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Deep NLL Draft Goes Monday In Oakville

September 24, 2015

DEEP NLL DRAFT GOES MONDAY IN OAKVILLE

Rock Hold 5 Picks In 6 Round Draft

Oakville, ON – The month of September will close out with a very busy weekend on the NLL calendar with the NLL Combine on Sunday, the NLL Draft on Monday and the NLL Hall of Fame and Awards Ceremony on Tuesday night.  All of these NLL events will be held at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre (TRAC) in Oakville, ON.

The Rock do not have a first round selection in Monday night’s draft, however the team does own the first pick in the second round, 10th overall as well as the 17th overall pick which is the 8th pick in the second round.

The 10th overall selection was acquired from the New England Black Wolves last summer as a part of the trade that brought Brodie Merrill to Toronto.  In the deal, the Rock gave up their 2015 1st round pick which turned out to be 8th overall selection, meaning in the end, the Rock only moved down two spots.

The 2015 NLL Draft has been talked about as the deepest draft in the history of the league, loaded with offensive and defensive talent that will step into the league in 2016 and certainly shake things up.  Not having a first round pick would usually put a team at a bit of a disadvantage, but that definitely won’t be the case come Monday night.

“There’s a lot of high end talent at the top of the draft,” said Rock Owner, President and GM Jamie Dawick.   “After the top end there’s about 10 guys all in the same category.  We’re looking at one of those guys with our first pick, and with two picks in the 2nd round, we expect to get two quality players with those picks.  Those two players will be expected to make a serious push for active roster spots.”

With so much talent up for grabs on Monday, what is the right draft day philosophy?  Do you draft the best player available or do you draft based on the present day needs of the team?

“You want to take the best player available, but having said that, you definitely factor in needs at the same time.  Our mentality around here is to win now,” explained Dawick.

The draft table will have a different look and feel this year for the Toronto Rock as this will be the first NLL Draft for Dawick as the Rock’s owner without Terry Sanderson, who passed away late last year.  Dawick will lean on assistant GM Matt Sawyer and Eastern Canadian scout DJ Clevely when it comes to making those final decisions on the next wave of young talent joining the Rock organization.

“Matt and DJ have been doing a lot of research.  We have talked through numerous situations.  Matt will be the guy I go to for the final input before I make a decision on who we will select,” said Dawick.

Below is a list of Rock picks by round.  Toronto’s 2015 4th round pick was sent to Vancouver in 2014 as a part of a package of picks, which also included a 2014 3rd round pick, to acquire Bill Hostrawser.  The Rock lost their 5th round pick due to a free agency signing violation earlier this off-season.

2ND ROUND

10. Toronto Rock (from New England Black Wolves)
17. Toronto Rock

3RD ROUND

29. Toronto Rock

6TH ROUND

53. Toronto Rock (from Buffalo Bandits)
54. Toronto Rock

Monday’s draft at the TRAC is open to the public and begins at 7 p.m.  Fans are welcome to attend but for those who can’t make it to the draft, they can watch live at NLL.com.

Toronto Rock Season Tickets will go on sale this Monday at 10am.  Single game tickets will go on sale to the general public on Monday, November 30th.  For more information about Toronto Rock tickets, please visit www.torontorock.com or phone 416-596-3075 to speak with a ticket representative.

Toronto Rock