Top 5 Goalie Prospects: 2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore

When the National Lacrosse League gathers virtually for the 2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore, how many will be goalies, and who will be among the first netminders taken? Last year, only four goalies were picked among the 97 names that were called.

We’re going to take a look at some of the top prospects for this year’s draft, and we’ll start the same way that a lot of teams look to build their roster, from the back out. Here are 5 of the top goalie prospects for this September.

Colby Bowman

Nanaimo Timbermen Sr. A, Walsh University

Bowman emerged as one of the top candidates among goalies for this draft with his strong 2023 Jr. A season in Nanaimo. He was named the top goalie in the BCJALL after posting an .847 save percentage while playing almost 1000 minutes. Then the Sr. A Timbermen protected him in the WLA draft to make sure they could keep him home. He started the senior season as the backup to NLL goalie Justin Geddie, but eventually Geddie was traded away and the team entrusted the crease to Bowman, who had proven with steady play all season that he was ready for a bigger role at the highest levels. Bowman returned to backing up when Devlin Shanahan, another NLL goalie, was ready to return to the lineup, but the Timbermen had already shown they believed he was ready for a starting role. He will almost surely start his NLL career as a backup, but Bowman appears to be the goalie in this year’s draft closest to being ready to play regularly, and most likely to rise to a starting position in the near future.

Tommy Wood

Raiders Lacrosse Club Jr. A

Wood declared early for last year’s draft, and it is a bit surprising that nobody took a flyer on him, given his increasingly strong play last summer as he took on the main starting role for the Raiders. His stock may have fallen a bit with his brief stint with the Edmonton Miners after being picked up for the Minto Cup; he allowed five goals on just 14 shots. That was a tiny sample size, though, and Wood came back even better this season with an .869 save percentage in the regular season. He held the fort in the Raiders’ 7-6 win in the deciding game of the RMLL finals, so Wood returned to the Minto this year with his own team and as the unquestioned starter. His performance at the Minto mirrored that of the Raiders: Wood posted a .750 save percentage as the young Rocky Mountain champs dropped all three of their games to teams who were clearly further along the path to championship contention. Wood did not boost his draft stock at the Minto, but probably did not significantly harm it, either.

SIX NATIONS, ON – JULY 14: Ontario Junior A Lacrosse League game between the Peterborough Lakers and Six Nations Arrows at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena on July 14, 2024 in Six Nations, Ontario, Canada (Photo by Michelle Malvaso)

Cole Gervais

Peterborough Lakers Jr. A

Gervais was the other goalie in the trade that sent Deacan Knott to the Burlington Blaze last summer. While that trade, and Knott’s play for the Blaze as they won the Minto, was a clear indication that Burlington made a good decision to make the deal, in the longer term, it also worked out for the Lakers, who installed Gervais as their starter this summer and got a terrific year out of him. He put up an .843 save percentage while showing much more efficient movement in the crease. Gervais was outstanding in the playoffs, playing perhaps the most important role in Peterborough coming back from 2-0 down to beat the Six Nations Arrows in their best-of-five first round series. Gervais, like most young goalies, will take some time to develop as a pro and may or may not turn into a long-term starter in the NLL. He does look like he has the ability to be a valuable addition to a roster.

Lindyn Hill of the Orangeville Northmen at the Minto Cup. Photo by Bold Photos by Shelley.

Lindyn Hill

Orangeville Jr. A

When Connor O’Toole arrived from Brampton in a huge deadline trade, Hill suddenly went from being one of the top goalies in the league, statistically, to a backup. There is no shame in sitting behind a goalie who has already been a first-round NLL draft pick and spent a season on Vancouver’s practice squad, as O’Toole was. Had Hill gotten the opportunity to lead the Northmen on their run to the Minto and capitalized on it, his stock surely would have risen. Not playing will hurt him, although he did have enough time to prove he has tremendous potential with an .861 save percentage while being the starter through Orangeville’s first dozen games.

Another issue for Hill is that his Jr. A sample size is limited. Before this summer, he had played Jr. B and for the Haudenosaunee at the IIJL World Juniors, where he was good but not great. His play ramped up significantly this year with Orangeville. Teams could see that as a flash in the pan, or they could perceive that Hill raises the level of his game with better players in front of him. Where someone lands on that spectrum will determine how early he gets selected.

Calum Leaver-Preyra

Burlington Blaze Jr. A

Leaver-Preyra stepped into the starting role with the defending Minto Cup champions after having played just 167 total minutes between Mimico and Burlington a year ago. He played well throughout the summer for Burlington but really stepped his game up in the playoffs. While the Blaze fell in four games to the St. Catharines Athletics, that first-round exit was not on Leaver-Preyra; he allowed 10 goals only once while giving up six or seven in each of the other three games. His save percentage for the playoffs was an outstanding .857 as Leaver-Preyra continued to improve right through the end of the season.

The 2024 NLL Draft presented by Castore will be streamed LIVE Sunday, September 15 at 7pm ET on the NLL’s Facebook and YouTube pages.