Timbermen add talent at draft

The Peterborough Timbermen took a major step towards improving their roster for the 2018 season on Saturday night at the Arena Lacrosse League’s annual draft.

The Timbermen made a splash with their first two picks, selecting hometown goaltender Kevin Croswell in the first round, second overall, and former New England Black Wolves defenseman Bill O’Brien in the second round at ninth overall.

Croswell recently returned to competitive lacrosse with the MSL’s Cobourg Kodiaks, going 2-5 with an 11.21 GAA and .641 save percentage.

The 6’4, 235lb. O’Brien, a three-year NLL veteran, was the steal of the draft, having recently been released by the Black Wolves. The fan favourite scored nine assists in 49 career games while amassing 172 penalty minutes.

O’Brien is excited for the opportunity to play in Peterborough.

“After playing with Shawn Evans and being coached by Tracey Kelusky in New England, I’ve heard stories about ‘the boro’ being one of the best places to play,” O’Brien said.

His recent release from the NLL has made him even more motivated to succeed.

“It’s important to continue playing and honing your skills as an athlete at any level. I’m looking forward to gaining some experience wearing the Timbermen jersey.”

The Timbermen drafted three local defensemen in Tyler Lafonte and Riley Morgan from the Jr. A Lakers, and Stephen Bourden from the Ennismore James Gang, as well as transition player Nick Karam from the Trent Excalibur.

Head coach and general manager Joe Sullivan was very pleased with the draft.

“In the first round we had to address our goaltending issue. Getting Kevin Croswell after the season he had in the MSL with Cobourg is absolutely fantastic. In Bill O’Brien we get size, we get leadership, we get toughness and we get experience. We got a lot better with our first two picks alone. After that the point of our draft was to find depth and specialty players which I believe we did, adding right-handed offensive player Nick Karam and numerous other players on defense that all have senior experience.”

The Timbermen made one trade during the draft, sending goaltender Nolan Clayton to the Paris RiverWolves for defenseman Stu McIlhone and a seventh-round pick that was turned into Connor Primeau from the Ottawa Axemen.

Sullivan drafted three and signed two players as free agents from the Tyendinaga Thunderbirds of the Three Nations Senior Lacrosse League. Sullivan coached the Thunderbirds during the 2017 summer season.

“Shane Francis, Ky Tarbell and Ky Horn are all outstanding defensive players that have many years of senior experience that are going to bolster our club immediately and improve our transition game while shutting down other teams’ offensive threats,” he said. Joe Hall and Chad Thompson will help out on offense.

Goaltender Brett Perras was also signed as a free agent.

Peterborough native Cam Milligan was selected first overall by the expansion Whitby Steelhawks, who also selected local players Jeff Swift, Dylan Hutchison, Parker Sands and Courtland Black-Araujo.

The Timbermen will hold training camp sessions on December 9 and 16 at Children’s Arena in Oshawa.

Ticket information for the Timbermen’s two home games on January 6 and 7 will be released soon.

Full draft results:

1st round: G Kevin Croswell (Cobourg Kodiaks)
2nd round: D Bill O’Brien (New England Black Wolves)
3rd round: T Nick Karam (Trent Excalibur)
5th round: LF Blake Kenny (St. Regis Braves)
6th round: D Tyler Lafonte (Jr. A Lakers)
7th round: D/T Ky Horn (Tyendinaga Thunderbirds)
7th round: T Connor Primeau (Ottawa Axemen)
8th round: LF Joe Hall (Tyendinaga Thunderbirds)
9th round: D Stephen Bourden (Ennismore James Gang)
10th round: D Ky Tarbell (Tyendinaga Thunderbirds)
11th round: T Kahiio Cree (Seneca War Chiefs)
12th round: D Riley Morgan (Jr. A Lakers)
13th round: D Greg Phillips (Arthur, Ont.)
14th round: D Justin McPherson (St. Catharines, Ont.)
15th round: LF James McCauley (Norristown, PA)