IL Indoor

Ben McIntosh made his return to the Coquitlam lineup last night, scoring twice in the third vs. New West. (Ward Laforme Jr.)

When we last left you, two teams remained perfect during the summer of 2011, both of those sides with high profile contests over the last seven days. The first team, last week’s #1 ranked ball club – the Coquitlam Adanacs – impressively kept that goose egg in their L column, decimating the Victoria Shamrocks 20-8 and then twice dumping the New Westminster Salmonbellies. Will anyone from BC challenge them in 2011? The other team – the Six Nations Arrows – didn’t fair quite as well. The Arrows dropped their first game last night, the Whitby Warriors taking a 14-13 fight filled affair that saw close to 200 penalty minutes handed out. So where does that leave the Arrows in the Power Rankings this week? Better yet, what did last night’s W do for the finally clicking Warriors? Find out the answer to those questions and many others in this week’s Junior ‘A’ Power Rankings, which will now appear Wednesdays on IL Indoor the rest of the season.

1 (1) Coquitlam Adanacs (BCJALL) 13-0-0
Last Week: 10-8W New Westminster, 20-8W Victoria and 10-6W New Westminster
This Week: @ New Westminster, @ Langley and @ Nanaimo
They dumped the perceived next best two in the province this past week, but maybe even more importantly got Robert Church back too, one of the Junior ‘A’ game’s biggest different makers. Ben McIntosh made his 2011 debut last night, scoring two vital third period goals against the ‘Bellies. Ontario import Steve Fryer was back between the pipes for all three high profile wins this past week too. No one is even close to their level in the BCJALL right now.

2 (2) Six Nations Arrows (OLA) 10-1-0
Last Week: 15-9W Toronto, 13-8W K-W and 14-13L Whitby
This Week: vs. Mississauga and vs. Akwesasne
They got dinged by the Warriors last night, fair enough, but the Arrows remain in the #2 spot today, last night’s could-have-gone-either-way result not the definition of their season so far. They’re still one of this year’s most formidable rosters, period. Johnny Powless has been on fire of late, 5-goals in last night’s loss and 21 over his last five. Powless (32) is a goal behind only Dan Lintner for the OLA goal scoring crown.

3 (3) St. Catharines Athletics (OLA) 10-2-0
Last Week: 15-4W Mississauga and 10-5W Akwesasne
This Week: vs. Orangeville and @ Peterborough
Keep beating the teams they’re supposed to in order to stay right at the top of Ontario, but will be tested this week, first with the Horn Heads and then a Lakers team that already handed the A’s an L back in mid-May. And while their high profile scoring cast gets a lot of the mainstream ink, their defense is just as impressive, led by the likes of versatile worker Jordan Houtby and defensive defender Brandon Niesink.

4 (5) Orangeville Northmen (OLA) 8-3-0
Last Week: 12-8W Whitby, 11-2W Toronto and 9-8W Akwesasne
This Week: @ St. Catharines, @ Brampton, vs. Brampton and @ Peterborough
After starting the season 2-3 and many outside of their camp thinking the three-time defending OLA champs might be close to panic button mode, Orangeville has won six straight, including a big W against Whitby with backup backstop Scott Robinson stepping in for starter Dillon Ward, who was out with back spasms. Robinson won again against the Beaches, allowing just 2 on 40 shots. Big one tonight at Bill Burgoyne, as today’s #3 and #4 go head-to-head in what should be a doozy.

5 (8) Whitby Warriors (OLA) 7-5-0
Last Week: 12-8L Orangeville, 14-6W Brampton and 10-6W Six Nations
This Week: @ K-W
It took a while, but the Warriors showed last night why so many felt they were a strong Minto Cup contender in 2011, beating the Arrows 14-13 and reasserting themselves as one of this year’s top Junior ‘A’ clubs. How legit has goalie Zach Higgins been this year? Owning a super slim 6.04 GAA, Higgins came in relief of Alexis Buque last night, the score knotted at 10 and the Arrows storming back strong. For the next almost half hour Higgins allowed just 3 goals and extended his 2011 record to 5-0, at the top of most backstop numbers in the OLA. At their best, Higgins and Buque might be the best tandem nation-wide right now. Add in the leadership and skills of NLLer John Lafontaine and any team with Mark Matthews fronting it (just ask the Adanacs), and the Warriors are back in a big way.

6 (4) Peterborough Lakers (OLA) 8-4-0
Last Week: 9-4W Mississauga and 14-10L Burlington
This Week: @ Akwesasne, vs. St. Catharines, @ Barrie and vs. Orangeville
The Lakers are now 0-2 against the Burlington Chiefs, who they lost to again on Monday, the L dropping them a couple spots in this week’s Power Rankings. Second-year starter Turner Evans continues to light it up, Top 10 in Ontario in point production, also leading the loop with 4 short-handed goals. “He is a smart offensive player,” Lakers Head Coach Mat Giles recently told the Peterborough Examiner. “He has the ball a lot in his stick and is a good scorer and passer. He is a good package.”

7 (7) New Westminster Salmonbellies (BCJALL) 8-5-0
Last Week: 20-9W Burnaby, 10-8L Coquitlam, 11-7W Langley and 10-6L Coquitlam
This Week: vs. Delta
Two losses against the Adanacs in a single week might have shown just what a separation there is between Coquitlam and everyone else, but the ‘Bellies still remain a top Junior ‘A’ threat. Bottom line though, they need to figure out how to get past the Adanacs, who they’re 1-7 against over their last 8, which includes last year’s regular season, playoffs and Minto Cup.

8 (6) Victoria Shamrocks (BCJALL) 8-4-0
Last Week: 20-8L Coquitlam
This Week: @ Delta and @ Langley
They’re still in second, actually tied for second, in the BCJALL, but that harsh beating against last year’s Minto champs slips them a couple spots today. Their “green” youth showed a bit in that loss, but the Shamrocks still appear to be a hungry group of top quality ’91 and ‘92’s that are building something pretty special this year. Don’t count them out just yet.

9 (9) Delta Islanders (BCJALL) 7-5-0
Last Week: 9-7L Port Coquitlam
This Week: vs. Victoria and @ Burnaby
The Islanders really needed that W against PoCo last week, previously dropping three straight against arguably the three best teams in the province; Coquitlam, New Westminster and Victoria. Word is Logan Schuss will be back when the Islanders see the Shamrocks on June 18th, an addition that could even see Delta challenge for one of those first two post-season spots, AKA first round byes.

10 (11) Calgary Raiders (RMLL) 12-2-0
Last Week: 13-3W Senior ‘B’ Mountaineers and 17-8W Junior ‘A’ Mountaineers
This Week: @ Senior ‘B’ Raiders
After a shaky start by their recent standards, the Raiders certainly appear back in 2010 form, riding an 8 game win streak and really just crushing the opposition again. He just missed our cut last year, but look for more ink on Calgary assistant captain and pure defensive force Mitch Banister, who has thrived in the Raiders’ high pressure defensive system, last year Roughnecks captain and Raiders’ assistant Andrew McBride telling us, “Mitch Banister has played some of the best pressure D that I have seen at any level. He has been a great leader and an absolute rock on the backend for us.”

11 (12) Brampton Excelsiors (OLA) 7-5-0
Last Week: 9-6W Burlington, 14-6L Whitby and 16-10W Toronto
This Week: @ Mississauga, vs. Orangeville and @ Orangeville
Big W over the Chiefs moves the Excels up a peg in the Power Rankings and – good or bad – their results against the Northmen in a home and home this week likely won’t leave them at 11 a week from now. The buzz on Michael Burke seems to have quieted since her first broke into the Junior ‘A’ scene and was a regular (really) underage call-up for the Senior Excels, but as he’s shown so far this year, he’s still one of the best in the Junior ‘A’ game, currently just a few points off the scoring crown.

12 (10) Burlington Chiefs (OLA) 7-5-0
Last Week: 9-6L Brampton and 14-10W Peterborough
This Week: @ Barrie, vs. Akwesasne and @ Toronto
Although we missed him in this week’s Money Ballers, gotta give Owen Dixon some clutch love. Dixon has scored just 7 goals this year, 3 of them of the game winning variety, all of them coming in the third period. Burlington is 5-1 when Dixon scores, just 1-4 when he doesn’t. Get this kid the ball!

13 (13) K-W Braves (OLA) 7-7-0
Last Week: 10-7W Barrie, 12-7W Barrie, 13-8L Six Nations and 12-8W Toronto
This Week: vs. Whitby
We said last week the Braves would need a sweep against the just behind Barrie Lakeshores in their late week mini-series, K-W doing just that in a pair of convincing W’s to keep them in Ontario’s Top 8. They’ll again see someone right on their tail, the currently 7th place Warriors on deck this week. K-W has a pretty tough remaining schedule with a pair against Whitby, Orangeville and a single against Six Nations. That playoff spot is far from a guarantee even with their Lakeshores sweep aside. They’ll need a couple upsets to stay relevant long term.

14 (14) Akwesasne Indians (OLA) 5-7-0
Last Week: 10-5L St. Catharines and 9-8L Orangeville
This Week: vs. Peterborough, @ Burlington and @ Six Nations
The Indians continue to slip down the standings and part of that is due to teams doubling up on the high profile Miles Thompson, who’s point production has significantly dropped off during Akwesasne’s downed play. “They’re not letting me do my move down low,” Thompson told the Standard Freeholder. “As soon as I turn my back, they double up . . . they’re holding me to outside shots.” The Indians started the year 5-2, Thompson averaging almost 4-goals per outing during that winning stretch. Since then Akwesasne has gone just 0-5, Thompson with only a goal/game during these recent losses. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out how to shut the Indians down.

15 (19) Nanaimo Timbermen (BCJALL) 4-8-0
Last Week: 12-5W Burnaby
This Week: @ Port Coquitlam and vs. Coquitlam
These next three spots are a real tossup between the T-Men, Lakers and Thunder, all trading results against one another recently. We’ll give the tentative nod to Nanaimo this week, who dropped Burnaby 12-5, Joey Fendick with a second half hat-trick in the W. The win helped the Timbers knot up the last playoff spot with Burnaby, an important clash with PoCo this weekend, a team that punked Nanaimo earlier this month for their one and only victory.

16 (18) Burnaby Lakers (BCJALL) 3-8-0
Last Week: 20-9L New Westminster, 12-5L Nanaimo and 8-6L Langley
This Week: @ Port Coquitlam and vs. Delta
The Lakers really needed that win last night, beating the Thunder 8-6 and sweeping their regular season series against Langley, a team they’ll likely be fighting with for that last playoff spot in BC the rest of the way. And the keeper in net for the last two wins over Langley? Richmond Roadrunners Intermediate ‘A’ backstop Xander MacDonald, who’s having a solid season in Richmond but has also been uber impressive in the minutes he’s logged for the Lakers too. A name to keep your eye one in coming years for sure.

17 (15) Langley Thunder (BCJALL) 5-8-0
Last Week: 10-8W Port Coquitlam, 11-7L New Westminster and 8-6L Burnaby
This Week: vs. Coquitlam and vs. Victoria
Tough loss to swallow against the struggling Lakers last night, Langley scoring just 3 even strength goals and super stud Reegan Comeault held scoreless for just the second time this year. With that said, past last night’s loss, Comeault has been an MVP contender for the much improved Thunder this year. “Reegan’s been great,” Head Coach Chris Levis told the Langley Advance. “He’s been a go-to, goal-scoring guy all through his career, and he’s one of the few who has gone up to next level and has actually been a goal-scorer. He’s embraced that [role] well. He is still very young and playing a mature role on our team.”

18 (22) Edmonton Eclipse (RMLL) 6-7-0
Last Week: 11-3W Senior ‘B’ Slash and 7-3W Junior ‘A’ Miners
This Week: vs. Senior ‘B’ Outlaws
The Eclipse definitely showed us. After seemingly struggling to start the year and listing Edmonton near the basement of last week’s opening edition of the Power Rankings, the club has won their third straight, making relative short work of both the Miners and Mounties during this recent streak. Forward Greg Bourret continues to lead the province in scoring, teammate Matthew Kristiansen just behind him on the charts. Can they challenge the mighty Raiders, who they don’t see against until June 25th? With two Alberta spots available during this year’s Minto, the Eclipse, at least right now, look like the likely runners up.

19 (17) Barrie Lakeshores (OLA) 4-9-0
Last Week: 10-7L K-W, 12-7L K-W and 9-6W Mississauga
This Week: vs. Burlington and vs. Peterborough
Those back-to-back losses to K-W last week really hurt the Lakeshores chances of cracking this year’s playoffs. Still a lot of lacrosse to go, but that mini-series was a big one. Although they close with Missy and TO, the rest of Barrie’s remaining schedule is nasty tough. Last year it took 9 wins in the OLA to make the post-season, which means the Lakeshores will need to play at least .500 lacrosse and grab at least one win against the likes of Orangeville, Whitby and Peterborough. A tough task.

20 (16) Calgary Mountaineers (RMLL) 6-5-0
Last Week: 14-5L Senior ‘B’ Mountaineers and 17-8L Junior ‘A’ Raiders
This Week: vs. Junior ‘A’ Miners
Those early season wins against the Raiders seem like forever ago, the Mounties on a serious losing streak that now extends to 4 games. Their record still has them in second in Alberta, but they’ll need a spark soon if they want to avoid slipping past that.

21 (20) Edmonton Miners (RMLL) 4-8-0
Last Week: 7-3L Eclipse and 14-8W Senior ‘B’ Outlaws
This Week: @ Junior ‘A’ Mountaineers
We’ll let Head Coach AJ Jomha’s words define the Miners so far last place run in 2011, the bench boss telling the Saint City News, “In the short term perspective, it’s a little frustrating because, of course, we’d like a win, but in the long term, we’ve learned a lot of things about what we’re doing here. We know where we have to get to, and they’re (Raiders) setting the bar for us, so we’re going to make a point of learning from here.” Big one with the Mounties this week.

22 (21) Port Coquitlam Saints (BCJALL) 1-12-0
Last Week: 10-7L Langley and 9-7L Delta
This Week: vs. Burnaby and vs. Nanaimo
With just 8 games left and just a single W on their 2011 resume, it’s probably safe to say the playoffs will be a miss this year in PoCo. Will the club keep coach Nick Delmonico, who obviously has a vision for this group, but likely needs a season or two more to develop and see it through? It might be a tough call considering the Saints are on pace for their worst season maybe ever. The last time they finished as low as they appear to be headed this year? 2002, when the Saints went just 2-22, a high energy team that actually featured NLLers like Rob Van Beek, Kyle Ross and Tyler Crompton. They improved to 9 wins the next summer, stunned Coquitlam in the playoffs in 2004 and were a 14-win club the next year after that. Will the Saints wait for that growth again?

23 (23) Toronto Beaches (OLA) 1-14-0
Last Week: 15-9L Six Nations, 16-10L Brampton and 12-8L K-W
This Week: vs. Burlington

24 (24) Mississauga Tomahawks (OLA) 0-12-0
Last Week: 15-4L St. Catharines, 9-4L Peterborough and 9-6L Barrie
This Week: vs. Brampton and @ Six Nations
The battle for dead last in Ontario is not too far off. With a combined 1 win between the two of them this year, the Beaches and Tomahawks begin their regular season basement war on June 22nd, Game 2 a few nights later on the 25th. If they remain 11th and 12th in the OLA this year, it’ll be the fourth straight summer the two have finished in those last two spots in the province, Toronto also finishing 12th in 2007. Ugly stuff.

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