Junior & Senior A: Draft dates, draft orders, plus protected player lists
Jameson Steele, Oakville Buzz protected player (Photo: OLA)
Junior & Senior A leagues in Ontario & British Columbia have locked in important draft-related details over the last few weeks, both the Ontario Junior Lacrosse League and Major Series Lacrosse holding their drafts at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre this coming Sunday. The British Columbia Junior A Lacrosse League Draft takes place a day earlier at the Langley Events Centre, while the Western Lacrosse Association selects their future stars later this month.
Ontario Junior Lacrosse League
The OJLL has been extremely active in announcing details about their highly anticipated draft on January 22 at the TRAC, today providing protected player lists to the public. This is the first year the league has made protected lists available past sharing them internally with team representatives. It was just in recent seasons that Ontario’s Junior A league started sharing results on social media during the actual draft.
See all the protected players in the league’s tweet and link below.
As outlined in today’s OJLL announcement:
Ontario players born in 2006 that are not protected by OJLL teams under OLA R6.43(a) of the OLA Rules and Regulations are eligible for selection in the two rounds of the 2023 OJLL Draft. There are 22 selections in total.
Note: Under OLA R6.38(a), minor centres that have a Junior B (OJBLL) or Junior C (OJCLL) team may only have one player selected each year. Only one goalie can be drafted from these centres in a 5-year period.
Unprotected players that are expected to garner considerable interest from teams on Sunday include: Caiden Merritt (Halton Hills), Zach Toll (Oshawa), Treysen Stewart (Oshawa), Nolan Barker (London), Clark Dunford (Hamilton) and goalie Ty Wilson (Oshawa).
If last year was any indication, expect a number of order-altering trades leading up to Sunday’s draft, but as of early this evening, the OJLL’s two rounds will look like this:
First Round
1. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
2. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
3. St. Catharines Athletics
4. St. Catharines Athletics
5. Whitby Warriors
6. St. Catharines Athletics
7. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
8. St. Catharines Athletics
9. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
10. St. Catharines Athletics
11. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
Second Round
12. Whitby Warriors
13. Peterborough Lakers
14. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
15. Six Nations Arrows
16. Peterborough Lakers
17. Kitchener-Waterloo Lacrosse Club
18. Oakville Buzz
19. Brampton Excelsiors
20. Whitby Warriors
21. Six Nations Arrows
22. St. Catharines Athletics
Follow @TheOJLL on Twitter to see all the selections starting at 3pm ET.
Toronto Rock Athletic Centre, Oakville ON (Photo: Dave Fryer)
British Columbia Junior A Lacrosse League
Earlier this month, the BCJALL tweeted that their Entry Draft would take place on Saturday, January 21 at the Langley Events Centre at 6pm PT. The league has not shared any additional details for the day. Last year, the New Westminster Salmonbellies selected Aidan McDonald with the first overall pick. A year earlier Cody Malawsky went #1 to the Langley Thunder, who this past summer narrowly missed making the 2022 Minto Cup. Malawsky finished fourth overall in BCJALL post-season scoring.
Update: The BCJALL tweeted their draft’s first two rounds on Wednesday evening. For the last number of years, the BCJALL draft has spanned six rounds.
First Round
1. Port Coquitlam Saints
2. Delta Islanders
3. New Westminster Salmonbellies
4. New Westminster Salmonbellies
5. Coquiltam Adanacs
6. New Westminster Salmonbellies
7. Port Coquitlam Saints
8. Delta Islanders
Second Round
9. Port Coquitlam Saints
10. Delta Islanders
11. New Westminster Salmonbellies
12. New Westminster Salmonbellies
13. Coquitlam Adanacs
14. Delta Islanders
15. New Westminster Salmonbellies
16. Port Coquitlam Saints
Major Series Lacrosse
Like the OJLL, MSL will be holding their draft this coming Sunday at the TRAC in Oakville, the Senior A league starting two hours earlier at 1pm ET 12pm ET.
In recent weeks the league confirmed that both Brampton & Owen Sound would be taking part in their 2023 season, while the Oakville Rock would sit on the sidelines for an additional summer.
Update: Since publishing this piece, MSL has moved their draft start time from 1pm ET to noon on Sunday, January 22 at the TRAC. They have also released protected player lists, which are available on social media.
2022 MSL Draft 4th overall selection Dylan Watson, Orangeville Northmen
The league’s first round, for now at least, will follow this order:
First Round
1. Cobourg Kodiaks
2. Brooklin Lacrosse Club
3. Peterborough Lakers
4. Six Nations Chiefs
5. Owen Sound North Stars
6. Brampton Excelsiors
Click here for the current order of all five rounds and 30 total picks.
Patrick Dodds, Victoria Shamrocks (Photo: BCJALL)
Western Lacrosse Association
The WLA’s 2023 Graduating Junior Draft will take place on Tuesday, January 31 at 7pm PT and will be webcast live on the league’s site, WLALacrosse.com.
Although a confirmed draft order has yet to be revealed, the league has confirmed each team’s graduating junior territorial protected players.
Burnaby Lakers: Matteo Tack & Nic Dos Santos
Coquitlam Adanacs: Adam Noakes & Nick Musso
Langley Thunder: Matt Abbott & Kyle Brunsch
Maple Ridge Burrards: Drew Andrew & Isaac Ngyou
Nanaimo Timbermen: Justine Geddie & Ryan Sheridan
New Westminster Salmonbellies: Noah Armitage & Ben Stewart
Victoria Shamrocks: Patrick Dodds & Casey Wilson