2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore Recap

There are not many days that engender hope in the fans of pro sports teams like draft day. When the National Lacrosse League gathered virtually to select the top prospects for Sunday night’s 2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore, many dreams came true.

Let’s take a look at who made the biggest additions to their teams, who will have to wait a while to enjoy the fruits of their draft selections, who went local with their picks and more.

THE RICH GET RICHER

Nobody else in the league can be thrilled to see the Bandits and Seals, two of the top lineups in the league already, add a bunch of talent with three first-round picks each. It won’t be easy for players to crack the rosters of the two title contenders, but trying to shoehorn all of your good players onto the floor is a good problem to have.

Buffalo Bandits

The back-to-back defending champs had three picks in the first round and used them all, adding depth options for now and down the road. As GM Steve Dietrich said during the pre-draft broadcast, you can’t keep a championship lineup together forever, so the Bandits needed to be preparing a succession plan for all positions.

Buffalo opened their draft by grabbing righty forward Lukas Nielsen (#7), who still has a year of junior lacrosse to play. The 50-goal scorer with the New Westminster Salmonbellies will likely be groomed as an eventual replacement for one of the current veterans.

Last season, the Bandits became painfully familiar with the need for defensive depth. So in this draft, they went heavy on making sure they have defenders ready to roll out as necessary by following up the pick of Nielsen with seven straight defense/transition guys. The gem among them is Luca Antongiovanni, who didn’t officially enter the draft until a few days before but who had long been considered to be among the top tier of defenders expected to be available.

With their third first-rounder, Buffalo grabbed a dark horse in Taylor Dooley. He played primarily Sr. B with the Ennismore James Gang the last two seasons, but was a key member of the Toronto Beaches lineup that made it to the team’s first-ever Minto Cup back in 2022.

San Diego Seals

When Trent DiCicco kept sliding down the draft as the opening round reached its midpoint, San Diego opted to part with a first-round pick in next year’s very strong draft to grab the Shamrocks’ transition star who had blazed to increased prominence at the 2024 Mann Cup. With all of the offensive firepower the Seals have added in free agency, defense was the focus as they used all three first-round picks on players coming out the back door. Three picks after DiCicco, they grabbed another standout two-way player in Jacob Power. While his last two summers have been curtailed by injuries, Power is healthy and eager to prove he is ready for the pro game.

And Robbie Turpin was a quietly effective player ranging around the top of the Coquitlam Adanacs defensive formation at the Minto Cup. Defender Jordy Neary of the Port Coquitlam Saints is a potential steal at #69. With three choices in a five-pick span of the third round, San Diego added some options for depth on offense with Cam Acchione, BCJALL scoring champion Ethan M’Lot and Arthur Miller.

THE GOOD VALUE DRAFTS

You have to make the most of what you’ve got. Saskatchewan and Halifax did that by finding players that could prove to be great value for the spots at which they were picked. Both also added some firepower in trade; Halifax leading up to the draft and Saskatchewan while the clock was ticking.

Saskatchewan Rush

The Rush took a timeout when their pick came up at sixth overall. There were good options available, but they were looking to make a bigger impact on the right than they felt they’d get with anyone still on the board. Eventually, they traded the pick, along with a second-rounder next year, to Vancouver. Coming the other way was Brock Haley, taken by the Warriors last year.

That meant passing on Nielsen, who had a 50-goal season this year for New West. But Haley had one of the best goal-scoring seasons in recent Jr. A history in 2022 when he potted 74 en route to leading the Whitby Warriors to a Minto Cup championship.

Saskatchewan also made two picks that might just be the players selected the farthest below their projected spots in the whole draft. Zach Thompson is a smaller but valuable lefty whom I had as a top 10 forward in the draft, and potentially a top 10 pick in the draft; the Rush got him at #56.

Caleb Creasor is a blazing and skilled transition player who was seen as a possible first-rounder, and likely second-round pick; Saskatchewan took him at #72.

Halifax Thunderbirds

Having sent the 10th pick, along with young defender Caelan Mander, to Calgary for impactful inside forward Thomas Hoggarth before the draft, the Thunderbirds did not have a selection until #38. It is difficult to project how field players will translate to the box. Halifax had success in that area with Ryan Terefenko. Now they’re hoping that Ajax Zappitello, an All-American at Maryland and the first defender taken in this year’s PLL draft, can make the same kind of conversion.

Ashton Brown (#52) left the East Coast to make a name for himself in British Columbia and it worked. Brown took over the starting goaltender role with the Port Coquitlam Saints and was a revelation after coming from the far less-known ECJLL. Now the Nova Scotia native and Dalhousie student could get a shot to join the Thunderbirds as a practice squad player, giving him a chance to develop as an NLL prospect while only having to drive about 10 minutes from school to the home rink.

Neither Louis Alfred Jr. (#67) nor Josh Fairey (#82) is anywhere near a lock to make the roster, but both are solid players with the potential to make their draft slots look like a typo a few years down the line.

PUSHING FOR THE PLAYOFFS

Five teams finished 8-10 last NLL season. Only the Rochester Knighthawks among them got into the playoffs. Vancouver and Calgary are hoping their draft additions can help them be on the right side of the postseason dividing line in 2025.

Photo Courtesy of Johns Hopkins University

Vancouver Warriors

Much speculation heading into the draft saw the Warriors taking one of the top defenders with the fourth overall pick. Instead, they picked Owen Sound North Stars righty Johnathan Peshko. Adding him to the mix did free them up to deal Haley for the sixth pick, with which they were able to get the defender they coveted in hulking Remo Schenato, from the Coquitlam Jr. A Adanacs.

Vancouver also added another pair of righty forwards in Maple Ridge Burrards’ Rhys Porteous at #32, then nine picks later, Josh Carlson. The Denver graduate scored about a hat trick per game over the last two years with the Stoneflies in the Colorado Collegiate box league.

Calgary Roughnecks

Tons of attention has been paid to who has left Calgary (Zach Currier, Jeff Cornwall, Shane Simpson, Thomas Hoggarth). On Sunday, the focus was on the players coming in. Brayden Mayea was a bit of a surprise to go as high as #5, but that is only because he hasn’t been playing a lot of box lacrosse the last few years. Everyone knows he is talented and could have an impact at the NLL level immediately. Jack Follows is a steady defender, taken at #10.

But Calgary’s third pick in the draft, from the third round, could have the biggest impact. Colby Bowman was the top goalie available in the draft on my board. Even though a couple of teams had taken netminders in the second round, though, Bowman was still sitting there for the Roughnecks. If Del Bianco winds up being traded or sits out, Bowman could wind up as Calgary’s starter. His competition for the role is unproven youngster Cam MacLeod and career backup Steve Fryer. Nothing will be handed to Bowman, but he proved in Nanaimo this summer that he is ready to perform well at the highest levels of competition.

TOP HEAVY

Photo Courtesy of Duke Athletics

Philadelphia Wings

With the first overall pick, then nothing till #29, a lot was riding on one decision for GM Paul Day. The choice was complicated by the fact that wondrously talented lefty Brennan O’Neill just hasn’t played a lot of box lacrosse. Do you take an unknown quantity in the indoor game like O’Neill rather than a more sure thing in one of the other prospects who have vastly more box lacrosse experience?

Well, Casey Powell didn’t have all that much box experience, either, when he was the first American player to be drafted first overall. Now Powell is in the NLL Hall of Fame. The Wings can’t be counting on O’Neill to become a Hall of Famer, but the Powell example is probably reassuring for Day and his staff as they prepare to prepare the top pick.

Philadelphia had eight selections in total. They stayed local with some of the later ones. They took New Jersey native Steve DelleMonache 75th. He helped the Burlington Blaze win the 2023 Minto Cup and is fired up to be coming to camp with the team 20 minutes from home. Matt Kuhn was a goalie for the Philly Kings of the new local collegiate box league.

DELAYED GRATIFICATION

The pandemic extra years of school are almost over. They can be a boon to the players who get to keep playing college lacrosse while they go to grad school, and Syracuse University may be the biggest beneficiary of all, but it will be nice for teams and their fans to no longer have to wait a year till the players they have selected pull on the uniform.

For Toronto and Georgia, it was worth the wait this year for two of the top three picks, both of whom appeared on screen together from ‘Cuse as they waited for their names to be called by Commissioner Brett Frood.

Toronto Rock

Toronto loves taking players with whom they are familiar from playing for the Oakville Rock. They followed that route with the first first-round pick they have employed since 2016, both of which were #2 overall. If this one works out as well as it did the last time, they will be more than happy.

Challen Rogers was that last pick and he is now the Rock’s captain and one of the best players in the league. Sam English was the Oakvillian they opted for this time. Like Rogers, English is talented, athletic and a good character player.

And he wasn’t the only first-rounder the Rock had. That’s right, after spending seven drafts without taking someone in the first round, Toronto did it twice on Sunday night. They didn’t stray too far from home at #13, either. Jake Darlison shares the trait of versatility with Rogers. Like the Toronto captain, the Whitby Warriors grad is a solid defender with leadership qualities who is also comfortable staying up to play offense.

The Rock also followed a path that worked out rather well for them in the past when they submitted their first of two fifth-round picks. While Tom Schreiber was an undrafted free agent, Connor Shellenberger is also a ridiculously skilled American field lacrosse player with no box experience. The righty forward’s skill set was just too tempting to pass up at pick #63.

Georgia Swarm

With uncertainty over many of the top prospects in the draft, Mike Grace was the sure thing. He has played plenty of box at a high caliber. He is a good enough athlete that Canada added him to their roster for the world field championships in 2023 and he fit right in with that silver-medal roster.

Yes, the third overall pick is joining English with the Orange for a grad year after finishing up at RIT. That should work out pretty well for the Swarm, who have a nice mix of veteran and young talent in the back end, but need to be preparing to restock with six of their defenders over the age of 30.

Georgia threw observers a curveball when they made their second pick in the first round. The collected response to Frood announcing Alex Bean’s name was a quizzical tilt of the head. Bean is a big, strong defender from Loyola University. He has a summer of box experience, having played for the Toronto Beaches in 2023. He was a depth defender, though, dressing for about half of their games. GM & Owner John Arlotta, Head Coach Ed Comeau and their staff saw something they liked in Bean. If he pans out, those head tilts will transform into appreciative nods.

LOCAL TALENT

Rochester Knighthawks

The Knighthawks only had three picks after having dealt their others away. They used all three on defenders, all with ties to upstate New York.

Conner Fingar (#27) and Regan Endres (#51) are Albany grads who grew up near Rochester. Caleb Commandant is from Ontario, but the #80 pick went to the Rochester Institute of Technology.

LIMITED OPPORTUNITY

When you don’t have a pick in the first round, it is difficult to make a huge splash at the draft. Four teams in that situation all added some interesting pieces in the draft, though.

Colorado Mammoth

The Mammoth had the first pick of the second round, and they took a dynamic transition player from the Orangeville lacrosse factory in Owen Rahn at 17. Four picks later, they grabbed a promising goaltender (the first taken in the draft) with Nathan Whittom from the Mimico Mountaineers, and they added more goaltending depth with Six Nations Arrows’ backup Ethan Robertson at #44.

Colorado also snagged one of the draft’s most intriguing projects with #42 when they selected Patrick McIntosh. The lefty forward does not have much box experience, but he showed enough to be named to the tryout squad for the US team at the World Box men’s championship in Utica and played well enough that it would not have been stunning had he made the final roster.

Las Vegas Desert Dogs

Vegas went the field athlete route at #18 with Jack VanOverbeke, a High Point grad who got into a couple of PLL games with the Utah Archers this summer. The Desert Dogs added another lefty forward, this time with tons of box experience, in Jackson Webster, who had been projected as a possible first-round selection but who was available for them at 30.

Ottawa Black Bears

Ottawa has had a couple of years of Brent Noseworthy and added Taggart Clark at last season’s trade deadline instead of the pair of first-rounders they had owned this year. They went for help on the defensive end of the floor with all five of the picks they did use.

Dustyn Birkhof (#24) is a rugged player from the Cobourg Kodiaks while Riley Delill (#26) and Neal Adamson (#50) are both graduates of the Brampton Excelsiors. At #64, Ottawa got an interesting local prospect in Nathan Woods. He is a product of the Nepean Knights Jr. B program and has made a name for himself at the last two President’s Cups with the Snake Island Muskies.

After those four defenders, Ottawa used picked #79 on Orangeville goalie Lindyn Hill.

Photo Courtesy of Delaware Athletics

Albany FireWolves

The 2024 NLL finalists already have a wealth of talent coming in with not a lot of spots on the roster up for grabs. 2023 first overall pick Dyson Williams arrives this season, along with 2022 first-rounder Will Johansen, who hasn’t played yet because of injuries. They also signed Zac Masson, a former OJLL defender of the year who had been chasing the hockey dream but is coming to the NLL and will be injecting another first-rounder into the lineup. And Albany got John Wagner in exchange for this year’s first-round pick, and he is finally getting recognition as a top-tier defender in the NLL.

So, not picking until #28 was not a huge deal. There, they took JP Ward, who is from Owings Mills, Maryland, and led the Brampton Excelsiors of MSL in scoring in his first foray into high-level box lacrosse. They also got Jakson Raposo three picks later. Raposo is a transition player from Brooklin Lacrosse Club who has shown plenty of promise for the pro game.