The Peterborough Timbermen are happy to announce the signing of a major offensive asset in right-handed forward Joel Matthews.
Matthews is a familiar name to Peterborough lacrosse fans as he was a big part of the Peterborough Lakers run to and subsequent win of the Mann Cup in 2017.
“We could not be more excited than to acquire a player like Joel,” said Timbermen head coach and general manager Joe Sullivan. “His NLL experience and his championship run with the Lakers brings all the leadership and size we need to balance our offense. I look for Joel to have an immediate impact on the Timbermen as soon as we hit the floor in Paris on December 30th.”
As a junior-aged player, Matthews had back-to-back seasons with 100 points or more, finishing 2nd in the OLA Jr. A league in 2010 in scoring while tying for fifth in 2011 playing for the St. Catharines Athletics.
In two seasons with the Lakers he has scored 23 points including six goals and 17 assists while playing out both the front and the back door. He also has 10 playoff points including two goals in the Mann Cup, where he wreaked havoc in front of the net for the New Westminster defense.
A veteran NLL player, Matthews went unsigned this season after three part-time seasons with Rochester, where he picked up 16 points over 15 games, but just as importantly became a fan-favourite with his hard-nosed play.
At 6’3” and 220 lbs., Matthews will help the Timbermen up front as a complement to a roster of talented, but smaller players. Not only can he score himself, but he’ll make room for the rest of the offense to get more chances on goal.
The Timbermen completed a day-long pre-season tournament on December 16th at Children’s Arena in Oshawa on Saturday, suffering losses to Whitby and Oshawa. Sullivan will reveal his finalized roster in the coming days.
The Timbermen open their season on December 30th at the Syl Apps Community Centre in Paris, Ontario against the River Wolves, before coming home to the Memorial Centre on January 6th and 7th.
Tickets for those two games are now on sale at the box office. Their remaining five home games will be played at Children’s Arena. Season tickets, at a cost of $50 for the full season, including the Memorial Centre games, can be purchased online at http://www.arenalacrosseleague.com.
