March 19, 2008

by Tom Borrelli, Special to Lacrosse Magazine Online

Geoff Snider's star burned brightest last weekend.

The Philadelphia Wings' second-year transition man had three goals, three assists, 28 loose balls and won 31 of 36 faceoffs (86.1 percent) for the East Division in Sunday afternoon's 17-16 overtime victory over the West in the National Lacrosse League All-Star Game at Edmonton's Rexall Place.

Snider was named the game's Most Valuable Player for doing what he does best.

He's won 157 of 217 draws (72.4 percent) this season for the Wings, who are 7-1 and atop the East at the midway point.

Since entering the league in 2007, Snider has won 358 of 485 faceoffs (73.8 percent) in the regular season and 51 of 67 (76.1 percent) in his two All-Star Game appearances.

He won 20 of 31 (64.5 percent) last Friday night, as the Wings defeated the San Jose Stealth, 16-13.

Snider can put up his dukes with the best of them and, in addition to being the league's top faceoff man, he also ranks second with l08 loose balls, behind only Portland's Brodie Merrill, who has 121 in two additional games.

"I think it's real easy to look at somebody who is so dominating on faceoffs and with his fists and say that's all he can do," said Wings coach Dave Huntley. "But it didn't take long for me to realize that Geoff Snider is as complete a player as is playing in the sport today."

Snider has proven that a dominant faceoff man can make the difference on the biggest stage. He was chosen as the MVP of the ILF World Lacrosse Championships in London, Ontario in 2006, when he helped Team Canada defeat Team USA, 15-10, in the title game. That snapped the Americans' 28-year, 38-game ILF winning streak.

Snider won 20 of 28 draws (71.4 percent) in the championship game, 143 of 195 (73.3 percent) in the tournament and 21 of 27 (77.8 percent) against Team USA in a last-second, 13-12 defeat in round-robin play.

While at the University of Denver, the 5-foot-10, 210-pounder from Calgary finished second in the nation as a senior, winning 242 of 354 (68.4 percent), and set an NCAA record with 194 ground balls. In his career with the Pioneers, he won 447 of 731 faceoffs (61.1 percent) and scooped 349 ground balls in 56 games.

"It's such a huge honor," Snider said after the All-Star Game. "These are the best players in the world. I'm just flattered to be here. When you are playing with guys like that, they make you a better player."

Snider is perhaps the biggest reason that the Wings will be so dangerous should they make the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

"It would be great if Geoff would be named MVP of the championship game, too, because they generally don't come from losing teams very often," Huntley said. "That would be really nice, but there's still a long way to go."

Snider will be looking to add to his gaudy numbers when the Wings meet the New York Titans (5-5) Saturday night at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, N.J. The 8-year-old, $53 million arena seats about 8,100 for lacrosse and is the home to the Trenton Devils of the East Coast Hockey League.

The arena will be hosting the Titans' sixth "home" game because of a shortage of available playing dates at Madison Square Garden. This is the first of three consecutive road games for the Wings.

"We'll get a look at the place on Saturday morning," said Titans coach Adam Mueller. "We've been on the road for eight out of 10 games so far, so I don't think that we'll be in for any surprises."

The Wings beat the Titans, 16-12, at the Wachovia Center on Feb. 29, and the teams will meet there again on April 19. Philadelphia has won all three previous matchups by a combined score of 52-31.

Busy weekend for Rock

The Toronto Rock (5-4), coming off a 14-10 loss to the Titans, needs a big weekend in the chase for an East playoff spot.

On Friday night, the Edmonton Rush (2-6), which has won two of three since Bob Hamley replaced Paul Day as head coach and general manager, travels to the Air Canada Centre.

"History tells us that with any kind of a move with a coach in professional sports, the players tend to respond immediately," Hamley said. "I think that has a little bit to do with it."

Toronto was a 14-9 victor in Edmonton on Jan. 19, part of the Rush's six-game losing streak to start the season.

"With the way it's shaping up in the East for us, we're almost getting into must-win games," said Rock coach Glenn Clark. "It's going to be such a dogfight getting into the top four. Every game will be a do-or-die fight for us."

On Saturday, the Rock travels to HSBC Arena to meet the hot Buffalo Bandits (7-4). The Bandits have won four straight since an 11-8 defeat at Toronto on Feb. 15.

That night, goaltender Bob Watson made 45 saves and limited the Bandits to four goals in the first 45 minutes. Watson is 12-6 in his career against Buffalo and has won his last four decisions, limiting the Bandits to 34 goals on 197 shots during that span.

"Bobby is a fairly low-key guy but a fierce competitor," Clark said of Watson, who has backstopped five championship teams in Toronto. "He takes a lot of pride in what he does. Maybe there has been a bit more of a rivalry between the two teams, but I chalk it up to Bobby being Bobby. And they've been one of the top teams the last few years, so it's very easy to get up for them."

It will be the final appearance in Buffalo for Toronto captain Jim Veltman, who spent his first five seasons with the Bandits and helped them win all three of their championships.

Mammoth has Jax's number

The Colorado Mammoth (6-3), fresh off an 11-6 victory over Calgary that reclaimed the West Division lead, meet the Portland LumberJax (3-7) at the Rose Garden Thursday night.

Portland suddenly finds itself in quite a battle with Edmonton for the fourth and final playoff spot in the West.

"The bottom line is that we have six games left, and it's got to start for us [Thursday] night," said Jax coach Derek Keenan. "That will be our focus. Edmonton is in it now - all five [in the West] are, which is exciting. But we just have to take care of our business and not worry about what happens with the other guys."

The LumberJax have had trouble against the Mammoth, losing the last five in this series. Colorado won, 12-11, in overtime in Portland on Jan. 24 and 15-12 in the Pepsi Center on Feb. 7.

"We've had two very difficult games with them," said Mammoth coach Bob McMahon. "We stole the game in Portland, because they were the better team that night. We don't take anything for granted with them...We have to play well to win."

Home disadvantage?

The Calgary Roughnecks (4-7) and San Jose Stealth (5-4), both losers last weekend, get together Saturday afternoon in the HP Pavilion.

That may not be the best news for the Stealth. San Jose won, 13-12, in overtime at Calgary's Pengrowth Saddledome on Jan. 12, and the Riggers retaliated with a 16-13 triumph in San Jose on Jan. 25. During the past two seasons, the visiting team has won four out of five in this series.

"It's turned into a great rivalry," said Stealth assistant general manager Doug Locker. "We're happy to be home after having been on the road since [Feb. 9]. Getting back to the familiar turf and a sense of normalcy is something we're looking forward to."

The Stealth is just 1-2 on its home turf this season, but the Roughnecks are 1-4 away from the Saddledome. So something has to give.

Calgary may have goaltender Steve Dietrich back. The 2006 NLL Most Valuable Player has missed seven straight games with the aftereffects of a concussion. Roughnecks general manager Kurt Silcott said Dietrich has received clearance to play from the medical staff, and his team's starter will be a game-time decision.

Champs back at home

The Rochester Knighthawks (4-5) are back in Blue Cross Arena to face the Chicago Shamrox (1-7) on Saturday night.

Rochester went 1-1 on its recent road trip, an 18-8 victory at Chicago on March 1 and a 10-9 overtime loss to Edmonton last Saturday night.

This is a must-win for the Knighthawks, who play four of their final five games on the road. Rochester is perfect in three previous matchups with Chicago, outscoring the Shamrox, 46-28.

"We've put ourselves up against it," said Knighthawks coach Ed Comeau. "It's not going to be easy getting a playoff spot, but we're going to work hard at it. We're not going to think about the end product; we're just going to worry about getting ready to play Chicago...We just want to get to the dance and figure out who we're going to dance with once we get there."

The Shamrox are on a five-game losing streak, during which they've averaged just nine goals per contest. Since starting 3-1 in their inaugural season of 2007, the Shamrox have lost 16 of 20.

"For the last few years, everybody knows what a great offense Rochester has," said Shamrox coach Jamie Batley. "We know we need to combat the things that they do well."

Award winners

* Skills competition winners during All-Star weekend were Rochester's John Grant Jr. in both the trick shot and fastest shot (104 mph), Edmonton's Mike Accursi in the accuracy contest, Buffalo's Mark Steenhuis in the agility competition, Colorado's Gee Nash in the long shot event for goaltenders and the San Jose Stealth contingent in the three-on-three event.

* Colorado's Gavin Prout, who had three goals and six assists at Calgary, was named the Overall Player of the Week.

* Edmonton's Mike Hominuck, who had three goals, including the winner, an assist and nine loose balls against Rochester, is the Offensive Player of the Week. It was Hominuck's first game in a Rush uniform since being acquired in a four-team deal two weeks ago.

* New York goaltender Matt Vinc is the Defensive Player of the Week after making 51 saves against the Rock.

* Titans teammate John Orsen is the Transition Player of the Week after potting two goals with two assists and 13 loose balls.