyle, Mitch Belisle, Paul Rabil, Matt Poskay and Kyle Sweeney all played with passion, and toughness, and their desire to win shone brightly when Charlotte got close late in the game, 9-7. Boston had been letting teams back in to games, but here they buckled down, and stuck it out.

Will Manny continued to look good, and his movement down to attack provided instant offense, and another dimension to their scoring. Manny should continue to put pressure on defenses, and this will only open up other players more, as the second half of the season rolls along.

Rabil played a lot more midfield, and even though his scoring went down, the TEAM looked much more dangerous. Drawing two defenders up to him allowed for the rest of the guys to get good looks, and Rabil was often assisting the assist. Mike Stone showed up in a big way, and that is not a coincidence. Stone is very talented, and becomes a huge threat when he is not the primary concern of the other team.

Defensively, the Cannons looked much better. They still extended out, and got burnt for goals at times, but more often than not, they were able to force dodgers into more predictable shots, and this resulted in some fantastic saves by Jordan Burke.

Kyle Sweeney and Brian Farrell continued to produce points with the longstick, and Scott Ratliff was tenacious when he played down low. His quick feet and active stick make him an exciting option for the rest of the year, and he fits the Cannons aggressive defensive system to perfection. Sweeney’s jumping takeaway on Matt Danowski was the best of the year. I re-wound the DVR and watched it at least 8 times.

But the biggest difference for Boston? Brent Adams. Holy smokes! He gave up one or two goals, and got beat for good shots one or two more times, but other than that, Adams was lights out for a guy getting dodged on so much. He scored a great goal in transition, and gives Boston a short stick D-mid with legit offensive potential. Adams is insanely quick, and while a bit light, he reminds me of Matt Abbot, and I think he could be a true difference maker the rest of the way.

Overall, the Cannons didn’t change all that much. They still played aggressively on defense, and gave up some goals because of it. They got offense from their longsticks, but also from a SSDM. The O looked more fluid, and the midfield was dangerous. Cam Flint saw more time, and joined the man up unit, where he made an immediate positive impact.

Most importantly, the Cannons played a full game, and never let up, or got into a slump where a lack of passion hurt them. Guys seemed excited to play again, and they circled the wagons nicely. Of course it’s easy to do that when you’re 1-5, and have a brand new coach. But what happens now?

With New York coming to town, the Cannons will have to do it all over again. NY is looking great after playing an intense game with Hamilton, and this is going to be a true test for Boston. It’s two teams, both bent on playing passionate lacrosse, as they know it’s their key to success. Who wants it more? This weekend, it pretty much just comes down to that.

Photo Credit: 24 Seven Lax

There was a whirlwind of news surrounding Charlotte this week, whether it related to Jake Tripucka, or the Hounds’ impressive win last week, it was some pretty big news.

There was also big speculation over who would win this week in the Charlotte vs. Boston game, as both teams really wanted to get that W. In an earlier story, LAS named this match-up to be one of the most interesting of the year, due to the talent and also the trash talking between the teams’ fans.

In this case, Boston earned bragging rights, and got their second win of the year. Saturday the Cannons beat Charlotte, at Charlotte, with a final score of 15-13. The loss puts Charlotte with an overall record of 3-4, dropping them below the all-important .500 win percentage.

Charlotte only beat Boston in two categories, shots on, and shots off, goal. Charlotte only managed to snag 24 ground balls and 13 face-offs. Even though Charlotte had less points in the end, they had more heart in my opinion, and this was the only reason the score was as close as it was.

Ryan Young and the rest of the team’s spirit, to never give up bodes well for the future. Other than Young’s efforts, Danowski, Sawyer, Fallon, and Flanagan were also big parts of the Hound’s great effort. Danowski stepped up and put up 3 goals and 1 assist, although he could have had a lot more points, as he hit pipe at least 4 times. He has proven himself consistent player in attributing points and has earned his spot as one of the top dogs on the team.

As I had mentioned in last week’s piece, you’re going to want to keep your eye on Sawyer, and he showed us why again a couple nights back. Sawyer netted one goal and also got an assist, but he had two shots on goal and three off. In the near future I’m expecting a 3+ goal game out of him, along with a consistent season long scoring pattern. It’s just a matter of time.

Going back to face-offs now, Fallon had a good game. The only reason he didn’t excel in stats was because Chris Eck was on fire. Fallon did manage to create points off of face-off wins by scoring 2 goals in a quick transition-like form. He managed to get 3 shots on goal along with 7 ground balls.

In a nut shell, Charlotte’s offence was on fire in the first quarter scoring 6 goals total. They lost momentum and didn’t score in the second as Boston’s D really tightened up, and Jordan Burke made some big saves. The Hounds came out hungry in the third, but thanks to Jordan Burke’s AMAZING tending they were held to only 2 points.

In the fourth they gave it all they had, putting up 5 goals, but by then Boston was already too far ahead, and controlling the game. Defensively, the Hounds were slow to double team which the Cannons found out early and used it to the fullest advantage. Ghitelman had his moments where nothing could get past him, and he BLASTED Will Manny at one point, but more than that, there were a few things in the net that didn’t belong there.

Keeping in mind that there’s no such thing as an easy save in the MLL, Ghitelman had some slip past him that should’ve been in his stick. I’m sure you have heard the saying ” A goalie is only as good as his defense”, well in Saturday’s case Ghitelman did not get much help, which showed up on the scoreboard.

Despite all the above, Ryan Flanagan managed to completely shut down Paul Rabil. Rabil is one of the fastest, smartest, and best players of all time, and Flanagan set out tonight to prove otherwise. Rabil was held to only 4 shots. Rabil is a key part of the Cannons’ team, and Flanagan’s ability to hold him down tonight definitely was a key reason the game was within two points.

After this tough loss you can expect the Hounds to go back to the drawing board. I think they’ll come out next week as explosive as they came out this week. The key for them will be to score in the second and keep it going throughout the game. A full four quarters is key for this franchise right now.

Charlotte should come out with a chip on their shoulders next week against the Bayhawks. The season is still is still young, and it’s anybody’s guess right now to who will be crowned champion. Even with this loss Charlotte’s chance is still as good as ever to go all the way this season. If the Hounds want to make that happen, they will definitely need to test the Bayhawks this weekend. At the very least, they just need to put together a full game.

Dillon Ward, G, Nationals

The former Bellarmine keeper was picked up by the Nationals this week. He was immediately put into action, making 11 saves in his debut performance. The Nationals lost to the Lizards 12-10, but it was a solid debut.  Ward is now the fourth goalie on the roster, so the Hamilton staff will have some decisions to make on who to keep. Brett Queener has been great this season, and backups Brett Herbst and Evan Kirk have played well also. It will be interesting to see how the goalie situation plays out at the end of the year for the Nats.

Ryan Snyder, F/O, Outlaws

The Outlaws boosted their roster on thursday when they picked up former Lehigh faceoff guy Ryan Snyder. Snyder has super quick hands and loves to push the ball off the faceoff. Snyder is also one of the few faceoff men with the ability to take the ball to the cage off the faceoff. He scored eight goals in his collegiate career. Snyder could be an immediate impact player in relief to Anthony Kelly.

Mike Noone, D, Machine

The Ohio Machine have been making lots of roster changes lately in an attempt to find something that works. After waiving Anthony Biscardi and Tim McCormack, the Machine added Mike Noone to their practice squad. The former Lehigh defenseman has the ability to now make the active roster with his aggressive style of play and crafty takeaway checks.

Thomas Keith, D, Lizards

Keith is a New York native who played his college ball at Cornell, alongside his Lizards teammate Rob Pannell. Keith was the starting LSM for the Big Red, and will play with current Lizards LSM Brian Karalunas. Keith is a strong defensive player, whose speed will pay him dividends in the professional ranks.

Danny Henneghan, F/O, LXM PRO

Henneghan was not selected by and MLL team, and has signed on to play with this year’s LXM PRO team Maverik United. I’m including him because he is a baller! He played in the first LXM event, winning 24-31 faceoffs. His strong senior season at Penn State may have also gained him attention from MLL teams, so it will be interesting to see where he ends up playing next season.

Luke Cometti, M, Rattlers

Cometti, a former Syracuse middie who may have flown under the radar due to the star power of Jojo Marasco. However, after a solid senior season, he joins the Rochester Rattlers, a team that likes to draft Syracuse players. Cometti is currently on the practice squad, but may get moved up later in the year.

There is still plenty of young talent available in the player pool, and MLL GM’s are starting to help their rosters with these undrafted seniors. For those like Henneghan who were not selected by an MLL team, many will end up playing on the LXM Pro Tour. Either way, it is neat to see these players getting a shot in the big leagues, so keep your eyes peeled for signings around the league.

Who is the second leading scorer for the Lizards right now? You guessed it! Mark Matthews.

For more MLL Excellence, check out Getting Silly With Max Seibald, and Lizards Top Nationals In Heavy Rain! Keep your eyes peeled for Chris Rosenthall’s MLL Wekk7 Recap as well!

Thanks to Max Seibald, Brian Karalunas, and Drew Adams for having a little fun with me, even though it was still raining pretty hard. Just a little post game fun in NYC!

I’ll be working camp with Max and some other guys next week, so there will probably be more of this type of stuff…

Also check out Lizards Top Nationals In Heavy Rain!

Photo Credit: Tommy Gilligan

Overall, attendance wasn’t great, but when you consider how hard it is to get to Randall’s Island, and the fact that it was pouring for much of the game, the turnout wasn’t all that bad.

On the field, we saw a much better game than we had the week before. Last week, the Lizards came out flat against the Bayhawks, but this week, NY brought the hustle and passion from moment one. It showed, as the Lizards scored the first two goals of the game, gave up a Hamilton run of goals, and then went right back to work. It also showed later, as NY was able to hold off a furious Hamilton rally to ice the game, and win 12-10.

Photo Credit: Tommy Gilligan

A big change for New York was their use of a zone defense. Instead of doubling, or sliding, on Hamilton’s fluid two-man game, NY decided to pass dodging players, basically forcing the adjacent defender to step up and play the ball, while the original defender dropped to defend the slip pick. When used in conjunction with the rain, which slowed Hamilton’s passing game a bit, the zone did wonders for NY, and it allowed them to showcase their athletic poles and shorties.

The defense also put Drew Adams in a good place to make saves, and Adams delivered, making 12 saves for the win. Tom Palasek led NY with four goals, while Rob Pannell had two goals and three assists. Pannell is quickly settling in to his QB role out there, and he worked well with Palasek and Matt Gibson.

Photo Credit: Connor Wilson

Game Notes:

- Dillon Ward got his MLL action in this game in net for Hamilton. I saw Brett Queener after the game, and he was soaked from standing on the sideline, and yet he still had a big smile on his face when he said hello as he walked to the locker room after the game. That kind of sums up for me how much the MLL guys love this game. Didn’t play, soaking wet, lost, still a happy camper. Awesome to see.

- Cornell Alumni were out in force! Of all the D1 teams, I saw more Cornell grads at the game than any other school. They were there supporting Pannell, and also Jason Noble, who was making his MLL debut. Great to see so many Big Red out to support their former teammates.

- FDA ball boys, and crew. 5 or 6 FDA players acted as ball boys for the game, and they stayed out there even when the rain was coming down the hardest. Big props to those guys! The rest of the FDA crew was into the game, and seemed to have a good time!

For some silly post-game chatter, check out Getting Silly With Max Seibald

Sounds pretty ridiculous doesn’t it? Of course it does, yet sports fans (and writers) tend to say that kind of silly garbage all the time. This team’s great, they just don’t win. Or this team has a great defense, they just give up 18 per game. And while it’s occasionally appropriate for a weird league like the MLL, in which teams in the spring barely resemble their summertime counterparts, it’s the middle of June, people.

After this week, no more free passes; you are what your record says you are. Deal? Now, let’s start this week’s preview.

Main Photo Credit: Cecil Copeland

Hamilton Nationals (5-1) vs  New York Lizards (2-4)

Before the start of the season, you probably assumed these teams would have records like the Nationals. You also probably assumed the Lizards would be the 5-1 squad. This year they switched identities, and while New York stole Hamilton’s script (“You’ve got no problem, guys, just relax, chill that fanbase out, and wait for the cavalry, which should be coming directly”), the Nationals jumped out to the early lead.

While I’ve previously mentioned the reduced production from New York’s marquee players (i.e., pretty much all of them), head coach Joe Spallina has specifically stated that he needs more out of Mark Matthews, and for good reason. Granted they all count the same on the scoreboard, but aside from failed clears or fluke GBs that left him alone in front of the net, Matthews hasn’t scored a goal since week four (perhaps coincidentally – but probably not), the week before Rob Pannell arrived.

Sharing the offensive duties hasn’t been a problem for the Hamilton Nationals, who recently crawled away from a 22-9 dismantling at the hands of the Denver Outlaws. A game like that said far less about the Nationals than their opponents, but its always better to bounce back sooner rather than later. Amongst one of the few bright spots to emerge from that game was Garrett Thul’s three-goal Hamilton debut. It remains to be seen how he’ll fit in with the rest of the offense, but a hat trick against the Outlaws is definitely a good start.

Denver Outlaws (6-0) vs. Chesapeake Bayhawks (4-2)

The 2013 Denver Outlaws have scored 109 goals this season, seven more than the Lizards and Machine combined. In the past three games, the Outlaws outscored their opponents by a combined score of 66-30. If you average their point total, it still beats six teams’ highest output of the season.

What I’m trying to say here, is that the Denver Outlaws are a serious problem, and you know that’s the case when Chesapeake head coach Dave Cottle says “we’ve got to keep them under 20, and that’s easier said than done.”

The only team other than Denver to score 20 this season? That’s right, the Chesapeake Bayhawks, and it was last week against the Lizards. And maybe that’s the message the Bayhawks were sent last week – not only is their defense airtight (allowing a league-leading nine goals per game), they’re fully capable of lighting up the scoreboard, just like the Outlaws.

Of course just because you can do something doesn’t mean it’s easy to be done, and although Chesapeake, not Denver, leads the league in shots and shots on goal, last year’s rule applies this season just the same: you don’t step in the ring and trade punches with the Denver Outlaws.

Limit their possessions, avoid fast breaks. The Bayhawks want this to be a 15-12 game, not 21-20, and the return of Mike Simon (pending a healthy practice) could go a long way in reaching that goal. While last week’s Chesapeake offense was uncharacteristically attack-heavy, Denver’s close defense likely ensures that the midfield will reclaim that role this week.

Boston Cannons (1-5) vs. Charlotte Hounds (3-3)

The Boston Cannons are running out of time. A loss this weekend drops them to 1-6 (a place they haven’t been since 2002) where, based on last year’s standings, they’d have to win out to grab a playoff spot. Connor broke down their issues earlier this week, but for some broad-stroke analysis of the topic, take a look at their offensive and defensive production this year when compared to this point last season:

2013
Goals For: 69
Goals Against: 90
Point Differential, if you don’t feel like doing the math: -21

2012
Goals For: 94
Goals Against: 61
Point Differential, if you don’t feel like doing the math: +33

Yikes. That thing’s just about flip-turned upside down. At the risk of oversimplifying the issue, that might be a problem. Enter new head coach, 2007 MLL coach of the year John Tucker, to save the squad before it’s officially too late.

In addition to being more physical and reducing turnovers, Tucker says he’d like to get the ball up and down and take more shots (Scott Ratliff and Kyle Sweeney’s ears just perked up). He also stated their main issue has been definition of roles, and that he wonders if they have too many players at the same position, so maybe there is a chance Paul Rabil returns to full-time midfield duties?

Meanwhile, we’re currently witnessing the evolution of the Charlotte Hounds; months of talent evaluation and GM savvy potentially coming to fruition. With Matt Danowski essentially the lone holdover from last year’s squad, the well-balanced 2013 Charlotte offense is now averaging 12.8 goals per game, up more than two goals from last year. If John Tucker hasn’t had time to revamp the Cannons’ defensive mindset, look for Peet Poillon or Mike Sawyer to take full advantage of Boston’s free alley access and minimal sliding.

Rochester Rattlers (3-3) vs. Ohio Machine (0-6)

The Ohio Machine haven’t won a home game since their very first one, a 16-10 win over the Rochester Rattlers way back on May 19, 2012. They’re currently in the midst of a nine-game home losing streak, so be it their point total or this streak, something‘s getting to double digits this weekend.

Obviously hoping for the former, Connor Martin has been activated from the Injured Reserve.  If he’s finally healthy (he hasn’t been right all season) Martin could play a major role in getting the team their first win – don’t forget, he scored 32 points last season.

Chazz Woodson’s back as well, and should bring some organization and veteran leadership to the Ohio offense. Sure, Steele Stanwick’s a veteran in the sense that this isn’t his first season, but Woodson has experience, like “I played for two teams that don’t even exist anymore,” experience, and that’s an immeasurable asset for a struggling team.

The return of Woodson and Martin came at the perfect time; while John Galloway is playing some of the best lacrosse of his career, Mike Manley (who held Ryan Boyle scoreless last week) held Steele Stanwick to just one goal in their matchup just two weeks ago. Add emerging midfielder John Ranagan to a lineup that just posted their highest point total in 11 games, and the Ohio defense needs to resolve last week’s communication and sliding problems ASAP.

Photo Credit: Cecil Copeland

Will the Lizards’ offense turn things around against Brodie Merrill and the Nationals defense? Can the Bayhawks snap the Outlaws’ 12-game regular season winning streak? Can the Hounds go above .500 for the first time in franchise history? Good luck to your squad, and check back here next week for the recap.

In case you missed anything, here’s what went down in week 6. In honor of the first MLL game in New York City, each matchup gets with an appropriate Jay-Z line. Only seemed right.

Chesapeake Bayhawks 21, New York Lizards 8

Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City

In their first game on Randall’s Island, the New York Lizards played Drew Westervelt to an 8-8 tie. Unfortunately for the Lizards, several other people play for the Chesapeake Bayhawks, many of whom scored goals as well.

Connor was at the game, and has already done a solid recap of both the game and the live experience, so I won’t do the same here. I will, however, say this:

Be it against the New York Lizards, the lacrosse world as a whole, or just to their own excellence, the Chesapeake Bayhawks clearly had something to prove Thursday night. Between Matt Abott running through double and triple teams (on his way to the most non-linear clears known to man) and John Grant Jr double swim-dodging Kevin Unterstein before his third goal of the night (and don’t even get me started on that backhanded BTB), they didn’t just beat the Lizards, they made an example of them.

Why’d they do it? Who knows, maybe it was the back to back overtime heartbreakers, or the increasingly chippy nature of the game? All that matters is that Cottle and co. were out there playing chess, not checkers (off-ball screens, well-timed first and second slides, hyperactive ball movement, etc), which is exactly what you’d expect from a championship team that returned with their 2012 lineup almost entirely intact.

Meanwhile, the Lizards’s offensive troubles continued, with Pannell, Berger, Seibald, Earl, and Marasco shooting a combined 0-20. There’s both credit and blame for most stats like these, and while Kip Turner had a series of tremendous point-blank saves throughout the night, the Lizards’ shot percentage has camped out near the bottom of the rankings for quite a while now. However, we’re still a few weeks away from full-fledged panic mode, meaning New York still has time for their whole to at least equal the sum of their parts, and not just a little bit less.

Boston Cannons 14, Rochester Rattlers 16

Roc Boys (and the winner is..)

“I think John Ranagan’s a stud“

Rochester head coach Tim Soudan said the above last week regarding the rookie midfielder from Johns Hopkins, which helps explain why he was perfectly comfortable handing him the ball against Kyle Sweeney with one minute left and a one-goal lead. Not only did Ranagan protect the ball, he went the cage and helped seal Rochester’s win in front of 4,440 + at Kennesaw State University in Georgia. He also made Evan Washburn eat his words, after Washburn said he counted Ranagan’s ability to score in the MLL.

Rochester took an interesting approach to defending Paul Rabil, sending d-middies like Dan Groot or Michael Lazore out to cover him instead of specifically giving LSM Joel White the assignment. It’s not entirely unheard of (Denver, for example, does this all the time); the thought may be to focus a team’s defensive efforts elsewhere, concentrating more on secondary scorers. Rabil finished with two goals and two assists on the evening.

After a fairly even first half which saw Boston as the slightly better team, the Rattlers scored 10 of the final 13 goals, including the first three of Ranagan’s career. Jordan Macintosh led all scorers with four goals, and Ned Crotty (alternating between attack and midfield) finished with a goal and three assists.

The game featured a fairly strange ending, where Rabil and John Galloway were given holding and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties, respectively, with 20 seconds left (no clue what Galloway did to get that call, but he must have gotten his money’s worth when speaking to the refs). With Galloway serving his penalty during the potential game-tying possession,  enter Rochester backup Joe Banno, who’d been just hanging out and minding his business since the week 4 blowout against Denver. Fortunately for Galloway and the Rattlers, Boston couldn’t put a shot on cage, and they left Atlanta with the victiory.

In addition to that poorly-timed (but ultimately harmless) penalty, Galloway finished with 23 saves (including seven in the fourth quarter) and a team-high nine ground balls, earning him defensive player of the week honors for the second consecutive week. Well deserved, and he clearly delivered on his promise to play better. And then some!

We’ve beaten this point into the ground, so unless the pattern changes, this is the last time I’m saying this: when Boyle scores, the Cannons win. The Cannons haven’t been doing much winning, so clearly, Boyle hasn’t been doing much scoring. One shot was the lone mark on an otherwise goose-egg laden stat line. Was Boyle content to look for Matt Poskay (he did put 10 shots on goal) or defer to Will Manny? Does moving Rabil in and out of the attack position make Boyle change his game? You get the benefit of the doubt when you have 400 points on your resume, but there’s clearly an issue somewhere with Boston’s offensive chemistry.

Ohio Machine 7, Charlotte Hounds 13

99 Problems

If you haven’t already, make sure you check Lance Antoine’s column on Saturday’s Ohio-Charlotte game. Since he handled the Hounds, I’ll talk Machine for a bit. Even without a win, there is a LOT to talk about.

We don’t really have time for 99 of them, so let’s go with a few major problems currently hindering the Ohio Machine in their quest for double-digit scoring: shot selection, turnovers,  and offensive identity.

Shot Selection: So many forced shots and poor angles. Maybe it’s a matter of the rookies learning to adapt to the MLL shot clock, but knowing when and where to shoot are clearly still a work in progress for many on the team.

Turnovers: Here’s all I’m saying: if I coach a winless team that hasn’t scored in double-digits all season, and I see someone throwing a one-handed pass to nobody in particular, he and I are going to have a serious problem.

Offensive Identity: Seriously, does Steele Stanwick he have the keys to the offense or not? He had two solid assists in the first quarter, and though he tried calling his own number a few times, the offense seemd to stop running through him the further along the game went.

Is Steele going to regularly move to the wing and let Jake Bernhardt or Marcus Holman run the offense? What do you think (currently at home with a hamstring injury), Chazz Woodson?

Interesting. You know, I think he might be onto something. Let’s give that a try.

Hamilton Nationals  9, Denver Outlaws 22

On to the Next One

With four different Outlaws players putting up four goals each, the line “I got a million ways to get it. Choose one.” may never ring more appropriate than when applied to this game. Denver scored on 38% of their shots (matching their league-leading average; only two teams shoot above 30%), led the game for 59:13, and quite simply, plain-ol’ steamrolled the Hamilton Nationals in what we thought had the makings of the weekend’s main event.

The Outlaws got things started early with two Zack Greer goals in the first minute and a half. And not just any goals, goals scored off a screen and a pick & roll, respectively. When the Outlaws started the game by using Hamilton’s bread and butter offense to perfection, it was, in hindsight, a pretty good indicator of what was about to take place.

From that point on, Denver never looked back. “What do you mean ‘from that point on,’ you’ve only described a minute and a half.” Yeah, I know. Doesn’t matter. Anthony Kelly won 11 of the first 12 faceoffs, and by the time Matt Dolente won his second, the score was 9-2. And that, my friends, is how a game gets really ugly, really fast.

As if the Outlaws don’t have enough weapons as is, attackman Eric Law arrived from the University of Denver (literally – he graduated that morning), suited up, and dropped four goals (on four shots) in his MLL debut. Even when things didn’t work out for Law (he dropped a pass while wide open on the crease), they still worked out for him (picked it up and tossed it in behind the back) – it was just that kind of day.

Lee Zink and the Denver defense were solid as usual, holding Stephen Keogh, Kevin Cunningham and Cody Jamieson (14 combined points in week 5 at Chesapeake) to just one assist each. Kevin Crowley had four goals, and Garrett Thul scored three in his debut, but it was nowhere near enough to keep things close.

Not everything went well for the Outlaws, however, as Jesse Schwartzmann was forced to leave the game early in the third quarter with an apparent hamstring injury. We’ll most likely get an update on the severity later this week, but Denver needs him as close to 100% as possible as they take on the Bayhawks this weekend.

And then there was one. The Denver Outlaws stand alone atop the MLL standings, with the Bayhawks next in line to take their shot. With several teams making moves this week,  your current kings of the league. Week 7 kicks off with another Thursday night Lizards game, so check back soon for the preview. In the meantime, make sure you check out our additional MLL coverage.

Note: Photo Credits – Main Image: Christy Radecic, Other Images: Anna Scipione. Adrenaline, an LXM sponsor, is a proud partner of LAS.

Good weather, a good crowd, a tight game, and flashy uniforms were the initial calling cards of the LXM PRO event in Orange County this past weekend, and it’s definitely a bright start to the 2013 LXM PRO Tour. I’ll take a look at a number of the big story lines from the weekend, and see how LXM 2013 stacks up to prior incarnations, as well as other pro field lacrosse opportunities.

The Game Itself

The first game pitting Team STX against Maverik United was a close and tightly contested match up. Both teams were able to generate offense, and produce runs of goals, and both teams’ defenses had moments of dominance. The goalies played well, the face offs were quick and exciting for the most part, and we were treated to a couple of huge hits, and highlight worthy goals. Sam Bradman notched five goals, and once again showed his creative and dangerous play. The low to high goal he scored early on was preposterous.

Bradman going low to high. I think. He’s deceptive.

At the end of regulation, STX had escaped with a one-goal win, taking the game 14-13. Both teams led at different portions of the game, and I had a hard time predicting who would emerge victorious, even at later stages in the game. There were definitely some moments of sloppy play, but considering this was the first game of the 2013 Tour, and there were plenty of new faces playing, the mistakes and lack of cohesion were pretty minimal.

The game looked better than last year’s games did, at least on average, and there were more dangerous players on the field, especially on offense. The contest was officiated well, and the refs did a great job of keeping the game moving. The flow was excellent, and the lack of stoppages from timeouts, or TV timeouts, was noticeable.

The Rookies

Peter Baum, Tim Desko, Lantz Carter, Billy Bitter, and one or two others all made their LXM debuts on Saturday. Baum had a goal, as did Bitter, while Desko recorded two goals. All of them seemed pretty comfortable out there, but when you consider that most of these guys were monsters in college, and that none of them “went off” in their first game, it makes an argument for how high the level of play in the LXM actually is.

Now, I wouldn’t say that Billy Bitter struggled out there, but it does make me think that maybe all of these “no name” LXM defenders might actually be pretty darn good if he can only drop one goal in his first game. I’ve actually thought that for a while now, but hopefully this result helps to shed some light to other people out there. The LXM is good lacrosse.

Great to see Bitter out there.

The Veterans

Kyle Harrison, Johnny Christmas, Sam Bradman, Matt Russell, Brian Kelly, Graham Gill, The Brattons, Sean Lindsay, Brendan Porter, and a host of other players we’ve all come to know as the backbone of the LXM came out to play. Harrison was limited to two assists on the day, but his explosive dodging created a lot of chances for Team STX, and he also played a lot more defense, which was vintage K18, and great to see.

Grahman Gill, still got it!

Christmas showed he is still lethal, Kelly took a big hit, but was ferocious all night. Lindsay played with passion, in his ultra team heavy role, and Porter bested people left and right, especially when the ball was on the turf. Russell made some electric saves, J-Rod was fun to watch and effective, and the Brattons continued to confuse defenses (and sometimes even themselves) with their unbelievable change of direction, and outside the box play.

Moving Forward

First off, you can bet Maverik is not saying, “well, at least we kept it close“. Both teams wanted to win that game, and both teams could have. Maverik will now have a chip on their shoulder, and want to even the series up. That much is obvious. What we won’t really see that much of until next time, is how that happens.

That means that the next game could be a VERY different contest to take in. Teams now have film of each other, and can break down what they are doing wrong out there, or how they can better. Will Baum and Desko spend hours on a Google Hangout discussing their two-man game? Will Bitter and Christmas collude in the Maverik offices, and work on their in-game trickery? To think that none of this stuff will be going is sticking your head in the sand.

It makes me excited to see the next level these guys get to, after all, Week 1 is just the beginning.

The games should only get more intense.

More Teams?

TLN mentioned it during the broadcast, and the LXM guys were cryptic about expansion when they were asked during a hangout, but expansion is definitely on the minds of almost everyone watching the LXM right now. It would add legitimacy to the Tour, and create a small league, with a potential champion. It could bring in another sponsor, or elevate a current sponsor to a higher level. It would also show that the LXM is successful, and that it’s not going to dry up at some point.

Expansion is GREAT! So will we see it?

Two teams is good. Is three or four better?

I don’t know that we will see it this year. I can’t say that expansion is even a definite at this point, but I can say that I believe it is going to happen, and that it might happen as early as this year. Why, you may ask? Well if the reasons above weren’t enough, I also know a lot of people in the lacrosse world, and many of them have expressed interest in learning more about the LXM. This is a good sign, and when you consider that the LXM has improved year over year, it only adds momentum to the theory of impending expansion. Add in that there are more “professional level” players out there than spots, and the idea is, at the very least, tenable.

It’s not fact, and it’s not rumor. It’s just a really solid set of reasoning. Of course reason doesn’t always win out, but in this case, I believe that it will.

Potential Improvements

The Broadcast – Watching the game online, I got a great experience. Multiple camera angles, a bright and sunny day, and great commentary from Chris and Samir of TLN made the viewing experience a pleasure. The next level for that broadcast to shoot for is in-game statistics, and they will quickly be approaching TV level broadcast quality. I also think they could add in a sideline reporter, which could be pretty cool. Overall though, the broadcast is really quite amazing, especially when you consider how far TLN has come in such a short time.

Team Play – There were moments when I felt like the teams out there needed more time together. Of course this is a complaint I have about all pro lacrosse (NLL, MLL, LXM). Open crease looks get overlooked at times, and sometimes skip passes seem misguided. I expect this kind of stuff to improve as the tour moves on, and the individual play was really quite good. Finer points in some elements of team play was lacking here and there, but overall it was still good, and comparable to other high levels of play.

Peter Baum made his debut as well.

Maverik Coaching – I have nothing against the Maverik coaching staff, or how they coached the game. But if Peter Dante is going to coach Team STX in sublimated shorts, sunglasses, ALL WHILE HOLDING ON TO A STICK, the MU coaches need to step their game up. Put on a neon green suit, get a Maverik poncho, or something! It’s Dante, the youth coach Vs ________. You have 10 days to figure something out here.

Overall Impressions

The LXM PRO Tour’s 2013 season has definitely started off on the right foot. A great game in front of a solid crowd, good weather, an excellent online broadcast, plenty of goals, and lots of new names (both players and sponsors) making their first appearances. The game was run in conjunction with another event (the Adrenaline All-Star Game), and definitely made an impact in the area. STX and Maverik both came looking good, and the people who went to the game came home happy.

The big question for the next event is, can the LXM keep up the momentum, and IMPROVE on their first event of 2013? To see the answer to that question, we’ll have to wait until San Diego, on June 21st. As with any lacrosse event our tour, there will be road bumps, but if the LXM can keep their current trajectory, they are headed for bigger and better things.

Unfortunately, the support just wasn’t there last week, and the hordes of kids that I KNOW play lacrosse in the area just didn’t show up. I’m hoping this week’s game will see MUCH better attendance!

Now, maybe the lack of turnout a week ago was due to the rain. It’s possible, as no one likes to take in a game and get soaked. At first glance, it looks like the weather could impact this week’s game too. But you know what? Icahn’s seating is COMPLETELY COVERED! That’s right, there is a huge roof over the seats at Icahn, and you can watch a game in the pouring rain, without getting wet at all. The concessions stands, bathrooms, and other amenities are also covered. Didn’t bring an umbrella, poncho, or rain jacket? NO PROBLEM. You’re dry as a bone.

It’s also possible that people didn’t come to the game because Randall’s Island is not serviced by that many great transportation options. Realistically speaking, one can get to Randall’s Island by bus, or by car. But this is how people in NYC travel anyway, so it’s not much of a stretch to think people would come. Parents who drive to CT and Westchester each weekend for youth games should be thrilled that they don’t even have to leave the City for this event. Car pools work on weekends, so they should work here too. For people without cars, the M35 bus does the job, and drops you off right in front of Icahn. Don’t want to take the bus because you’re scared of NYC busses? One could also take a cab to the game.

In the end, it’s just about whether or not people want to come out and catch an exciting professional game, and I’m really hoping that the NYC lacrosse community, MY lacrosse community, shows up in force this week. Kids can make it, families can make it, current high school players can make it, and all of the college lacrosse playing graduates living in NYC can make it. I’m hoping that they do!

If just seeing a pro game wasn’t enough to spur you to attend this week’s game, maybe the news that a portion of ticket sales will go to Harlem Lacrosse, to help fund their program, will get you invested. It’s Harlem Lacrosse Appreciation Night! Want to watch the Harlem guys play? Well, they take the field before the MLL guys do, so get there early!

If you haven’t bought a ticket yet, get on it now. This is the second, and last pro field lacrosse game in NYC this season, and if we don’t show, the MLL might not come back for years. If that happens, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

(Also check out Tony Lowe’s Behind The Scenes Look: Running An MLL Game)

My gut said they would take care of business against Rochester down in Georgia on Friday night, but they dropped the game 16-14 after leading for much of the contest, and now they sit at 1-5, with a game against Charlotte up next.

Then today, we got the news that Steve Duffy has been removed as the Cannons’ Head Coach, and replaced by John Tucker, who was an assistant.

So NOW is it time for the Boston Cannons to panic? Or have the Cannons made moves at just the right time?

With 6 games under their belts, and 8 big ones remaining, the statistics say it’s not time to panic, as Boston is still in it. Phew. That was easy. The best they can do right now is (obviously) 9-5, and a record like that gives anyone a great shot at the playoffs. I’d figure a 9-5 team as a lock. But can the Cannons win 8 straight games? That might be a lot to ask.

With two very winnable games against winless Ohio, and four total games against Charlotte, Rochester, and New York (the three teams directly above them), Boston can definitely make up some ground, and potentially do so pretty quickly.

Of course, while there is opportunity here, there is also danger, because if Cheseapeake, Hamilton and Denver keep up their winning ways, only one of four playoff spots is left. Any loss to CHA, ROCH, or NY not only means the Cannons get another L, but it also means a team they are competing with gets a W. That’s a full game swing either way in the race for fourth, so if the Cannons are going to turn things around, it needs to start happening immediately, and definitely against the teams in their middle tier of the standings.

So now we know that Boston is still very much alive, at least mathematically, even though their record is pretty dismal. Can they right this heavily listing ship?

I spoke with Coach Duffy before Friday’s game, back when he was still the Head Coach, and while he noted that the Cannons had played well at times, and in spurts, they were not playing well often enough, or with nearly enough consistency:

At times we played well in the New York and (1st) Denver games, but we didn’t play well enough to win either. It seems as though in each game, poor transition defense, and a lack of consistency both on offense and defense had hurt us.

Coach Duffy immediately noted that the guys on the team were NOT panicking, and that a mindset like that would not help. I’ll be interested to see what tack the new HC takes in this regard. No matter what, as Duffy noted, the focus must remain on winning the next game, and if that was true at 1-4, it holds true at 1-5 as well, even with a new coach.

When I asked Coach Duffy where a potential change had to come from, he said, “I think the spark will come from the great leaders and veterans (on our team)“. And while there is a new man at the helm, do we really think that he is going to have a different answer in only six days? Highly unlikely.

The MLL is a player’s league, so really, the spark has to come from them. That being said, a new face in charge could play a part in creating a spark, as well as making some changes. It will be interesting to see how that plays out. Since Coach Duffy is now out, it made even more sense to talk to the leaders of the team, right? I did just that and caught up with Mitch Belisle, one of Boston’s three captains (Paul Rabil and Ryan Boyle are the others).

Mitch was really open about the changes that have been made, and could be made moving forward:

The coaching move is a change from a lot of perspectives, but we still have the majority of the same talent, so we need to figure out how to make that work for us.

Ultimately, a lot of the guys on the team are trying to do it right, and we are finding ways to allow younger guys to step up. We really just need to put it all together as a team.

I also asked him about who was standing out, either in a positive or negative light, and who other players could feed off of:

Not too many people are standing out right now. Everyone has to do their little bit. We all need to pick it up, and do a little bit more. That will get us in a better position to win games. But it has to come from all of us.

We’re going to have to make some changes, and that could happen all over. We dress a lot of defenders, and we have new college players as well. It’s all part of the season (in the MLL). The change has clearly started already at the Head Coaching level, but we can expect some more changes. We will do whatever we have to do to win.

So now you’ve heard what the ex-Head Coach, and one of the three captains think. Let’s get to some outside analysis! My favorite kind!

The Cannons’ offensive production was better against Rochester, but Boston did not posses the same fluid offensive motion that Chesapeake, Denver, or Hamilton have shown so often this season. The ball seemed to get “stuck” in certain places on the field at times, and Boston would have to completely reset their offense, or force a long skip pass. The O looked better than they had earlier in the year, but at times, it still looked a little stagnant and predictable.

By adding in dynamic players like Will Manny, Boston got a boost, as Manny consistently pressed the defense with his quickness and ability to move the ball to adjacent players. And with another week of getting to know each other, this unit could continue to improve, but some other changes may need to be made. I’d personally like to see the Cannons move Rabil back to midfield exclusively, and maybe drop Manny to attack as a starter, as PR99 gives them a great option up top to pull the defense high, makes Stone and Buchanan considerably more dangerous, and gives them a nice early offense option in transition play.

With Rabil low, teams can slough in more, as few of the other Cannons players will instill the same fear with their outside shots. Stone and Buchanan become exponentially more dangerous along the 2 point arc when they play with Rabil, as they get more free space, and are allowed to dodge and be involved, playing to their strengths. With Rabil down low, they get more attention, and become more dodge and move it type guys, which is good, but doesn’t produce goals like the Cannons need right now. I’ll take a Manny, Sussman, Boyle (mix in Poskay of course!) attack line any day. PR will put up numbers anywhere, but from the midfield, his production may help more.

Quick ball control guys who can score in tight and off the dodge down low, shooters and dodgers to draw slides up top. You have a two-point line… and you need to use it! This is how Chesapeake works so well, and it is why other offenses struggle at times against a disciplined defensive unit. Even Denver has re-worked their offense in this model to a certain extent, and seen more success. And the pieces are all there in Beantown.

Defensively, the Cannons don’t look great, and this one is particularly confusing. Mitch Belisle, Brian Farrell, and Kyle Sweeney all have lots of experience playing together. Ryan Nizolek has been with the team for 2 seasons now, learning the ropes, and is playing pretty well. Scott Ratliff has been playing better and better. Jordan Burke has been a stud in the past, and knows this D group well. How this group is not better is THE great mystery of 2013.

One thing that stands out as an immediate positive (didn’t think I’d go there, did you?) is Boston’s long pole transition game. Sweeney, Ratliff, and Farrell are all looking like scorers, and they give Boston a unique advantage. I’d probably keep any of those guys out there on O. (probably why I’ll never coach in the MLL) It helps to make up for the fact that their short stick D-middies are not quite as offensively talented, and it more than makes up for some of the missed checks the Boston poles can throw on the outside at times, in coverage.

My read on things with this defense overall is that they are simply not dictating possessions.

The scheme seems to be slow to slide at most times, while sloughing in heavily to the middle, all while firing out hard on defensive possessions. To me, this is going to result in a LOT of goals against most MLL teams if the communication is not perfect. It’s a high-risk, high-reward system.

Short stick defenders are too often put out on islands, and slides are late to come, or don’t come at all. Poles are playing too far out, with little support, and good opponents are getting a lot of open looks from 12 yards or closer, sometimes before half the shot clock has run down. Against any threatening offense, especially when mixed with bad communication, this is not going to work.

It’s not to say that the Boston scheme can’t work, because I believe it can. Boston is blessed with talented and rangy poles, along with athletic SSDMs. These guys CAN play this style of D, and it can be effective, but I believe they need to reign it in a little in terms of playing guys so far out, and commit more to effective and consistent sliding, when the time is right. Packing in a bit early on in the shot clock could also help, to put the pressure back on the offense, as the seconds tick off. THEN you go out and get more aggressive.

The above might be news to you, but it’s certainly not news to the Cannons. These guys know the game, and are an excellent group of players. That’s what makes it so confusing. So while Boston’s offense definitely looks like it is coming together, albeit a bit slowly, the question for the Cannons in their next game in Charlotte is, Will The Defense Show Up, and Play TOGETHER?

It’s a simple as that. Jordan Burke needs to command this defense, and own it. The D has to listen to him, and respond with vigor this weekend. When you have talent, the little things really can be a difference maker. A little patience, a lot of talking, and solid team play, and this group is back.

Staring a 1-6 record in the face is NOT what the Cannons need, so a win simply must come this weekend. The O should do their part, but the core of this team, its defense, really has to show up and play well, and begin leading the way again, by dictating pace of play.

One or two more losses and this team is getting into extremely dangerous territory. While the O may come around, it’s the D that is going to need to lead Boston Cannons out of it.

Click to read Tony Lowe’s Behind The Scenes Look: Running An MLL Game.

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Photo Credit: 24 Seven Lax

I’m not sure what’s more impressive, how well the hounds played in the second half, or the fact that there is an MLL team with as much talent as Ohio that is still win-less.

In the first half, Charlotte and Ohio only combined for 8 goals. I’m not sure what Charlotte got into at half time, but whatever they have, I want. It seemed like right off the bat Danowski scored and sparked a flame that the Machine wouldn’t be able to extinguish, let alone contain.

Charlotte put up a total of 8 goals in the third quarter and held Ohio to only 2 goals in the period. In the fourth each team put up a single goal a piece, making the final score Hounds: 13 Machine: 7. The win put the Hounds record at 3-3, giving them a .50o win percentage, AND a tie for fourth place, which is just enough to get them into championship weekend, should the standings hold. I’m not saying they will hold, but that’s how it looks right now.

The Hounds are currently 1-2 at home and 2-1 on the road. Next weekend the Hounds will play the Boston Cannons at home. Now back to the subject of Danowski… Dino had a great game. He had a hat-trick and a 2 pt. goal, but Danowski didn’t win the game all by himself. Everybody from Ghitelman to Sawyer played a major part.

Ghitelman had 11 saves, a huge feat not many goalies can brag about with a total of around 20 shots on goal. Ghitelman had a lot of help from his defense though, and if you had to describe them in one word for this game, that word would be consistent. The defense has found their niche and if they can figure out how to work together the rest of the way they’ll be running a no daylight defense in no time.

On the offencive side apart from Danowski, Lusby had 5 goals, and the young-guns proved they’ve got what it takes, as the team also got some help from Peet Poillon himself. Eric Lusby came out and got on the board first for the Hounds. Lusby proved he wasn’t going going down without a fight, and a goal when he scored while going down from a hit by the Machine defense. Lusby didn’t put up any numbers in the second, but he came out in the third and put up another two goals along with Poillon who put up one goal.

Just as Lusby started it he also ended it, and put up the only Charlotte, and last, goal in the fourth. Players like White, Sawyer, and Young showed that they’re each forces not to be reckoned with. Young’s presence at X was incredible, even though he didn’t have any goals he had two assists.

Even though Young didn’t score Sawyer and White sure did, White got his first professional goal and he proved it will be the first of many judging  by the way he played Saturday. He is not somebody you want to over look anytime soon. White’s goal brings his season stats to one goal and two assists. Look for more as the weeks progress.

Also, the offense had some good things going for them with face-offs, as they won 53% of them and also got 30 ground balls. Lastly. the offense had the best shot placement I’ve seen from them all season, which lead to their abundance of third quarter goals.

I think Charlotte showed full potential Saturday and if they keep it up good things will come. They’re a young team with a lot of potential, I look forward to following them on their journey the rest of the season because they have a chance to do big things.

For a preview on the rest of this weekend’s excellent MLL action, check out Chris Rosenthall’s Week 6 MLL Preview!

The stadium’s covering is awesome.

The Bayhawks started out hot, and went up early by a couple goals, but New York made a little run to catch up, and at 6-4, with NY dominating face offs, it looked like we could see an epic battle between two teams sitting near each other in the standings. However, Chesapeake’s offense was far to fluid, and created too many chances inside and out, for NY to handle.

Drew Westervelt led all players in scoring, and he may have put up the eight easiest goals of his career. I’m not saying Westy wasn’t working hard, but the Chesapeake offense created some many great chances, and DW just always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. He had a couple of goals where the ball was barely even in his stick and he went untouched. Easy goals in the rain? Gotta love ‘em.

8 goals for Westervelt? Not bad!

Basically, the Chesapeake shooters (Hunt, Kimmel, Dixon, etc) pulled the NY defense up all night long exposing a weaker backside defense. Guys like Mackrides, Grant Jr. and Goettleman pushed the ball from X and the wings effectively with dodges, and Westervelt looked for room, found it, and put the biscuit in the basket, time and time again. It was fun to watch such a precise offense.

On the other side of the ball, the Lizards offense looked disastrous. Pannell, Palasek, and Matthews have clearly not gelled enough, and all three struggled against the resounding toughness of Evans, Spallina, and Polanco. I thought Spallina and Polanco were DONE two years ago when they played for the Lizards. Shows you what I know. These guys still have “it”, and it showed as they dominated a top level attack line filled with younger stars.

These guys brought the pain all night long.

As this NY team plays together more, I think they will improve, but chemistry was definitely lacking on Thursday night. I also think/hope we will see Matt Gibson back in the line up next week, and I believe his calming presence was sorely missed. Max Seibald and JoJo Marasco both made their debuts, and while both looked athletic, it was clear they were still settling in to their new look team, as those fluid bang-bang passes just were not there.

Marasco made his MLL debut last night.

Defensively, the Lizards were doing ok early on. The constant risk with Chesapeake though is that they can start bombing away from long-range at any time, and in the second quarter, that time came on HARD. When Kyle Dixon hit a low to far low corner snipe (that during his wind up I thought would be an overhand shot. I was tricked too) from distance, I started feeling like it was going to be a total shooting gallery. Sometimes you’re on, and the Bayhawks were on!

Overall, Chesapeake looked like a more disciplined team offensively, and defensively, and they really packed it in tight, to offset NY’s lack of multiple pure outside shooters. Rand got better and better against NY’s Gurenlian at the face off X as the game went on, and Kip Turner was really solid all night long.

Game Notes:

- Ben Rubeor took a Kyle Dixon shot to the head. He was down for a bit, but got up eventually and made his way to the bench. A Dixon shot to the head is terrifying to see in person.

- John Grant Jr. scored a most ridiculous around the world goal on Jack Reid. He almost scored another similar goal later but just missed.

- Tim Goettelman is back, and he scored a goal for the first time in the MLL since retiring in 2011.

Welcome back, Monster!

- The field was grass, and considering it was raining, it was in great shape. Looked awesome to be playing out there.  The stadium seating is also covered, so fans were bone dry all night long.

- A Doc’s NYC youth team took on New Canaan in a game beforehand, and won. Power shift for the youth lacrosse scene? The kids there were pretty pumped to see pro lacrosse in NYC.

- There were other pros in attendance: I spoke with JJ Gilbane a bit, and saw a couple other guys just taking in the action in the City. Armando Polanco wins the award for best dressed former professional player.

- Nicky Polanco and Unterstein were both ejected for a fracas later in the game, which involved Berger, Turner, Spallina, Matthews, Unterstein, and Polanco. It all started when Turner left the cage, and Berger ran by and slashed him off ball. Turner then pulled a diving soccer player move and crumpled to the ground, only to get up and jog back to the crease seconds later. Spallina took exception to Berger’s slash, Matthews to exception to Spallina’s action, and Polanco too exception with that. It was 17-5 at that point, so you knew something was coming. Unterstein and Polanco were tossed for grabbing each other’s face masks and throwing some quick jabs. Nothing too serious though.

Pannell created a little flag depository.