A look at the sixteenth week of NLL match-ups, where the chase for the final playoff spot is underway.  Below are my picks for this wekeends games. I have underlined the teams that I have picked as the victors.

Edmonton Rush @ Colorado Mammoth

Fri Apr 20, 2012, 09:00 PM, Pepsi Center, Denver, CO

A 5-8 Edmonton squad hosts the first place Colorado Mammoth in lovely Edmonton, Alberta.  Colorado has a playoff spot locked while Edmonton is leading the charge for the final spot against Washington & Buffalo.

I expected Edmonton to be in this position at the beginning of the season with a roster that is just not good enough to gather the points necessary to make the post season.  Mid season addition Paul Rabil was a gamble that ultimately bit them in the buttocks with Rabes bailing on them.  They do have top end talent in Greer, Evans, and Williams but the real question being; is this enough top end talent to not only get them to the playoffs but to succeed once they get there.  Aaron Bold’s 10 GAA is pretty good considering their record, but this GAA will be tested with JGJR’s 8 PPG.
Colorado went from the basement to the penthouse out dueling the Philadelphia Wings for turnaround team of the season. From top to bottom they are packed with goal scorers, defense, and toughness.  Ryan Connors wrote an article labeling JGJR as the best in the business and looking at his statistics I don’t think you could find many people that would disagree.  He’s sporting a league leading 104 points and doesn’t show any sign of slowing down.  Adding players like Jones, McBride, Lincoln, Shewchuk, Gajic, Hawksbee, and Smith round out this powerhouse. They could be the consensus pick for the Champions Cup this spring.

Toronto Rock @ Washington Stealth

Fri Apr 20, 2012,11:00 PM, Comcast Arena, Everett, WA

The Toronto Rock are the Detroit Red Wings of the NLL.  They are ALWAYS in the mix for the championship due in large part to the core of their teams.  The Stealth for some reason haven’t been able to figure it out this year, and look like they are going to miss the playoffs.

Step aside Colin Doyle, Garrett Billings is the new sheriff in town.  Billings has 99 {Wayner!} points leading in both goals and assists.  Second to Billings is Stephan Leblanc, another youthful force for the Rock.  Where they are most dangerous however is in the Man (Veteran) department.  Like John Grant Jr., Colin Doyle and Josh Sanderson have the ability to decide games, which is a pretty dangerous combination come playoff time.

This season was a WASH for the Stealth, who I picked pre season to be in the final facing the rock for a third straight year.  It seems as if their offense has taken a year off with the highest individual point total being Rhys Duch at 61.  That isn’t good enough in this league if you want to win high scoring games on a weekly basis.

Rochester Knighthawks @ Buffalo Bandits

Sat Apr 21, 2012, 07:30 PM, First Niagara Center, Buffalo, NY

The Rochester Knighthawks are having a decent season having clinched a playoff spot, while the Bandits are in a dogfight for the final spot in the post season.

The Knighthawks knocked off the impressive Calgary Roughnecks last week and are looking at bettering their position come playoff time.  Cody Jamieson is leading the team with 77 points and is receiving consistent secondary scoring from the rest of the offense.  Matt Vinc’s 12.29 GAA will need to be better from now on if they want to advance past the first round of the playoffs.

The Bandits need to win out to grease a playoff spot from the Edmonton Rush.  John Tavares, possibly the biggest beauty in the league, is leading the way with 73 points.  Luke Wiles and Mark Steehuis are doing their best to chip in while Tracey Kelusky could help the boys out if he returns to past form.  Similar to Rochester’s goaltending situation, a GAA above 12 isn’t good enough to win a lot of games.  Anthony Cosmo is one of the best goalie in the business, and if they can somehow make the playoffs he is a scary guy to face.

Philadelphia Wings @ Minnesota Swarm

Sat Apr 21, 2012, 08:00 PM, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN

Leading the East with a 7-7 record the new look Wings are ready to make a run at the Champions Cup.  They might be the most inconsistent team in the league however, winning big games then getting chased in others.  The Minnesota Swarm hold an identical record to the Wings and sit in the middle of the West with a playoff berth clinched.

If I picked a “best in the business” player it would feature Dan Dawson.  This guy doesn’t necessarily bring the average joe out of his seat, but he is amazing.  He has the ability to use everyone on the floor, and particularly in the two-man game on the right side, there isn’t anyone better.  If he wasn’t playing professional lacrosse, he would be living in the Okanagan in British Columbia farming apples.  Kevin Crowley can probably thank Dawson for most of his 35 goals this season and if we asked him he would probably agree.  If the Wings can find some sort of consistency come playoffs they have a legitimate chance at making a big run.

I did not expect the Swarm to be locked into a playoff spot coming into this season.  I watched them beat Philly on April 6 on webcast with BC’s own Jake Elliot running the play-by-play.  Way to go!  Benesch and Crawford are having solid seasons for the Swarm, but the wins are coming from their goaltending.  Evan Kirk has a 9.78 GAA that says to the team all we need to do is score ten goals on a nightly basis and we will win.  If your goaltender asks you to score ten instead of thirteen it is a significantly easier task to complete.

Calgary Roughnecks @ Edmonton Rush

Sat Apr 21, 2012,10:00 PM, Rexall Place, Edmonton, AB 

Nothing beats a provincial/state rivalry. That is exactly what will take place at Rexall Place on Saturday.  The Rougnecks are locked into the playoffs comfortably while the Rush need every W they can get.

The Rougnecks have one of the most impressive offenses in the league.  They don’t necessarily have a Doyle or a Grant but they have a handful of guys that are one tier below, which is called ‘depth’ my friends.  Evans, Dickson, Veltman, Dobbie, Ranger, Shattler, Conway are all SOLID offensive players.  In fact they don’t have one guy on O that isn’t solid.  Maybe that is why they sit tied for first in the NLL.  They also have the best faceoff man in the league with Snider, and a pretty impressive transition.

Edmonton needs this W to better their chances at making the post season.  This results in a desperate team, and if history has proven anything, desperate teams win.  The challenge will be out dueling an IMPRESSIVE Calgary lineup.

Enough with the knee slappers, I’ll get on to the point.  The Canucks are one of two Canadian teams in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs and lets be honest, the stronger contender.  Four out of the seven people that will end up reading this will say “classic Canucks fan, they think they’re the shit.” But if you disagree, you probably cant spell Montréal either, #meat.  My problem is with the fans of the five Canadian teams who find themselves outside of the playoff picture.  They sit around belittling the accomplishments of the one Canadian team that is doing everything right.  A team that is knocking on the door of the Stanley Cup while their organization is knocking on the door of the draft lottery.  Canucks fans please take this hatred as a compliment as it says, “Man I wish my GM and Coaching Staff had a bloody clue.”

Need more of this tonight!

If my team missed the playoffs, which is kind of weird to think about because they are so good, but I would just sit back and enjoy the show.  I wouldn’t belittle the teams that are still playing, because of how pathetic it comes off.  The quote to end all quotes with these Teds is; “Well you couldn’t beat Boston you nerds.”  Well guy from Edmonton… if you had beaten more than 32 teams in 82 outings this season, and somehow made it through three rounds… perhaps you could have taken a run at Boston.  Do you understand how ridiculous your opinion looks now?

Sit back Canucks fans and be thankful for these things: Dion Phaneuf isn’t your captain, you didn’t finish the regular season with less points than the New York Islanders, your GM could probably underpay half of the lea
ue to play for your Ontario based team but can’t figure it out, your GM didn’t indirectly trade Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton for Phillip Kessel, Ryan Whitney isn’t your best defenseman, you didn’t sign Ales Hemsky to a two year ten-

million dollar contract, and finally you aren’t in a ‘rebuilding phase’.  ’Rebuilding Phase’ is another term for ‘we shit the bed on this one’.  And finally Canuckleheads if we lose in the first round or win the Stanley Cup, at the end of the day take solace in the fact that our organization has a clue as to what they’re doing.

In the Storm’s inaugural season they split home games between Wallaceburg and Sarnia, before posting up shop the next season, permanently at Clear Water Arena in Sarnia. However, “permanently” did not last long as the Storm closed the doors shortly after.

Now, a former Storm player is calling the shots. Tom Quinn has resurrected senior lacrosse in Sarnia and things are looking good!

Not only has Quinner managed to ink major sponsors, and manage an overwhelming amount of calls and emails from local playing talent, but he has also set his team apart from the rest of the Sr B pack as being “best dressed” before the season even kicks-off! Tom and the group had a solid idea of what they wanted. After a few tweaks and a few concepts, I am proud to present to you on behalf of Harrow Sports the inaugural home and away jerseys of the Sarnia Kel-Gor Beavers.

Home Whites

Away Blacks

The Shadow will be featured on Lacrosse Beauty each week as the title sponsor for our first reoccurring post “15 Thoughts”. The Shadow will serve as the think-tank where our collective thoughts will come together and drop some serious lacrosse, hockey, sports, and common sense knowledge on the skin-ternet. Think of it as a real-life twitter experience… then posted on the internet.

The “15 thoughts” will be counted and graded loosely, depending on how fast the pitches and wings are thrown down. Needless to say, we are excited, thirsty, and hungry!

The Mountain Shadow Pub

Hey you beauties.

So Foxy has been bugging me to post the latest video we produced for Urban Jester Entertainment: “Sh*t people say about sports.” Specifically, girls and guys.

Matheson and I co-wrote this sketch with our friend and comedian Scott Patey in mind as the perfect person for the role. Teaming up with our technical producer “The Crisser”, the combo produced Urban Jester’s biggest viral success yet!

If you watch closely, we were sure to throw in a bunch of lacrosse references (watch the clothing worn) but this sketch can be applied to all sports in general….especially if you’re Canadian eh.

Enjoy!

JMath hard at work.

Teddy Jenner asked my pal Chris Fox on the TEAM1040 last night, ‘What is one thing you would change about the NLL?’  Foxy answered with wooden floors…for some reason.  Logically, everyone knows the NLL has briefcases of money they are looking to piss away.  My proposition is a lot simpler Christopher, and could probably be done with the cost of one of your woodys.

My morning routine consists of many activities a few of which I should probably leave out. But, after my fifteen kilometer backwards run I go on NHL.com & hockeyfights.com and watch the tillys & ginos from the previous night that interest me.  Like Dion Phaneuf getting beat up or Stamkos dropping to one knee and roofing it from an acute angle.  After I exhaust these I head over to NLL.com for about thirty seconds. At about that time I realize there is nothing on there.  I hope my change for the NLL is now apparent, give the fans a better, more user-friendly website.

If you go to NLL.com looking for a random post game interview done against a blank wall with a entry-level camcorder it is probably the best professional sport website in the world.  But let’s be honest interviews are the boring shit that you find at the end of the highlight package.  NLL.com offers no highlight packages, no ability to watch individual goals from each game, and NO fight highlights.  On top of this, their stats are basic and all over the place.  It is upsetting because the footage is there, they web cast every game on their livestream channels. But, they are too lazy to go through and compile the things thatt people would actually watch and draw from useful statistics.

Step it up NLL! how can you root for something you can’t see?

Even though Teddy bumped me last week, I am finally making my radio début!

Making my AM Radio début tonight at 9:00PM PST on #TEAM1410 Listen live online bit.ly/team1410 Lacrosse talk with @OffTheCrosseBar

— Chris Fox (@Fox_Chris) March 14, 2012

The Off The Crosse Bar radio show is hosted by Ted Jenner. Teddy is a former Mann Cup winner and NLL’er. Teddy knows his lacrosse and is one hell of a Beauty! He has put some serious man-hour in growing the game on the media side of the sport. Teddy is also currently the voice of the Washington Stealth.

Here is the link to listen live tonight at 9:00PM PST “West Coast” http://bit.ly/team1410 (click)

Rochester Knighthawks @ Philadelphia Wings

Sat Mar 03, 2012
Time
07:00 PM
Location
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA

Kicking off week #9 in the NLL are the Eastern Conference two and three seeds, Philadelphia and Rochester.

Playing Rochester in a Saturday night match-up has the Philadelphia restaurant industry saying, ‘Thank goodness it is not a Friday game’. Rochester currently sits at 3-5 and are fresh off of a loss to Toronto last weekend. Cody Jamieson is having an MVP season, leading his team with 44 points through eight games. The fact that the next highest point total is Mike Accursi’s 35 makes me worry about the team’s secondary scoring.

Philly is fresh off a loss to Edmonton last week but are credited for turned their franchise around in only one year . New addition, number one overall draft pick, Kevin Crowley has a team best 21 goals. While dispersal draft pick, Dan Dawson leads in overall points with 46. Philly definitely has the offence to win this one and the twin towers could be the difference.

I choose Philadelphia in this high scoring game.

-

Washington Stealth @ Toronto Rock

Sat Mar 03, 2012
Time
07:00 PM
Location
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON

A 2010 and 2011 Championship re-re-match the Toronto Rock now #1 in the East versus the Washington Stealth who are dead last in the west.

Coming off one of the worst on-paper trades since I spent 75$ to ship a rock, Washington is looking to turn around their regular season in a big way. I’m just not sure if Toronto is the team that I would choose to start this turnaround against.

Washington sits at 1-6. A record that if you told me at the beginning of the season the Stealth would have at this point, I would have let you staple my face to the carpet. It is not that hard to explain if you look at the individual stats. Duch and Ratcliff are the only players producing offensively. I think there is some sort of distraction in Washington affecting the players, because for the first seven games they haven’t been able to get going yet they have the roster to do so.

Toronto, with a better GF-GA Average, is tied with Philly for the lead in the east with a 4-3 record. They come into this game however, with some injuries in Doyle and Manning. Thankfully Garret Billings and his 42 points have been able to win without these two warlocks.

I will pick Toronto because Washington can’t seem to do anything right.

-

Colorado Mammoth @ Buffalo Bandits
Sat Mar 03, 2012
Time
07:30 PM
Location
First Niagara Center, Buffalo, NY

The Colorado John Grant Jrs versus the Buffalo John Tavares match up in Buffalo has its share of beauty.

Colorado sits atop the NLL standings with an impressive 6-1 record. No one is near John Grant Jr. in points with his 59, but his supporting cast is fairly impressive and I think that is reflected with their record. Fresh off of a serious dusting by Calgary, a 21-10 loss, it will be interesting to see how the Mammoth answer.

Buffalo isn’t having the season Colorado is but at 2-4 they have games in hand in the East. John Tavares and Luke Wiles have been producing for the Bandits. But they need a lot more scoring to beat the Mammoth.

If JGjr takes the correct dosage of his danglitis medication, Colorado wins this game simply because Buffalo can’t score at the same pace.

-

Minnesota Swarm @ Calgary Roughnecks

Sat Mar 03, 2012
Time
09:00 PM
Location
Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, AB

Minnesota has out lived my expectations set out for them at the beginning of the season. They are getting relatively spread out scoring from their offense and their goaltending has been strong. Callum Crawford is leading in team scoring with 4O points.

Calgary is not atop the NLL in the standings, but definitely would be atop the power rankings after dusting Colorado last weekend in Denver. Their offense is incredibly spread out, their defense is fantastic, and their goaltending has been strong as well. They would be my Champions Cup pick right now and I do not see Minnesota beating them.

Calgary will win this game handedly.

For a R-rated version, you can watch this.  There’s cussing!  If you’re into that stuff.

First and foremost, Stiffler (also known as Sean William Scott in the real world) will be known as Doug Glatt from now on after this performance, which will forever be remembered in our books.  He pulled out an absolute beauty performance as a minor league hockey enforcer ‘touched by the fists of God’. His character was actually based on the true life story of Doug Smith.

Sabertooth… is played by Liev Schreiber…?  His name is Liev, like Lee-ev?  Well, anyway Sabertooth also comes up big as the seasoned vet, a Marty McSorely inspired enforcer, in Ross Rhea.  Liev also played Sabertooth in X-Men. Totally different movie.

The inevitable Donnybrook between the new kid on the block and the old man was still an edge of your seat tilt, full of suspense. The movie overall was hilarious. The one liners go shift-for-shift with all the great Slap Shot dialog of old and the actual hockey scenes were leaps and bounds better than any clip from Young Blood.

Bottom-line, this is an epic hockey, nay, sports movie for the ages.

However, while watching the movie, I couldn’t help but make connections to my own life.  Not that I am a feared enforcer… in fact, I’m pretty embarrassing. But that doesn’t mean I won’t take a few punches for a team mate. That is beside the point.  Sure, I made connections, I have definitely played with, and “been” a lot of guys portrayed in this flick. But the biggest connection I made was the divided acceptance and disdain for fighting in hockey, and in our case, box lacrosse.

It made me instantly link to the hissy fits that go back and forth here on the LAS Network about fighting. Even though I am sure a few new people have came around since hearing some compelling arguments, the debate against fighting still lingers. This movie realistically depicts the role of an enforcer and what it means to him as player, and what it means to his coaches and team mates he plays for and protects.

Goon.

There are many reasons why fighting needs to exist in hockey and box lacrosse. However, none is more brain-dead obvious than the existence of an entire semi-professional league. If fighting did not exist in professional hockey, minor league franchises would not be able to draw crowds in the southern United States. The reality of it is, the SPHL exists for the soul purpose that those fans come to see fights. There is a market for fighting, and a large market at that. A large enough market to support an entire league.

Goon is a violent-romantic-comedy, I was in stitches and tense with anticipation during the entire 92 minutes. However, Goon does not glorify fighting. It highlights and provides positive reinforcement as to why fighting is necessary and respected in hockey, and in our case, box lacrosse.

Get out, go see it. Share and express your opinions on the movie and fighting in hockey and box lacrosse in the comment section. If you really want to get into it hit me up on twitter!

Follow @Fox_Chris

We are excited to announce the newest blog to join the LAS Network, Lacrosse Beauty.  LAS currently provides a vast array of lacrosse news and entertainment ranging from NCAA, MCLA, International, High School, and Professional.  The recent redesign allows readers to access posts from across the network more readily, search specific topics more efficiently, and allow readers to explore more blogs on the network.  Although Lacrosse Beauty is new to the LAS Network there are some familiar and entertaining faces behind the newest channel!

Our blog will centralize all box lacrosse content.  Not only will we feature and highlight box lacrosse content, we will be adding our own Canadian flair to each and every post.

We will be using this as a way to express our talents and our hobbies. And of course, exude that creative energy that we have pent up, which is often locked up by one being an athlete.

Without further adieu (I had to google that spelling!), let’s get everyone up to speed.

The Name: Lacrosse Beauty – personifies our featured bloggers.  Canadian vernacular, especially Canadian lacrosse and hockey player vernacular, is rich with unique and comical language. The term ‘Beauty‘ has been tossed around the rink since the dawn of time. ‘Beauty‘ describes that guy on your team who is always getting laughs, the guy who is always ‘wheeling’ at the bar, and the guy who is a complete gem on the floor.

I’ve had the pleasure of playing and partying with both of our featured bloggers, Jeffrey Matheson and Matt Brascia. Nothing can be closer to describing either of these guys on and off the floor – Lacrosse Beauties. These guys will have your back headed into any scrum after the whistle and be right beside you ready to shotgun a Pilsner after a beauty win.

You can look forward to so much more content coming up, but for now allow us to introduce ourselves:

Chris Fox (Wheeling Jesuit University)

Home Town: Wallaceburg, ON Resides: Downtown Vancouver

I’ve been playing lacrosse for 25 years. My life is the sport, recreational and professional. My playing experience marches on and ranges from Jr. B (Ontario)(2006 Jr. B Founders Cup National Champ), Sr. B(Ontario/BC/CanAm), NCAA DII, MSL, WLA, and in and out of NLL and MLL training camps. I’ve coached Men’s and Women’s NCAA both as an Assistant and Head Coach and as an Assistant in the MCLA. I work for a manufacturer, and contractually as an advisor to Jr. and Sr. A franchises, and a professional lacrosse investment group.

I have a very passionate and logical rational of where our sport is, where it is headed, and what needs to change for it to succeed.

I will write my posts coming from every angle drawing from all my experiences. I’ll try and relax from time to time and share my creative side by using graphic design to invoke discussion and have our readers interact creatively as well.

Jeff Matheson (Simon Fraser)

Hometown: Port Moody, B.C.

I am not going to come out here like Los Angeles Foxy and toot my own horn for an entire paragraph. Let’s be honest everyone bailed at ‘Playing for 25 years’ and got drawn in by ‘Port Moody’ because let’s be honest, it’s God’s Country. I have played lacrosse almost as long as Foxy and hope to open minds to some Canadian ideals. What some see as barbaric or blatant disregard for safety is seen to us as ‘expected’ or ‘normal’. The amount of respect and friendship inside and outside of the game is something I think most people don’t notice or understand. Lacrosse is more than a game and fighting is more than knuckles.

Matt Brascia (Simon Fraser)

Hometown: Coquitlam, B.C.

I’ve been playing lacrosse for a long time. During that time I’ve won big and lost big. Played on great teams and not so great teams. Shed blood, sweat and tears, won gold, met babes and had beers (did I just make that up?). In the end, I think the best part of it all, are the people you get to share these moments with (J Math and Foxy included). That being said, I take Lacrosse Beauty as an outlet to give back to the sport that I’ve grown to love mentally as much as I do physically. As good Canadian kids and life-long laxers, I believe this crew has a pretty great understanding of what Lacrosse is, it’s roots, it’s modernization and it’s progression.

The other love in my life is producing media content. I’ve been taking photos and video since I was physically capable of stealing my parent’s hi8 and have always loved to write. J Math and I both went to SFU and graduated with Communications degrees while playing lax for the Clan (they really need to update there name), from freshman to seniors. Simon Fraser University’s Communications program is renowned for being one of the best in the world and I can attest it helped to hone our writing immensely. See how ejimicational I got there? Long story short pal, we love Lacrosse, we love producing the material and we don’t suck at any of it. We’ve been doin’er all for a pretty long time now eh. Right on.

In Conclusion…

As proud members of the True, North, Strong and Free, our content will always have a particularly Canadian flair about it. Canadians are proud about their Summer (and original) National Sport. If anything, I hope Lacrosse Beauty becomes an outlet to spread the love of the game to its full potential; if we can do that by sharing some laughs and opinions, beauty status.

Looking forward to cookin’ up some beauties, for you beauties. Like and Follow us below!

Follow @LacrosseBeauty

Beautyyyyyy…