With the National Lacrosse League’s 2023-24 regular season just days away from dropping, The Lax Mag is pleased to present our annual NLL Top 100, where we count down today’s top players from 100 to 1, mostly based on last year’s success but also how we see them producing this upcoming season. More on our ranking criteria in a sec.

In 2022, we ranked Halifax Thunderbirds Hulk Graeme Hossack #1. Last year, entering just his second season in the league, Jeff Teat took the top spot. This year, it’s NLL & Mann Cup winner Dhane Smith, who had an all-time special season both individually and alongside his teammates en route to those two titles.

To create this best-of list, the following criteria was used to evaluate a player’s placement: career regular season and playoff resume with an emphasis on most recent NLL runs (which we tracked all season-long in our Top 30 Player Ranking too), reputation and reviews from pro-playing peers, expectations and potential for this upcoming season, and lastly, positional impact and overall value they provide their team. Any players that are confirmed or suspected of missing the entire year due to injury (or otherwise) are not ranked. This year that unfortunately includes the likes of Latrell Harris and Ryan Lee, both of whom would have surely been high up on The 100.

The Toronto Rock see the most players on this year’s 100 with ten players picked, while the Buffalo Bandits, San Diego Seals, Halifax Thunderbirds and Georgia Swarm sit just behind them with nine each.

Below, see where all of those players and 54 others rank in the league’s first and most definitive player ranking: The Lax Mag NLL Top 100.

Last Year (LY) Legend

NR = Not ranked last year
IN = Injured & not ranked last year
🔥 = Climbed 10-19 positions from last year + new players ranked 76-100
🔥🔥 = Climbed 20-29 positions from last year + new players ranked 51-75
🔥🔥🔥 = Climbed 30+ positions from last year + new players ranked 1-50

Age: 22
Season: 3
Position: Forward
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Victoria, BC
Last Year: 48

Patrick Dodds is one of a handful of Saskatchewan’s offseason acquisitions that the reworked Rush are hoping can have a bit of a bounce back season in a fresh environment. With above-average roster movement on Panther City’s offense last year, Dodds saw a significant statistical sag in comparison to his outstanding rookie run with the PCLC (he put up 34 fewer points in 2023). He’ll likely be relied on heavily in Saskatchewan, who bring back just two of their top six point producers from last season (Robert Church & Ryan Keenan).

Age: 28
Season: 4
Position: Forward
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Easton, CT
Last Year: NR 🔥

If the league handed out a Most Improved Player trophy, you’d have to think Connor Kelly would have been a contender in 2023. Leading an Albany offense that has been under major reconstruction over the past two years, Kelly crushed all his previous best offensive numbers (35G, 33A) and took more shots last year than his combined two-season total in San Diego & New York. Now in Colorado, Kelly’s contributions could be key in attempting to replace an again-injured Ryan Lee. Kelly will seemingly start the season on the Mammoth’s hold-out list, the team moving him there a few days before final rosters were due to the league.

Age: 25
Season: 2
Position: Transition
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Brampton, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥

His first-year play was a bit overshadowed by ROTY finalists Jonathan Donville, Brett Dobson and Jack Hannah, but if you slept on the season Jake Boudreau quietly constructed in Saskatchewan last season, get ready for a rude awakening. Third on the Rush roster in loosies (his 94 were behind only Mike Messenger & Kyle Rubisch), Boudreau, who scored 34 times during his last two OJLL seasons with Brampton, showcased that strong offensive upside in the NLL too. While his O production slowed late in the year, Boudreau had 7 points during 5 games in February, which included a hat-trick against the West-leading Seals (16-11W).

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Transition
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Surrey, BC
Last Year: NR 🔥

Putting up preposterous goal totals at Ohio State and with Delta & New Westminster in the BCJALL, Tre Leclaire entered the NLL as a perfectly penciled-in forward. Due to a loaded San Diego offense, Leclaire has since transitioned into, well, a talented transition presence for the Seals, much like O-upside players Mark Steenhuis, Jeff Shattler or Mitch Jones did when they first started playing pro. Leclaire is a top ball chaser and loosie generator in San Diego who can also stun the opposition with a slick score on the press.

Age: 31
Season: 6
Position: Defense
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Jamesville, NY
Last Year: NR 🔥

With teams recently searching for strong face-off takers that do more than FOGO, the Colorado Mammoth have had a pretty decent one on their roster for the last several seasons in Tim Edwards. A really reliable defender, Edwards took more draws in 2023 than in any previous season, and came out of last year’s campaign with a career-bet 61.7% face-off win percentage. Only dot-dominators Jake Withers (78.6%), Trevor Baptiste (70.2%) and TD Ierlan (62.4%) did better. The defensively dependable Edwards also added 11 assists last year, which again, was a single-season career high (for assists and points).

Age: 30
Season: 6
Position: Transition
Team: Albany FireWolves
From: Burlington, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥

Not many are left from a New England Black Wolves roster that had THE best record (8-3) in the NLL prior to the pandemic pausing and then canning the 2020 season. Colton Watkinson is just one of six players (Joe Nardella, Doug Jamieson, Jackson Nishimura, Nick Chaykowsky and Mike Byrne are the other five) that competed for the now-FireWolves franchise that winter. Built from the back out, Watkinson, who doubled his goal production (8) via the press and set a new single-season LB high (80), is a heavily leaned on leader in Albany, even more so with long-time captain Brett Manney retiring over the offseason.

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Forward
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Courtice, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥

Of Calgary’s Top 6 point producers from a season ago (all forwards), Tanner Cook gave away the ball less times than any others, took far fewer shots than most, and scored more goals (32) than all of them except for team leader Jesse King (42). The 6’3”, 225 lbs. power forward came on in a big way last year, nearly tripling his goal total from his 2022 rookie campaign in Calgary. Cook was arguably even better during last year’s playoffs, leading the Roughnecks with 8 goals (in 4 games) and seeing his average shots per game go from 5 (regular season) to nearly 8 when it mattered most.

Age: 30
Season: 4
Position: Defense
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Ithaca, NY
Last Year: 99

Anticipated to miss December and most of January while recovering from wrist surgery, it’s unlikely that even that extended MIA stretch will slow down the continued climb Eli Gobrecht has made indoors since first playing for the San Diego Seals in 2020. Last year, Gobrecht set new single-season highs for his offensive numbers, but more importantly, did the same in both the LB (113) and CT (24) columns too. The 2024 World Box Lacrosse Championships will be hosted in Ithaca, New York, just a few hours away from Gobrecht’s hometown of Utica. Family & friends should grab some seats now, because Gobrecht is an absolute lock to land a spot on Team USA’s promising lineup.

Age: 27
Season: 4
Position: Defense
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Thorold, ON
Last Year: 93

Chris Corbeil left two offseasons ago. Kyle Rubisch & Ryan Dilks did the same this summer. Jeff Cornwall was previously traded. Matt Beers stuck around for a short time but split. There’s little left from one of the most imposing defensive units in league history, and if the Saskatchewan Rush rebuild is going to work, it’s the own-end play of next-gen pros like Holden Garlent that will determine the team’s level of coming-soon success. The team’s top lefty defender, Garlent will no doubt see the opposition’s strongest offerings on that side this upcoming season. He plays solid positional defense, is ultra athletic, and can connect on the press too. If things go smoothly in Saskatoon, this could be a big year for Garlent.

Age: 31
Season: 8
Position: Defense
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Courtice, ON
Last Year: 81

While the 2023 non-playoff season the Philadelphia Wings had was a disappointing one, Chad Tutton’s first in the black & gold was a positive for the franchise. He contributed to the offense with his highest point total (5G, 13A) since 2016 in Georgia, Tutton also setting new one-year bests for LBs (124) and CTs (29) - that turnover tally good enough for eighth in the entire NLL. With Kiel Matisz dealt and Philadelphia’s defensive end getting a bit younger and likely a lot faster, look for Tutton to lead and succeed in the Wings’ more mobile back-end.

Age: 24
Season: 2
Position: Forward
Team: Las Vegas Desert Dogs
From: Milford, OH
Last Year: NR 🔥

First playing box lacrosse just seven years ago while suiting up for Team USBOXLA in British Columbia, Jack Hannah has evolved into a legitimate NLL forward after just one season in the pros, and still oozing so much potential for so much more. The lethal Las Vegas goal getter (Hannah co-led the team with 33 goals) showed above-average confidence & maturity for a first-year player, while his compete level was just as Bill Tierney described. Hannah scored almost as many goals (6) as the entire Colorado Mammoth team in a 13-8 Vegas win on February 4, possibly the most spectacular rookie performance from all of last year.

Below, see the only rookies since 2005 (the furthest back NLL stats are available) to score a sock-trick (6 goals) or more.

Chris Boushy, Rochester, 7 (2019)
Jack Hannah, Las Vegas, 6 (2023)
Jeff Teat, New York, 6 (2022)
Wes Berg, Calgary, 6 (2016)
Alex Gajic, Colorado, 6 (2010)
Athan Iannucci, Philadelphia, 6 (2007)

Age: 26
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥

There are not a lot of true power-forward types in the NLL these days. Chris Boushy, especially after his performance last year, is clearly one of them. A pain-in-the-ass presence up front, Boushy combines grit with goal scoring, almost hitting 40 in a single campaign in 2023 with Halifax. Now with the Toronto Rock after an offseason trade between the two rivals, Boushy’s ability to battle & finish in tight give the Rock an option they haven’t really had lately. Boushy has also been a regular in The Lax Mag’s Clutch Kings countdown, where we examine the most money goal producers in the league.

Age: 28
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 78

Statistically speaking, Brendan Bomberry had an almost identical season to his offensive breakout campaign a year earlier. Like the Georgia Swarm in general, Bomberry struggled to find goal-scoring success early. During his first nine games of the season, Bomberry found the back of the net just seven times, which included a three-game stretch of zeroes in the G column. The second half of his season, like the team’s, was significantly stronger (18 goals in last 9 games). There is no doubt that a player as smart, skilled and driven as Bomberry is capable of cracking 40 goals in a single season. If the Swarm, who missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons for only the second time in franchise history last year, have plans of finishing in the Top 8, they’ll need Bomberry to keep trending up versus stabilizing his stat line.

Age: 34
Season: 13
Position: Defense
Team: Vancouver Warriors
From: New Westminster, BC
Last Year: 71

Captain Brett Mydske is one of the few veteran defenders that made the cut in Vancouver after the arrival of Curt Malawsky on the team’s bench and in their front office. Defensemen Owner Barker & Tyler Codron, two of the few that played 18 games in Vancouver last year (Mydske did too, same with forward Kyle Killen, and that was it), were both straight up released by the team. “Curt did a really good job of bringing in character guys, team-first guys,” Mydske told The Province soon after the start of this year’s training camp. “I’m not saying that the other guys weren’t. I’m just saying that we have a really good group this year.” After the franchise played in the NLL Cup Finals in three of four seasons from 2010-2013, the team has qualified for the playoffs just once since (2017).

Age: 29
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Fairport, NY
Last Year: NR 🔥

Only one East Conference team scored fewer goals than last year’s Philadelphia Wings, who failed to make the 2023 playoffs after (on paper at least) showing so much promise. Had the entire team played with the same heart, determination and guts as Blaze Riorden did, they’d have most definitely been playing past April. Riorden registered what was easily his best season ever in the NLL last year, setting new offensive highs across the board and jumping Matt Rambo (who won’t be playing this season) on the team’s offensive depth charts. Over the past two years, Riorden has also regularly appeared in The Lax Mag’s Clutch Kings series as one of today’s most timely goal scorers.

Age: 27
Season: 5
Position: Defense
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Caledon, ON
Last Year: 98 🔥

One of the Swarm’s more dependable defenders, Adam Wiedemann continues to play an expanding role on Georgia’s offensive press too. Wiedemann saw another strong spike in his transitional game-sheet contributions (8G, 15A), making good decisions to push forward and either help create or finish off press opportunity himself. His 19 blocked shots, a total topped by only five players leaguewide, are a result of good positioning, above-average anticipation, and a lot of hard work on the penalty kill. If he continues this climb, don’t be surprised to see Wiedemann mentioned in DPOTY talk soon.

Age: 32
Season: 11
Position: Defense
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 84

Not at all shocking, but Jeff Cornwall was a perfect fit for Calgary’s up-tempo defensive unit, an always asset on both sides of centre for the franchise. Cornwall’s past-two-year goal total (14) is his second best back-to-back sum (16) during his now decade-long career. In today’s uber-athletic NLL, Cornwall is exactly the type of multi-faceted defender every team wants: defensively reliable but always ready to run & rip when there’s space for sprint.

Age: 27
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Kitchener, ON
Last Year: 87

Like a number of Buffalo forwards, Chris Cloutier missed considerable time due to injury last year, but when healthy, showed up when it mattered most. Playing nine times during the regular season, Cloutier’s goals-per-game average would have seen him score more than 30 for the first time in his career. Where Cloutier really excelled was during last year’s playoffs, where he would finish fifth in the NLL in postseason point production (30 points in 6 games). He murdered the opposition in the East Semifinals and Final (11 goals in just 3 games), and played a solid secondary support role behind the likes of Dhane Smith & Josh Byrne perfectly in the NLL Finals against the Colorado Mammoth (10 assists during the three-game series). A healthy Cloutier in 2024 could be an issue for everyone but the Bandits.

Age: 29
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Oshawa, ON
Last Year: 80

This could be a big year for Ryan Keenan. Maybe his biggest yet. While much is being made of the new guys in Sask this year, Keenan is one of the very few returning names on offense, and should play a critical role while the Rush try to find chemistry & consistency up front. Keenan scored more goals on fewer shots last year, plus put up more assists (48) than any previous season. With those offensive numbers spiking slightly and an opportunity to play an even bigger role offensively for the Rush (he was also named new team captain), don’t’ be shocked if Keenan have a career kinda year in 2024.

Age: 26
Season: 3
Position: Defense
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Basking Ridge, NJ
Last Year: NR 🔥

While he didn’t make the league’s All-Rookie Team in 2022, TJ Comizio easily made ours, and followed that up with a 2023 campaign that put those that ignored him on notice – that notice being that he’s really damn good. His stat line from last season honestly reads future TPOTY finalist: 16 points, 139 loose balls, 31 caused turnovers, and those 8 blocked shots aren’t too shabby either. The only area he may be lacking when comparing Comizio to top transitional players in the league is his offensive output. Get this though… the Swarm Swiss Army knife has scored 8 goals on just 18 hits on target over his first two seasons in the NLL.

Age: 26
Season: 2
Position: Defense
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Upper Arlington, OH
Last Year: NR 🔥

Not even mentioned on the league’s final Rookie of the Year ballot (we had him ranked #3 in our year-end rookie rundown, and could have argued him #1), Danny Logan played a pivotal role for the San Diego Seals a season ago. With very little Logan preseason buzz, he immediately became San Diego’s main face-off taker and gradually received bigger and more important match-up assignments. Logan’s 24 CTs were the sixth highest rookie total ever (well, since 2011, when the league first started tracking the stat).

Reid Bowering, Vancouver, 34 (2022)
Zach Currier, Calgary, 33 (2018)
Latrell Harris, Toronto, 29 (2017)
Robert Hope, Colorado, 28 (2015)
Mitch de Snoo, Buffalo, 26 (2016)
Danny Logan, San Diego, 24 (2023)
Chad Tutton, Georgia, 24 (2016)

Age: 34
Season: 12
Position: Transition
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: 42

Playing a more defensive role last year than 2022 (took 70 fewer shots and registered the lowest point total of his career), Jordan MacIntosh is still a heavily relied on Swarm leader - one of the few remaining vets from the team’s 2017 NLL Cup win. Over the past two years, MacIntosh has also seen less time at the centre circle, especially last year when he took just 41 draws behind Jeremy Thompson (436). Retiring from the PLL this past summer, MacIntosh leads a maturing Swarm side desperate to get back into the NLL playoffs.

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Transition
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Sinking Spring, PA
Last Year: NR 🔥

Two big things happened last year when it came to Ryan Terekenko’s rapid development indoors. #1 Like his rookie season, last year Terefenko showcased sick speed on the offensive press, but also made better decisions when it came to pushing the ball in the right spots, plus improved his feeding & finishing (+14 points). And more importantly #2, Terefenko looked far more comfortable, composed and confident defensively, reading the floor and anticipating turnover opportunities (83 more loose balls last year) at an even greater rate.

Age: 35
Season: 14
Position: Defense
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: 53

Clearly last year did not go as player or club had hoped when it came to Chris Corbeil’s first season in a Toronto Rock sweater. A severely torn pec during last year’s preseason prevented Corbeil from making his Rock debut until mid-April, and while he was good, he wasn’t at quite the level we’re used to seeing from the former TPOTY and multi-Cup-winning captain. Healthy and a full camp at the TRAC under his belt (alongside a few former Rush teammates there now too), a Corbeil-comeback season certainly seems likely.

Age: 28
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Vancouver, BC
Last Year: 62

After a career year for the Bandits in 2022, Chase Fraser’s impact was minimized massively by an offseason injury that only allowed him to see four starts during last year’s regular season. Although the sample size is small, Fraser’s turnovers per game almost doubled in 2023, but he followed that up with some timely performances during the Bandits’ playoff run. What can we expect from Buffalo’s prickly offensive presence this year? Well… “I’m feeling really healthy this year, coming down about 10-15 pounds and feeling more mobile. I’m in the weight room three times a week, then shooting the other days. Every day, I’m trying to do something physical to keep my health and lacrosse skills sharp.” – from Bandits.com

Age: 31
Season: 6
Position: Goalie
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 57

Over the past two seasons, Warren Hill has had stretches where he’s been GOTY good and the main reason why Halifax wins games. He’s also had some stretches that haven’t been, well, that. Playing the most minutes of his career in 2023 (903:05), Hill saw both his save percentage (77.3%) and GAA (11.03) sink to the lowest we’ve seen from him since his rookie season with Georgia in 2018, but the year ended on a positive, kind of. Although the Thunderbirds lost to the Rock to open the playoffs for a second straight May, Hill’s performance in that game last year was drastically better.

In 2022 vs. Toronto in the Playoffs

11:56 Minutes
15 Shots
10 Saves
25.14 GAA
66.7 Save %

In 2023 vs. Toronto in the Playoffs

59:57 Minutes
50 Shots
38 Saves
12.01 GAA
76.0 Save %

Those are Hill’s only two post-season performances in the NLL so far. When as the last time the Thunderbirds/Knighthawks franchise won a playoff game? June 2, 2018 with Matt Vinc guarding their goal.

Age: 34
Season: 12
Position: Defense
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Whitby, ON
Last Year: 56

Already a key defensive leader in San Diego, with Brodie Merrill calling it a career this past offseason, Cam Holding’s influence & impact become an even more leaned on asset in the Seals’ own-end arsenal. San Diego was one of only five teams last year to allow fewer than 200 goals during the regular season, yet they’re the only team from that paltry pool that rarely if ever see their players recognized individually for their play. Holding, who will be entering his twelfth season, is still one of the steadiest, sharpest and suffocating defensive defenders in the league, whether he (or his teammates) is (are) talked about or not. A healthy Holding (he was on the IR for over a month last year), coupled with the addition of free agent Kyle Rubisch, might finally mean more regular season recognition for their unit.

Age: 33
Season: 13
Position: Defense
Team: Vancouver Warriors
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 70

“Like no pun intended, but he is a warrior,” said new Vancouver Warriors GM & Head Coach Curt Malawsky of his former Junior A captain and now newly acquired NLL defender, Matt Beers, who has returned to Vancouver after a two-year stay in Saskatchewan. After over a decade in the league, Beers still puts in some of the most punishing shifts possible, while his leadership & experience will do wonders for a Warriors defensive unit that has a number of promising pros.

Age: 26
Season: 4
Position: Defense
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Toronto, ON
Last Year: 100 🔥🔥

Defensively dependable, dominate, disciplined and damaging, Warren Jeffrey’s stock has risen faster over the past two seasons than virtually any other pure defender in the NLL today. As Jeffrey continues to build his reputation as a top pure defensive presence in the NLL, you should start hearing his name in DPOTY talk starting as early as this winter.

Age: 27
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: New York Riptide
From: Courtice, ON
Last Year: 65

While things did not go as planned for the New York Riptide last year, the fact that Connor Kearnan continued producing at an above-average pace and played an increased role on the powerplay, must have been seen as a massive positive by team staff. Sure, he turned over the ball over a shit ton more in 2023 (41 times more to be exact), but honestly, everyone did in New York last year. While there were some minor tweaks to the Riptide offense, the consistency the team started to develop as the year progressed will greatly benefit them heading into a season where they again seem pretty optimistic.

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Forward
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 85 🔥

A month-long stay on the IR stole what most were expecting to be a strong follow-up season to Tehoka Nanticoke’s really good rookie run. He did end up averaging almost a goal extra per game during the playoffs, finishing tied for second in the postseason with 15 ginos in six starts while helping lead the Bandits to their first Cup win since 2008. An edgy offensive asset that isn’t afraid of the rough stuff (hell, he usually starts it!), the supremely skilled Nanticoke could be a 40-goal getter this year if he stays healthy.

Age: 38
Season: 17
Position: Forward
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Kitchener, ON
Last Year: 60

Last year, the soon to turn 39-year-old Ryan Benesch registered his tenth 30-or-more goal season in the NLL while still playing a pivotal role for the Halifax Thunderbirds. Spoiler alert: he’ll do similar this season too. Benesch is quickly climbing all of the important all-time statistical lists too, and will likely jump a few more legends during the upcoming season. Take a look.

Games Played

If he gets a full 18-game season in, Benesch will have played 273 regular season games. That would jump him over Brandon Miller (261), Colin Doyle (266), Mark Steenhuis (266), Josh Sanderson (268) and maybe some still-active others. Only Dan Dawson (322), John Tavares (306), Brodie Merrill (276) and Derek Suddons (274) will have had more GPs than Benesch’s potential year-end total.

Goals

Already seventh on the all-time goals list (511), another 30-goal campaign could push him to as high as fourth, although still-active players like Dane Dobbie (514) and Curtis Dickson (502) are already in Benesch goal-total territory too.

Assists

Again, Benesch has already cemented himself into the all-time Top 10 here too. His 706 assists put him at the nine spot. Last year Benesch finished with 44 helpers. If he can duplicate that total, he’d pass Shawn Williams (708) and maybe Callum Crawfrod (729) depending on what kind of season he ends up having.

Points

Last year Benesch became just the seventh player in league history to produce 1,200 points in his career. Currently, he’s 140 points behind the sixth place Sanderson.

Age: 28
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Silver Creek, NY
Last Year: 41

Yes, Zed Williams had his best statistical season in the NLL last year. Virtually everything across his 2023 stat line are now career highs for Williams, but his total point production sat him just 35th across the entire NLL. Factor in all the other positional players we rank for The 100, and Williams ended up falling a fair bit on our lengthy best-of list. Williams was playing at an elite level when elevating his game during the 2022 NLL Playoffs. The Mammoth wouldn’t have won it all without him that spring. With Ryan Lee out, Colorado could use THAT power forward Zed Williams again, stretched over most of their upcoming 18-game schedule. It’s a lot to ask, but Williams has shown he’s most definitely capable of it.

Age: 31
Season: 12
Position: Goalie
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 32

In 2022, Seals players were telling us that Frank Scigliano was hands down the team’s MVP. Last year, although he was on every one of the team’s game-day rosters, Scigliano saw 232 fewer minutes in San Diego’s crease, at times backing up youngster Chris Origlieri instead. Months later, Scigliano found himself in Saskatchewan in a fairly significant deal that saw Kyle Rubisch go the other way. Now with the Rush, who’ve desperately been searching for a new stopper, Scigliano finds himself in a pretty ideal situation that could allow him to show the rest of the league just how legit a long-term starter he truly is.

Age: 35
Season: 12
Position: Forward
Team: Vancouver Warriors
From: New Westminster, BC
Last Year: 26

The double free agent signing of Curtis Dickson & Kevin Crowley in San Diego two summers ago sent lacrosse social into a frenzy. Eighteen games later, Dickson had one of his most offensively dominant seasons yet (hit 100 points for the third time in his career), while Crowley crafted by far his least productive campaign, ever. Whatever the stat, offensive or defensive, Crowley’s digits dropped dramatically - like all-time level declines. Now in Vancouver with an offense looking for a leader, Crowley could compose a comeback for the ages, but it won’t be easy.

Age: 29
Season: 8
Position: Defense
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: St. Catharines, ON
Last Year: 69

Graeme Hossack is Halifax’s always DPOTY frontrunner, Jake Withers dominates the dot and is likely #2 on the team’s D depth charts, but next up is most definitely Tyson Bell. Last year, Bell scooped more loosies in a single season than ever before (127), matched his career-high CTO count (23), still shows off some serious speed in transition, and is just an all-around pestering pain in the ass to play against. If Bell could add some more points to his year-end totals, you’d have to think he’d regularly be in TPOTY talk too.

Age: 34
Season: 11
Position: Transition
Team: New York Riptide
From: Stoney Creek, ON
Last Year: 35

Depending on what his team has during any given season, the multi-talented Kiel Matisz has adapted and altered his role in order to help his side succeed. Right now, there really are only a handful of players that can that match Matisz’s overall skill set & work rate. With that said, last year wasn’t really one of those seasons. During The Lax Mag’s in-season 2022-23 Player Rankings, which takes into account both an individual’s statistical ranking and in-game star rating (more on that here), Matisz went from being a regular in our weekly Top 30, to barely maintaining a spot in our first 100 ranked players. Both his O & D numbers dropped significantly almost across the board, the Wings failing to find the playoffs while running a roster that really should have been there. Now in New York, Matisz will attempt to lead a lineup that underachieved a season ago and struggles to maintain consistency.

Age: 30
Season: 7
Position: Transition
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: 72

Just above, we highlighted how rare it is to find a player skilled enough to excel on either side of the floor in virtually any and every situation. Well, Bryan Cole is clearly also one of those select few special players that possesses those unique abilities. Some of today’s best two-way talents have played for Cole’s current coach in Georgia, Ed Comeau, who has leaned on the likes of transitional threats like Jordan MacIntosh and Kiel Matisz heavily during some of the Swarm’s most successful seasons. Cole was given more offensive opportunities last year (set single season highs in shots, goals, assists and obviously points) while still maintaining strong defensive digits by doing a bit of everything.

Age: 36
Season: 13
Position: Forward
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 47

In his mid 30s and entering his 13th season in the NLL, while no longer producing at his vintage best, Cody Jamieson is still extremely relevant and regarded on the Halifax Thunderbirds’ robust offensive lineup (only the San Diego Seals had more goals than the T-birds last year). One of the sport’s all-time locker-room leaders, Jamieson’s compete level is still sky high, a contagious vibe that runs through the team’s entire roster on game days. Coming into last season fitter than the previous year, Jamieson saw a small spike in his offensive stats, while his 82 loose balls, which are a credit to his never-ending heart and hustle, were the second highest regular season total of his Hall-worthy career. A Mann winner this past August, Jamieson enters the 2023-24 NLL season on Halifax’s PUP list.

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Forward
Team: Rochester Knighthawks
From: Burlington, ON
Last Year: 82 🔥🔥

A lot happened in Rochester last year while the Knighthawks put together by far their best season since the franchise was reestablished in 2020. One positive that wasn’t mentioned much if at all by most was the continued pro progression of Ryan Smith, who was more involved, impactful and productive than his solid rookie season in 2022. The big righty has put up back-to-back 30-goal campaigns to open his promising pro career, and has clearly not come close to hitting his ceiling.

Age: 26
Season: 4
Position: Transition
Team: Rochester Knighthawks
From: Port Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 61

Named the Rochester Knighthawks’ Defensive MVP for the third straight season (he’s played three full seasons for the team so far), Ryland Rees is quickly cementing himself as one of today’s top defensive players, one that also has a whole lotta upside on the press too. Spending the team’s first two starts on the IR, Rees still managed to set a new single-season record for points (16) while also crushing his top caused-turnover total too (26). With the Knighthawks turning things around last year, and optimism for even more this upcoming season, expect Rees to start receiving more league-wide recognition for his difference-making defensive play.

Age: 29
Season: 7
Position: Defense
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: Port Perry, ON
Last Year: 75 🔥

Last year, Matt Hossack cracked our year-ending DPOTY Top 10 countdown, included alongside the absolute best D guys going today. Playing in Fort Worth, many likely have missed it, but Hossack has blossomed into one of the NLL’s best defensive defensemen while leading a Panther City team that had quickly become contenders in the no-more West Conference. In four seasons with the Saskatchewan Rush, Hossack collected 216 LBs. Over his past two in Texas: 228. Ditto for his CTOs (50 in 4 vs. 52 in 2). There is a lot of good stuff happening in Panther City presently, and Hossack’s gargantuan growth as a top defensive leader is right at the top of the list.

Age: 29
Season: 5
Position: Transition
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Hamilton, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥

We had Shane Simpson in our inaugural Top 100 two years ago, but dropped him after he seemed to take a slight step back, transitionally at least, in 2022. Last year, not only did the speedster look much more effective pressing, he had easily his best season in the big leagues while garnering TPOTY talk throughout much of 2023. Simpson connected on more goals in transition (18) than his previous three seasons combined (15), while his shooting percentage spiked significantly too (went from 13.3 to 47.4).

Age: 25
Season: 4
Position: Goalie
Team: Rochester Knighthawks
From: Mississauga, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥

In today’s game, a legit contending team needs a solid shot stopper. Even if you make the playoffs, pre-pack your bags, because you won’t be getting very far without one. Last year, Rochester was able to confirm that Rylan Hartley most definitely has the crease-leading chops to be an everyday starter in the NLL. Their MVP for much of the season, Hartley’s unique and acrobatic vibe are a throwback to many goalies from the MILL generation, a style that can still obviously work today. Growing into even more of a leader during the team’s recent training camp, Hartley looks ready for an even bigger run with Rochester this year.

Age: 26
Season: 3
Position: Transition
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: Toronto, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥

Had you sunk some coin into Josh Medeiros stock prior to last year, you’d be counting crazy coin right now, because few if any players saw the same spike in their pro-game growth as Panther City’s two-way talent experienced in 2023. Medeiros registered more goals on the run last year (21) than his entire Junior A and NLL rookie season combined, and just looked so much more composed, confident and nasty running the rug versus his first year in the league. Plus, during last year’s regular season and playoffs…

PCLC’s record in games Medeiros scored: 9-5
PCLC’s record in game Medeiros didn’t score: 1-4

Age: 32
Season: 9
Position: Forward
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Port Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 45

On July 31, 2020 the Saskatchewan Rush traded Ben McIntosh to the Philadelphia Wings for Josh Currier and a handful of picks going both ways. Since that massive move, the Rush had missed the playoffs in two straight seasons and have recently (for the most part) blew up their offense to address their short and long-term future. McIntosh saw a very significant decline in his offensive output during season one in Philly, but did look a lot more effective last year as he crept closer to those outstanding runs he had with the Rush in 2018 & 2019. With a Top 5 forward offering of McIntosh, Mitch Jones, Joe Resetarits, Holden Cattoni and Blaze Riorden, on paper at least, McIntosh and the Wings look like they should put up some monster point totals after failing to finish Top 10 in the league in total team goals the last two years.

Age: 27
Season: 7
Position: Goalie
Team: Albany FireWolves
From: Ohsweken, ON
Last Year: 66 🔥

There have been A LOT of trades involving Albany over the last couple of seasons, but one name that seems certain to be staying is Doug Jamieson. The former GOTY gives the rebuilding FireWolves stability at a position many contenders can’t claim the same. If you believe the behind-the-scenes buzz, most of those teams have made offers to snag Albany’s high-profile starter, but GM/HC Glenn Clark seemingly isn’t budging on dealing his backstop. Sure, his stats have slipped some since garnering GOTY, but Jamieson is still clearly one of the league’s top goalies, one that looked outstanding while winning a Mann Cup with Six Nations this past summer.

Age: 36
Season: 13
Position: Forward
Team: Toronto Rock
From: St. Catharines, ON
Last Year: 74 🔥🔥

Often vets that sign one-year deals end up signing elsewhere the next year, or are dealt at the trade deadline if things didn’t go quite right. The Rock’s re-signing of Corey Small to another one-year run speaks volumes of how well the team and player meshed last year. Small saw a significant statistical uptick in Toronto versus his single season in Philadelphia. In fact, the 83 points he popped last year were his highest since the 111 he hit with Vancouver in 2017, the same year he was an MVP finalist.

Age: 26
Season: 4
Position: Forward
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Toronto, ON
Last Year: 54

His scoring can be streaky at times (averaged just 1 goal per game during January last year), but Clarke Petterson is also unstoppable after her heats up, last year reaching the 30-goal mark (32 to be exact) and just missing out on The Lax Mag’s 30-60-90 Club (30 goals, 60 assists and 90s loose balls) too. On an offense without as many big names as Halifax has, Petterson would easily be a Top 20-point producer in the league, heck, maybe even Top 10. It wasn’t too long ago that he registered three straight 90-point campaigns playing OJLL ball in Brampton. With nearly 150 shots now in Toronto after the Chris Boushy trade, expect a bunch of those to end up in Petterson’s stick this winter.

Age: 28
Season: 5
Position: Transition
Team: Rochester Knighthawks
From: Oshawa, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥

Had Matt Gilray been able to duplicate his first-half transitional goal production (7 goals in first 9 games) from February to March (3 goals in last 9 games), we’d have likely seen him as a TPOTY finalist in 2023. Gilray’s best NLL season yet made Rochester’s defensive end far more elusive and dangerous than it had been before. A Gilray scoop then sprint kept teams on their toes, while his goals shifted the vibe in favour of the Knighthawks on nearly every finish. Last year, only two players in the entire NLL had in excess of 150 loose balls, 25 caused turnovers and 25 points. One was Zach Currier, who won his second straight top transition player award. The other was Matt Gilray.

Age: 23
Season: 2
Position: Goalie
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Oshawa, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥🔥

A case could have easily been made to give Brett Dobson last year’s Rookie of the Year honour while the new NLL netminder propelled the Georgia Swarm from a last-place loser to a postseason-spot contender during a ridiculous nine game stretch. Georgia started the season 0-7, but then went on a wild 8-1 ride. Dobson played the shot-stopping hero in many of those victories. As we’ve outlined before, a rookie playing at that level or even just seeing those type of starter minutes is a rarity in the modern era of the NLL. Is this too much pressure to pile on such a young pro? Usually, but not in Dobson’s case. Months after almost pulling off a miracle turnaround season with the Swarm, Dobson went on to win the Premier Lacrosse League championship, starting in the crease for the title-taking Archers and leading in all important goalie stats.

Age: 29
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Shelburne, ON
Last Year: 52

Statically speaking, Dan Craig mostly matched his breakout campaign from two seasons back. In fact, taking far fewer shots (-40), Craig even scored one goal more in 2023 (35), however, his incredibly impressive loosie total took a bit of a hit (-37). With that said, Craig still remains a defensively dependable forward with way-above-average ball retention skills. Of the 25 players from last year that scored 35 or more goals during the regular season, only one gave the ball away less times than Craig (36), and that was Toronto teammate and fellow lefty, Corey Small (28).

Age: 31
Season: 10
Position: Defense
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Port Hope, ON
Last Year: 59 🔥

Only one player on the Buffalo Bandits had more than 100 loose balls, more than 20 forced turnovers and more than 10 blocked shots last year, and it wasn’t Steve Priolo. Clearly, it’s Nick Weiss, who we have jumping more than ten spots on The 100 and into our Top 50 after an exceptional season for the Cup-winning Bandits. While most of his work is done checking one of the opposition’s Top 3 offensive threats, Weiss can also connect in transition, last year putting up his second highest single-season point total (20). Weiss has also arguably been one of the absolute best defensemen over the past two playoffs, either shutting his man down completely or allowing low-quality looks at Matt Vinc.

Age: 29
Season: 7
Position: Transition
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Surrey, BC
Last Year: 34

Some were anticipating Mike Messenger to play an ever bigger role offensively in Saskatoon last year, which didn’t really happen. He actually ended up shooting (and scoring) less and giving the ball away a bunch more. With that said, Messenger is still one of the toughest defenders in the league who certainly does have above-average offensive ability. He still holds his own at the dot too, last year finishing with his highest FO% over six seasons (53.1%). With Kyle Rubisch now in San Diego, Messenger will also likely take over as the main defensive leader on the team.

Age: 25
Season: 2
Position: Forward
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥🔥

Most thought Jonathan Donville would be good in the NLL, but this good this fast? Donville debuted with a 90-point season, something only three former rookies had ever done (Jeff Teat, Randy Staats and Tom Schreiber). His 67 assists were the second-best rookie total ever (Teat had 71 two years ago). And while some say comparing today’s players to past ones is difficult to do statistically due to the huge difference in GPs (as few as six-game seasons versus the modern era’s 18), let’s see how Donville’s 3.72 assists per game stacks up against the rookie seasons of the current Top 10 all-time assist owners.

Dan Dawson (954 career A) 0.30 (rookie A/GP)
John Tavares (934) 2.75
Josh Sanderson (908) 0.75
Shawn Evans (879) 1.07
Colin Doyle (857) 2.25
John Grant (778) 3.33
Callum Crawford (739) 0.80
Shawn Williams (706) 1.75
Ryan Bensech (706) 1.67
Gavin Prout (621) 3.25

Seems like a decent start.

Age: 27
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: New Westminster, BC
Last Year: 49

Most players with a similar point total to the 71 Connor Robinson produced last year sit slightly or even much lower on this year’s 100. What sets Robinson apart is his ability to score when it matters most. We crowned Robinson 2023’s Clutch King, which means he scored more game-tying, go-ahead and game-winning goals (often later in games) at a significantly higher rather than anyone else in the league. Was it fluke? Well, he did similar a season earlier, finishing fourth (out of 369 players) that year. That’s not luck, he’s just money.

Age: 24
Season: 4
Position: Goalie
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: Fonthill, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥🔥

Last year, Nick Damude ranked within the Top 5 (sometimes even Top 3) in GAA (10.31), save % (.794), wins (10), and goalie points (8). We had him positionally ranked behind only last year’s three GOTY finalists (Christian Del Bianco, Nick Rose and Matt Vinc). NLL GMs & Coaches, who voted in what’s turned into a league-run Top 50 based more on rep than right now (plus probably friendships and just not actually giving a shit), didn’t even have Damude on their odd Top 5. Panther City’s breakout backstop served as the team’s backbone during their outstanding second season in the league, even though very few (outside of the organization) acknowledged how crucial Damude’s crease play was to their overall success. You may want to pay attention this year.

Age: 33
Season: 12
Position: Defense
Team: Vancouver Warriors
From: Hamilton, ON
Last Year: 27

So much happened over the offseason in Vancouver, you might have forgotten that the Warriors also added Ryan Dilks to their restocked roster. New GM & Head Coach Curt Malawsky surely hasn’t forgotten, recently telling The Province, “Ryan is a premier shutdown defensive player in this league and possesses an elite ability to knock down balls, get in lanes and push the ball. For all his success on the field, we feel strongly that Ryan’s attributes will be in the dressing room. Along with his championship pedigree, he is an exceptional person, leader, and teammate, which is exactly what we are looking for to teach and mentor our younger players.”

Age: 27
Season: 5
Position: Defense
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥🔥

Last year was THAT season for Eli Salama. The Coquitlam kid went from being a really good defender on a high-profile defensive unit in Calgary, to standout defensive force that has easily cracked the Top 10 when it came to last year’s top D guys (we actually had him 6th on our year-end DPOTY list). Salama is the perfect combination of smarts & skill, taking a giant leap forward when it came to his pro-level growth in 2023. He had 32 more scoops and also more than doubled his turnover total, Salama’s slick 38 CTOs only bettered by The Lax Mag’s pick for top defender (Graeme Hossak, 49) and transition player (Zach Currier, 43) at the end of last year’s regular season.

Age: 32
Season: 9
Position: Defense
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Peterborough, ON
Last Year: 29

In 2022, Robert Hope led his teams to both an NLL Cup (Colorado Mammoth) and Mann Cup (Peterborough Lakers) title. A year later, and league leaders seem to have forgotten his name, not including the 2x DPOTY finalist in their recent vote of the top defenders in the NLL. Leading a Mammoth lineup that got rocked by injuries to key players on either side of centre all year, Hope’s demands as Colorado’s cap far exceed what’s expected of him on the D end. With that said, Hope registered his highest LB total of his career (154) and followed that up with an equally strong postseason where he finished third in loosies (48) and second in caused turnovers (10), all while coming a win away from leading the Mammoth to a second straight Cup win.

Age: 29
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Calgary, AB
Last Year: 55 🔥

Holden Cattoni going to the Philadelphia Wing via trade was this past summer’s low-key biggest move. Hear us out. The Wings offense, which did show some improvement last year, needs proven shooting options for elite playmakers and frequent feeders like Mitch Jones & Joe Resetarits. Cattoni, who is coming off his most pro productive year (his first 40-goal one) can rip as well as anyone in the league (still likely has the NLL’s hardest shot). He’s also spent plenty of time playing for a Paul Day-built rosters in Peterborough, where he’s also experienced a lot of success, including this summer when he led Major Series Lacrosse with 106 points. Cattoni to Philly makes a lot of sense, and if the Wings hope to get back into the playoffs, he’ll need to create chemistry quickly within an offense that at least on paper, looks pretty legit.

Age: 25
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 33

Fingers crossed that Austin Staats plays his first 18-game season in the NLL this year. After multiple injuries have stolen significant time from one of today’s most skilled and scrappy forwards, Staats has yet to show an NLL audience what he can do on a full-season tank. Some wondered (us included) if the San Diego Seals supplementation up front would mean fewer looks for their existing shooters. Although we examined Kevin Crowley’s subpar season in San Diego way above, Staats ended up shooting more often and matching his career-high 37 goals while operating in the Seals’ star-crowded offense. Plus, only Wes Berg (99) collected more loosies than Staats (83) up front, who never shies away from any physicality or LB battle.

Age: 32
Season: 11
Position: Goalie
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Courtice, ON
Last Year: 43

He has not only been their Most Value Player over the past two seasons, it would be easy to argue Zach Higgins as the Philadelphia Wings’ Most Outstanding over that two-season stretch too. Since arriving in Philly for the 2020 season, Higgins has seen more shots than any other goalie in the league…

Most Shots Faced Since 2020

Zach Higgins, Philadelphia – 2,458
Matt Vinc, Buffalo – 2,439
Christian Del Bianco, Calgary – 879
Doug Jamieson, Albany/New England – 2,173
Dillon Ward, Colorado – 2,124

The above list includes the last four Goalie of the Year winners, plus Higgins. Here’s the top saves total over that time too…

Zach Higgins, Philadelphia – 1,972
Matt Vinc, Buffalo – 1,965
Dillon Ward, Colorado – 1,839
Christian Del Bianco, Calgary – 1,835
Nick Rose, Toronto – 1,731

Unlike the others above, Higgins doesn’t play on a legit Cup contender (even Jamieson did during the year he won GOTY with New England) and doesn’t have the same win totals as them either (although it’s kind of a silly stat to attribute to goalies).

Age: 39
Season: 18
Position: Forward
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: Ottawa, ON
Last Year: 19

Between an early season blockbuster trade and some stays on various non-active lists, Callum Crawford only got into ten games between New York & Panther City during the 2023 NLL season. You’d have to think this year will be different. Crawford began building some serious chemistry with Panther City’s young and dynamic offense last year, which will greatly benefit both him and the team as they enter the season with sky-high expectations. Almost 40 and nearing nearly two decades in the league, the future HOFer is still in search of his first NLL Cup. While some preseason prognostications pretty much have them outside of the 2024 playoffs, Panther City has far bigger plans. “My objective, my number one goal when I took this job was year three, we are vying for a championship.” - PCLC Head Coach, Tracey Kelusky (NLL.com)

Age: 31
Season: 12
Position: Forward
Team: Las Vegas Desert Dogs
From: Lions Head, ON
Last Year: 37

Las Vegas’ leading man put up the most assists he’s ever had in a single season, Rob Hellyer’s 71 helpers good enough for fifth on the league leaderboard. While his goals per game totals slipped some in comparison to his best years in Toronto, the goals he did score for the Desert Dogs were usually big ones. As we confirmed in last year’s Clutch Kings countdown, nearly 40% of the goals Hellyer scored last year tied the game, gave Vegas a lead, or won it for the Dogs. Many of last year’s top goal getters saw a clutch percentage of under 10%.

Age: 33
Season: 11
Position: Forward
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Bowmanville, ON
Last Year: 46 🔥

In 2022, Shayne Jackson’s overall offensive production slowed up quite a bit in comparison to what he did during his MVP season in 2020 (was averaging nearly 2 points less a game). Last year, Jackson was most definitely back though. His 60 helpers were the highest he’s ever hit in a single season, all while maintaining his usually well below-average turnover tally. Jackson also registered his eighth consecutive 30-goal season and was just seven points shy of 100, which would have been a first for the Swarm superstar.

Age: 28
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 52 🔥

Sometimes when stars leave, new ones emerge, and that’s exactly what’s happened with Tyler Pace in Calgary, especially last year. Even though continued border travel issues prevented him for getting in a full 18, Pace was a big reason why Calgary continues to be a legit Cup contender no matter who leaves in the offseason. His elevated play has helped fans forget about Wes Berg, Dane Dobbie, Curtis Dickson and even that minty seafoam surface. His points-per-game average would have likely seen Pace flirting with 100 total on the season. Are the Roughnecks a better team with Pace in the lineup? When Pace played last year, Calgary owned an outstanding .786 win percentage. Without him during the regular season? Well, they were a .500 team.

Age: 31
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Vancouver
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 15

Keegan Bal is the only forward that has remained with the Vancouver Warriors since the franchise moved to Rogers Arena prior to the 2019 NLL season. Everyone else has either been traded, released or retired. That says something of Bal’s for sure. While his numbers were not quite as head-turning as 2022’s totals when he was a few assists shy of rare 30-60-90 status (G-A-LB), Bal still had a strong winter. Unlike the defensive end, which will get a handful of Cup-winning vets (Ryan Dilks, Matt Beers and John Lintz) plus an incoming prized draft pick (Owen Grant), Vancouver’s offense didn’t see quite as much added outside of Kevin Crowley and maybe the emergence of an existing prospect like Marcus Klarich, one of the best Junior A forwards over the past two summers. Bal did see a slight uptick in point production after the team traded Mitch Jones to Philadelphia (+0.35 points per game), and will now have the chance to fully replace his former NLL teammate as the leader of this goal-hungry group (Warriors finished 13th in goals scored last year).

Age: 29
Season: 5
Position: Transition
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Port Elgin, ON
Last Year: 67 🔥🔥🔥

While injuries took GPs away from so many on Buffalo’s roster last year, it also provided opportunity for others. For instance, Ian MacKay, who not only continued to develop his scrappy defensive game, but he also showed he can hang up front too while filling in for a host of Bandits forwards on the IR. MacKay plays with an edge in his own end, is hard to leash on the press, and can finish either in transition or set offensive sets. Plus, he was all that and more during the playoffs, easily leading all D/T players in postseason point production (16). MacKay was Buffalo’s secret weapon a year ago, and even though the cats out of the bag, don’t expect a massively motivated MacKay to slow down any time soon.

Age: 29
Season: 6
Position: Defense
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Peterborough, ON
Last Year: 36

Jake Withers was on pace to break the single-season loose balls and face-off wins record last year, but fell just short of both after a short stay on the IR subtracted a GP from his season. Second on Halifax’s defensive depth charts behind only Graeme Hossack (most if not all in the league would also be), there really is no debate anymore who today’s top draw guy is. Whether you’re talking straight FO skills or the overall game of a full-time FO taker, Withers is hands down the best in both categories, and it isn’t even close. Withers bettered Trevor Baptiste not once but twice last year and only seemingly struggled to dominate the dot in one game, still topping Buffalo’s Max Adler by a single FOW in early March.

Age: 30
Season: 9
Position: Forward
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Surrey, BC
Last Year: 39

Although he likely liked 2022 better because it ended with a Cup, last year was Eli McLaughlin’s best season in the NLL. He scored 40+ for the first time in eight seasons. For the second straight season, McLaughlin led the playoffs in goals, something that has never been done by anyone since the league first started in 1987. That’s kind of incredible actually. McLaughlin was also one of last year’s most productive power-play producers, his 12 PPGs only topped by Dane Dobbie, Mitch Jones and Andrew Kew (13). If Colorado has any hope at getting into the playoffs with Ryan Lee sidelined for the entire year, they’ll need a repeat performance from McLaughlin, maybe even more.

Age: 33
Season: 11
Position: Forward
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Oshawa, ON
Last Year: 22

You don’t have to be a mathematician to look at Mark Matthews’ career numbers and see he’s not producing at the same rate as he was during his prime with the Rush, which was from around 2015 to 2018. You also don’t need to be a numbers nerd to notice his 90 points with Saskatchewan last year is still pretty damn good. In fact, only 13 players leaguewide did better. So, now with the Toronto Rock, what will Matthews mean to an offense that was just four goals short of setting a new single-season team record last year? Well, the Rock’s lefties, a spot that’s often been criticized the last few of years, is the strongest it’s been a bit with Matthews, Dan Craig and Corey Small there. Likely serving as more of a facilitator than finisher, Matthews should have plenty of apples this year playing alongside Tom Schreiber (once he gets off the PUP), Chris Boushy and long-time pal Dan Linter too. He also brings a ton of Cup-winning experience, which the Rock roster lacks, unless you used to play for the Rush (Matthews, Lintner and Chris Corbeil).

Age: 27
Season: 4
Position: Forward
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Oakville, ON
Last Year: NR 🔥🔥🔥

No one made a more massive climb in The 100 this year than Andrew Kew. We had him in here two editions ago, but dropped Kew after a so-so season in Albany, the FireWolves later trading him and Ethan Woods to Georgia for Ethan Walker and a future pick that eventually turned into Will Johansen. Months later, Kew was racking up points at an unreal rate for the Swarm, finishing last season with 106 total and an unheard of 46-point improvement from the previous year. Kew also crashed the 30-60-90 Club (G-A-LB) and finished eleventh in our in-season Player Rankings. His rise was remarkable and one of the most impressive post-trade performances in league history.

Age: 31
Season: 10
Position: Defense
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Acton, ON
Last Year: 28

Over the last two years, we’ve ranked Brad Kri as the league’s third best defenseman (2022 and 2023 – only Graeme Hossack, Kyle Rubisch and Mitch de Snoo have finished higher). The Toronto Rock’s reliable own-end grinder (Kri hasn’t missed a game since late in the 2017 season and has currently played in 96 straight Rock regular season & playoff games) was finally included in the league’s year-end DPOTY finalist trio for the first time last year too. Defenders in the NLL are often graded more on reputation versus right now, so it’s taken a while for Kri to finally kinda receive the recognition his game deserves. He led the Rock in loose balls by a non-face-off taker (144) and easily topped the team charts for caused turnovers too (35). Few pure defenders anywhere in the league had a better combined count in those two areas than Kri collected.

Age: 23
Season: 4
Position: Forward
Team: Panther City Lacrosse Club
From: New Westminster, BC
Last Year: 58 🔥🔥🔥

Panther City’s lefy leader Will Malcom put together a preposterous follow up to his breakout 2022 season by doing, well, doing more of just about everything. You name the stat, it went up, in some cases, by a lot. Malcom proved to be one of the league’s more versatile forward options, getting into the 30-60-90 Club on the last day of the season. Prior to last year, only eleven players in NLL history had ever achieved that G-A-LB feat. He was often being included in mid-season MVP talk, but a quieter final third of his season (Games 1-12: 6.25 points per game, Games 13-18: 3.5 points per game) slowly slipped him out of that year-end convo. Make no mistake though, Will Malcom had a statement season last year, and looks likely to achieve more in 2024.

Age: 35
Season: 14
Position: Goalie
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Orangeville, ON
Last Year: 31

Over the past seven regular seasons, every goalie that has been voted to the NLL’s All-Pro First or Second Team has won a Goalie of the Year Award, except for Nick Rose. That list includes Matt Vinc, Dillon Ward, Christian Del Bianco, Doug Jamieson, Mike Poulin and Evan Kirk. Getting All-Pro recognition as a goalie is difficult, but Rose has garnered a spot the last two seasons, which also included being a 2x runner-up on the GOTY vote. Which makes Rose being left off the league’s recent Top 50 countdown absolutely bizarre and the biggest snub on their pre-season list. Not so easy to do these, is it?

Age: 31
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Six Nations, ON
Last Year: 38 🔥

After missing all of 2022 with a knee injury, Randy Staats returned to the NLL last year and most definitely didn’t miss a beat. Staats had one of his strongest seasons yet while making his debut with the Halifax Thunderbirds, who added an extra 40 goals to their team tally (198 to 238). In fact, no East Conference team scored more times during last year’s regular season, and Staats’ goal-scoring and more so playmaking ability are a big reason for that super-charged surge. He followed that up with a strong summer with the Six Nations Chiefs, winning a Mann Cup and averaging more points per game during the final series than any other player. If the Thunderbirds take that next step (progressing in the playoffs), Staats will no doubt be in MVP mode, however, he’ll start the season on Halifax’s physically unable to perform list.

Age: 34
Season: 14
Position: Defense
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: St. Catharines, ON
Last Year: 30

He still has oddly never won the league’s top defensemen prize (a finalist six times though), but Steve Priolo captured his first-ever NLL Cup last year, and no individual accolade will come close to matching that. Last year, Priolo set a new single season high for loosies (143), moved into fourth place in the league’s all-time caused turnover charts (only Kyle Rubisch, Ryan Dilks and Brodie Merrill have more recorded CTs than Priolo) and led all players in LBs during the playoffs (58). What really sets Priolo apart from most defenders in this league is his unmatched leadership, work rate and compete level.

Age: 31
Season: 8
Position: Defense
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Oshawa, ON
Last Year: 16

Prior to being sidelined by injury in mid-February (only returned in mid-April), Mitch de Snoo ranked crazy high in our in-season Top 30 Player Rankings. A physical defensive force that has also been an asset on the Rock’s difficult to defend press, de Snoo is now an always contender for DPOTY honours (an individual award he easily won two seasons ago), but you’d have to think TPOTY too. Last year, de Snoo was basically scoring a goal per game, plucked 102 loosies in just eleven starts, and would have likely hit at least 30 caused turnover had he been healthy. The Rock will be without reigning DPOTY Latrell Harris all season due to injury, but a healthy de Snoo will help supplement that massive loss, a lot.

Age: 36
Season: 16
Position: Forward
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Elora, ON
Last Year: 17

Dane Dobbie hit 100 points for the second time in his career last year with San Diego. The first time Dobbie did it, he was voted league MVP (2019). The 36-year-old Dobbie, arguably the most banged up and beaten down player in the NLL, is showing no signs of slowing down, simply excelling in San Diego’s all-star offense. Last year, the Seals led the entire league with 240 goals, the twelfth highest haul in NLL history. Nearly 20% of those goals came out of Dobbie’s twig, which is significant when you consider the star power the team has up front. Unselfish, unrelenting and at times unhinged, Dobbie remains one of the league’s most exciting and important players.

Age: 34
Season: 11
Position: Forward
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Hamburg, NY
Last Year: 9

While much was deservedly made of Mitch Jones’ impact in Philadelphia after the team added him to their roster in February, Joe Resetarits had a pretty spectacular debut season for the Wings too, one that kind of flew under the radar for most. Finishing sixth on the league scoring charts (110 points), Resetarits nearly matched his total from a season earlier in Albany, where he was a runner up to Dhane Smith for 2022’s MVP. Last year, Resetarits was also was one of our highest ranked Clutch Kings, a stat-based system that weighs & ranks a player’s game-tying, go-ahead and game-winning goals. So yes, for the Wings to experience success this year (and a return to the playoffs), they’ll rely heavily on the MVP-form of Mitch Jones, but without a repeat performance from Resetarits, they won’t get very far.

Age: 31
Season: 8
Position: Defense
Team: Halifax Thunderbirds
From: Port Perry, ON
Last Year: 20

After somewhat of a down season by his elite-level standards, Graeme Hossack was most definitely back in a big way last year. In our year-end positional Player Rankings, Hossack was The Lax Mag’s pick for best defensemen during the 2023 NLL regular season. Over the past six seasons, Hossack has been a DPOTY finalist five times, winning the award on three of those occasions. In 2023, Hossack looked less bulky, more mobile, motivated, menacing and back on top of the league-wide defensive depth charts. There is no doubt that Hossack’s offensive production has dwindled over the past two years, but when you collect a league-leading 49 caused turnovers, who cares how many apples you picked. Only three times in NLL history has a player forced more turnovers in a single season.

Age: 31
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Victoria, BC
Last Year: 21

His towering size, high-end skill and two-moves-ahead-of-you mentality are the assets that set Jesse King apart from any other power forward in the league today. With nearly 200 points in his pocket over the past two seasons, King has emerged as Calgary’s offensive leader and undoubtably a future NLL MVP. Calgary was supposed to crumble offensively when a few legends left. They didn’t. Why? Because a new king has been crowned in Cowtown.

Age: 25
Season: 3
Position: Transition
Team: Vancouver Warriors
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 12

Had Reid Bowering not missed three games with an undisclosed injury last year, based on his LBs-per-game average, he likely would have set a new single-season record for loose ball scoops… in only his second year in the league! His blocks (22) & caused turnover (28) rate are also absurdly high, and while his goal scoring slipped a bit from his outstanding rookie season, absolutely no one is sweating that stat when it comes Bowering’s brilliant overall game. With a bunch of high-end defensive help in Vancouver this winter, expect Bowering to have a bit more freedom to push play on the press.

Age: 35
Season: 13
Position: Defense
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Brampton, ON
Last Year: 7

When was the last time a Defensive Player of the Year played on a team that did not make the playoffs? Well, it’s only ever happened once, way back in 2003 when Jim Moss won the award but his Albany Attack failed to qualify for the postseason. Even though he’s arguably been the best pure defender over the past two seasons combined (and virtually every year for the past decade before that), the Saskatchewan Rush missing the playoffs over that stretch seems to have impacted Kyle Rubisch’s standing with many league award voters. Well, if you’ve watched Rubisch play over the past two years, you’d know that the future HOFer is still exceptionally good at what he does. Rubisch plays with positional perfection, is physical but not dirty, and could be the missing piece in the San Diego Seals’ search for their first NLL Cup this year.

Age: 32
Season: 10
Position: Goalie
Team: Colorado Mammoth
From: Orangeville, ON
Last Year: 3

Both his GAA (11.25) and SV% (77.9%) sank to levels we haven’t seen from Dillon Ward since his first few years in the league a decade ago, but the Colorado Mammoth’s money netminder again did everything he could to clinch his club the Cup. Another NLL Finals and another series-deciding Game 3, but this time Ward and the Mammoth were on the wrong side of the final result. Ward, who looks like he’ll enter the season on the Mammoth’s physically unable to perform list, remains one of the league’s most relied on backstops, his play pivotal to any success the Mammoth earn this winter.

Age: 32
Season: 10
Position: Forward
Team: Saskatchewan Rush
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 24 🔥

After back-to-back playoffs misses and seeing a lot of long-serving vets no longer in Saskatchewan, it’s been a bit of doom & gloom in the Rush camp recently, but not when it comes to Robert Church. Church had maybe his best season in the league ever, statistically speaking at least. He scored 50 goals for the first time in his career, a number not many have touched, ever. Below are the 21 players that have scored 50 or more goals in a single season.

Player (Season)

5x: Gary Gait (98, 99, 02, 03, 04)

4x: John Grant (02, 06, 07, 12)

2x: John Tavares (01, 09), Curtis Dickson (16, 17)

1x: Roy Colsey (01), Paul Gait (02), Chris Gill (02), Lewis Ratcliff (07), Athan Iannucci (08), Mark Steenhuis (09), Dane Dobbie (14), Ryan Benesch (15), Mark Matthews (15), Adam Jones (15), Brett Hickey (15), Dhane Smith (16), Shawn Evans (16), Kevin Crowley (18), Jeff Teat (23), Connor Fields (23), Robert Church (23)

Age: 35
Season: 13
Position: Forward
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Port Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 11

2022-23 preseason question: Would the San Diego Seals be able to effectively spread the ball around with sooooo many of the game’s top shooters & scorers on their roster? Answer: Not only did they politely share shots, players like Curtis Dickson produced at an almost all-time high rate, finishing the year with 44 goals and a new single-season best 56 assists. Dickson also scored more short-handed goals than anyone in the league last year (9). You’d have to have added up his SHG total over the past four years to match 2023’s tremendous tally. In fact, since the league started recording special-team scoring in 2005, no player has matched Dickson’s nine shorties, although he (and literally one other) has come close…

Single Season SHG Record

Curtis Dickson, San Diego (2023) 9
Jeff Zywicki, San Jose (2008) 7
Curtis Dickson, Calgary (2013) 6
Curtis Dickson, Calgary (2016) 6

Age: 28
Season: 5
Position: Forward
Team: Rochester Knighthawks
From: East Amherst, NY
Last Year: 64 🔥🔥🔥

Connor Fields went from a secondary scoring option in Buffalo to leading-man status in Rochester, throwing down an absurd season that few if anyone saw coming. He was the only player in the league with over 100 points and over 120 loose balls. In fact, only Lyle Thompson has surpassed those same numbers in a single season, doing it in 2017 (he actually almost did it again in 2023), the year he was voted MVP. Fields was also usually near the top of our Clutch Kings series, a statistical analysis that tracks the game’s most money goal scorers. He missed the PLL’s championships game due to injury, but Fields appears ready to go for Rochester, as the Knighthawks look to further improve on last year’s most successful season since the restart.

Age: 30
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: San Diego Seals
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 25 🔥

To statistically sit #1 on an offense with as many weapons as the Seals carry speaks volumes of just how important, involved and irreplaceable Wes Berg is to San Diego’s stacked squad. Berg blew away his previous best offensive numbers in a single season, is now a 30-60-90 Club card carrier (G-A-LB), and somehow even managed to collect 14 caused turnovers, which tied him for the most amongst full-time forwards in the league (MVP Dhane Smith was the other). In last year’s Top 100 we said, “This upcoming season has all the makings of a career year for the Cup-hungry Coquitlam product.” Safe bet he’ll do the same or better a season later.

Age: 29
Season: 6
Position: Forward
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: New Westminster, BC
Last Year: 14

Last year, we had Josh Byrne ranked as high as #1 in our in-season Player Rankings. After missing three games through February, he did drop a bit on our weekly list, but still finished the year at #10. Does that seem high? It shouldn’t. Byrne is one of the most dynamic, clutch and unique forwards in the game today, his overall offensive game making him a threat crashing through the crease or dealing from downtown. Even after missing time, Byrne still led the Bandits in goals and was also one of our highest rated Clutch Kings, a weighted goal-scoring system that values game-tying, go-ahead and game-winning goals, plus when & how they’re scored.

Age: 31
Season: 7
Position: Forward
Team: Toronto Rock
From: East Meadow, NY
Last Year: 10

The 255 shots Tom Schreiber rifled for the Toronto Rock last year were the most ever by one player in a single NLL regular season. The next closest teammate was Corey Small, who saw 78 less looks on goal. Get this though, Schreiber averaged slightly fewer goals than his single best season a year earlier (2.94 vs. 2.67). So sure, Schreiber’s shooting percentage took a bit of a slap, but allowing Schreiber to shoot the lights out last season wasn’t necessarily about seeing him score a shit load more goals. It was about Tom Schreiber being THE man on Toronto’s offense, and giving him the solo set of keys to lead that lineup. The more revealing stat from Schreiber’s season last year were his 68 assists, the most he’s ever registered - 20 more than any other Toronto teammates, good enough for 9th in the league too. Schreiber, who collected 100+ loosies for the first time last year too, owns an off-ball work ethic only a few forwards in the NLL would come close to competing with. He’ll start the upcoming season on the Rock’s physically unable to perform list, which will be his fourth (of soon to be seven seasons) not getting a full 18 games in.

Age: 29
Season: 7
Position: Transition
Team: Toronto Rock
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 5

We all freaked out when Challen Rogers was finally listed as a forward entering last season. Well, we’re all kinda dumb, because honestly, the worst thing you could do is define a player as versatile, dynamic and special as Rogers with a single letter. No matter what position they slap on his bio, the Rock continued to utilize Rogers in a variety of situations, their captain constantly impacting play on either side of centre. His 3.06 points per game were a new single season high, while Toronto went 5-1 in games Rogers found the back of the net two or more times. Rogers, who got slapped with a funky five-minute major in Game 2 of last year’s East Conference Final (a cross-checking call that totally changed the course of the game, and was later rescinded by the league and reduced to two), is more motivated than ever to lead the Rock to their first Cup since 2011.

Age: 31
Season: 11
Position: Forward
Team: Philadelphia Wings
From: Delta, BC
Last Year: 18 🔥

We saw how bad things got in Vancouver when he was lost to injury for the season two years ago. We saw how much better Philadelphia played when he arrived in February last year. Mitch Jones is a game changer, plain & simple. He has the ability to make those around him better, but can also take over a game (like he did with a 14-point effort in a 19-12 win over New York) solo styles too. He’s deceptive, dynamic and is a dangerous ball carrier that can carve up your crease in dozens of different ways. Jones set new season highs virtually across his entire stat line in 2023. Last year he finished with 82 assists. His previous best was 48. After the move from the Warriors to the Wings, Jones was finding 1.5 more assists per game while feeding Philly forwards, who added fire thrower Holden Cattoni over the offseason. Healthy and seemingly at home in Philadelphia, 2024 should be a big one for Jones.

Age: 41
Season: 18
Position: Goalie
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: St. Catharines, ON
Last Year: 8

Honestly, what else can you say about Matt Vinc? At 41, Vinc continues to be one of the sport’s best backstops, last year leading the Buffalo Bandits to the franchise’s fifth title and his fourth. He allowed just four goals on 50 shots (92% save percentage) in Game 3 of the NLL Finals. No goalie in league history has allowed fewer in the Finals. What’s next for arguably the greatest goalie the league has ever seen? Well, Vinc somewhat surprisingly signed a two-year deal with Buffalo this past summer (hands up to those who thought he’d go out on top with that 2023 title), and you better believe winning two more titles is all that’s on his mind. While Buffalo has been to the last three Finals, Vinc has actually competed in the past four (three with the Bandits and a fourth in 2018 with Rochester). If he can get there again this year, he would tie Dallas Eliuk (1992-1996) & Bob Watson (1999-2003) for most consecutive appearances in the NLL Finals by a goalie. It’s Vinc, Eliuk and Watson that are often debated as being the greatest pro box goalie of all time.

Age: 29
Season: 6
Position: Transition
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Peterborough, ON
Last Year: 6

Just when you thought Zach Currier’s overall game couldn’t evolve any further, he adds even more to his all-around arsenal. Currier saw a 75% increase in his offensive production last year, most if not all of those goals (15) and assists (18) coming courtesy of Calgary’s insane offensive press, which of course, Currier leads. There is likely no other player today as elusive, darting and dynamic as Currier when he cruises past mid floor. He transitions with intent versus simply sprinting over centre, dishing to an open man and jogging off the floor. The second he scoops a loosie, Currier is calculating the best possible place to put the ball to get the Roughnecks in a positive offensive situation. With that said, he’s about as defensively dependable as you could ask too. Only two players leaguewide finished in the Top 10 for loose balls, caused turnovers and blocks last year. One was Reid Bowering. The other was Zach Currier.

Age: 31
Season: 8
Position: Forward
Team: Georgia Swarm
From: Onondaga, NY
Last Year: 4

At times last year, especially during the first half of the season, it felt like Lyle Thompson was maybe trying to do too much. The goal scoring & playmaking perfectionist clearly took the Georgia Swarm’s 2022 playoff miss personally, and wasn’t going to let it happen again (although it did). The team had also seen a tremendous amount of turnover, leaving Thompson as one of the few still-there vets to steer the ship. His turnover rate was really high for a high-profile forward that usually has an absurdly lower TO total. While the outstanding play of rookie goalie Brett Dobson most definitely aligned with Georgia’s middle-of-the-season win streak, so did Thompson’s ball retention and shots taken stats. In the second half of last year’s season, Thompson gave the ball away two fewer times a game and at the same time was hitting the next two more times too. The Swarm went 2-7 from December to early March, and then 6-3 the rest of the way. The team was scoring almost three more goals per game in the second half of the season. After a summer spent in Six Nations, which included a Mann Cup victory, Lyle Thompson’s 2024 should be something special.

Age: 26
Season: 8
Position: Goalie
Team: Calgary Roughnecks
From: Coquitlam, BC
Last Year: 40 🔥🔥🔥

Last year, Christian Del Bianco became just the second goalie in league history to be voted MVP. Why? Well, we discussed and sliced & diced the data to death in our year-end Goalie of the Year analysis, and while that was really revealing, netminder numbers can only tell you so much, especially the ones that are also impacted by a team’s overall defensive play. So again, why? Well…

“Delbs had an outstanding year for us. There is no doubt that we would not have had the franchise record-setting, 13-win season we had without Christian. The confidence of our team was directly related to his play, night-in and night-out. In the most important position on the floor, he was our best player. That gave all of us trust and belief, which is a true sign of an MVP. MVP to me means your value to the team is unquantifiable and that you make everyone around you better. Christian did just that with his poise, calmness, compete and a will to win.” - Former Calgary Roughnecks Head Coach, Curt Malawsky (Calgary Sun)

Age: 26
Season: 3
Position: Forward
Team: New York Riptide
From: Brampton, ON
Last Year: 1

Last year’s highest ranked player slips a single spot, but honestly, there wasn’t much more Jeff Teat could have done to maintain number one. No player in the league was relied on more heavily than the New York Riptide leaned on Teat. The league’s leading point producer (136 - two shy of setting a new single-season record), Teat was involved (goal or assist) in 68% of New York’s 201 regular season goals, the highest percentage for a player anywhere in the NLL last year. For the second straight season, Teat hit 30-60-90 Club numbers (goals-assists-loose balls), the first time ever a player has done that in their first two seasons in the league. By the sounds of it, Teat lost many MVP votes because the Riptide failed to qualify for the playoffs. Fair? If Christian Del Bianco or Dhane Smith, last year’s other two MVP Finalist alongside Teat, had the exact same seasons they had in Calgary or Buffalo (both teams owning stacked squads with considerably more depth than NY has) playing for New York, would they have gotten the Riptide to the playoffs? No offense to either of ‘em, but there’s no chance.

Age: 31
Season: 11
Position: Forward
Team: Buffalo Bandits
From: Kitchener, ON
Last Year: 2

He was our MVP pick two years ago and again last year, so it only make sense that Dhane Smith comes in at #1 in The Lax Mag’s 2023-24 NLL Top 100. As always, Smith put up silly-high stats last year, registering his sixth 100 point season and finishing just four points behind Jeff Teat for the league lead. Smith also broke his own assists in a single-season stat (96), an NLL record he just rewrote a year earlier. He won the NLL Cup with Buffalo, then a few months later won the Mann Cup with the Six Nations Chiefs, a rare same-year double dip that usually only the sport’s absolute best have achieved. Smith also kept a Buffalo forward cast afloat while seemingly everyone on that unit spent some or significant time on the IR last year. With everyone back for the playoffs, Smith and the Bandits squad had a pretty perfect playoffs, losing just one game and owning a ridiculous +34 goal differential over just six contests. While winning the title is all that mattered to Smith, he couldn’t help register a new record on that run. Smith’s 49 postseason points from last May are a new all-time high. Oh right, he was also named the NLL Playoffs MVP too. In 2023, Smith achieved, both individually and with his teammates, what most players can only hope to accomplish over their entire careers.

He can have it, I want a championship
— Dhane Smith (@dhanesmith92) February 16, 2023

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