The Peterborough Timbermen finished the 2019 Arena Lacrosse League campaign in second place with a 9-5 record. The team made huge strides this season after finishing in last place their first two years in the league.
Part of that success was a change in team leadership with Mark Vradenburg taking over the captaincy and Doug Utting taking on assistant duties. Both players have been with the Timbermen since their first season.
Another reason for the success was head coach Joe Sullivan’s implementation of morning shoot arounds, a practice used in the National Lacrosse League. It made for long game days, but mimicking the pros allowed the players to become more familiar with each other and the coaching staff’s systems, as well as building camaraderie.
The methods paid off for Colton Armstrong and Cameron Simpson, who were both signed to the Rochester Knighthawks mid-season. Armstrong has played in three games so far, scoring twice and assisting once while helping out the Knighthawks’ transition game. Simpson has played one game so far and is currently signed to the ‘Hawks practice roster with Timbermen teammate Nick Damude.
The success wasn’t limited to just NLL contracts. Individually, several Timbermen made their marks among the league’s top scorers.
Vradenburg had a career year, finishing second in league scoring with 77 points. His 33 goals was third and 44 assists second.
Rookie Aaron Woods finished sixth in league scoring with 65 points. He also finished seventh in goals scored with 28 and eighth in assists with 37.
Fred Hartley was eighth in league scoring with 60 points and ninth in goals scored with 26.
Tim Bergin’s 42 assists was fourth in the league.
The Timbermen took spots 3-5 in shorthanded goals with Colton Armstrong and Doug Utting each tallying four and Cameron Simpson three.
Goaltender Nick Damude finished first in wins with six and second in goals against with an average of 11.20.
The Timbermen finished fourth in power play with a .500 average and third in penalty kill with .556.
