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Transition Star of the Week Damon Edwards helped the Durham Turfdogs win a pair of games. (Photo: Tim Prothero, VintageLax)

Starting a new professional lacrosse league is a huge challenge. So much work has to be done on the administrative side for so long that it can be hard at times to remember the end result will be players taking the floor and playing real games (just ask the NALL principals for evidence). So, for Commissioner Paul St. John, Deputy Commissioner Jim Veltman and the rest of the group that have made the Canadian Lacrosse League happen, it’s gotta be pretty cool that the focus can now be on the games and the players. In fact, with 8 games in the books we’re starting to see how the teams and players are looking, enough so that after the jump we’ve got the first CLax Power Rankings and the second installment of CLax Stars of the Week. Enjoy.

Power Rankings

1 Brampton Inferno (3-0)
Tough to choose against a team that has won all three of its games by at least four goals. In fact, the Inferno have only been behind for a total of 12 minutes in their first three games. They have a balanced attack, with 7 players scoring at least three points a game, and veteran goalie Rob Blasdell is a steadying influence in the back end. They’re not head and shoulders above the competition, but they’ll be number one till someone beats them.

2 Durham Turfdogs (2-1)
They were missing a bunch of their top players in the season-opening loss to Peel or the Turfdogs may well be sitting in the top perch. With a rull roster, they are not an easy team to play against. In a league where speed is the name of the game, they have players up and down the lineup who can run. They come at opponents in waves, can get to the net, can shoot from outside, and play pretty solid defense. Circle Saturday, February 4th on your calendards: that’s the day Durham heads to Brampton to face the Inferno and it should be a dandy.

3 Ohsweken Demons (1-2)
Yeah, they’re below .500 but they’ve lost to the top two teams and have the makings of a terrific club. Big Ben VanEvery shows flashes of dominance in net and they have the league’s most dynamic player. Chris Attwood scored 12 more goals and 8 more points than Brett Hickey to lead the OLA Jr B loop last summer. Hickey is now playing with the Washington Stealth. That’s not to say Attwood’s ready for the NLL, but he definitely has the stick skills to play in the top league. He leads the league in power play goals with 7, but if you removed those he would still have more goals than anyone else.

4 Peel Avengers (1-1)
Peel tied Brampton 11-11 in the last three quarters of the first Brampton Bowl Saturday. Unfortunately for their Power Rankings placement, they allowed three power play goals and four overall in the first 15 minutes. Picking up Kim Squire after he was released by Iroquois has been a boon already—the former NLLer scored 8 points in his CLax debut. They visit the Ironmen Saturday in the only game of Week 3.

5 Oshawa Machine (1-1)
Another team where one quarter really makes you wonder. The Machine looked like they were starting to put it all together in an impressive first 45 minutes againt Iroquois Saturday. They took a 14-8 lead and actually extended it with two of the first three goals in the fourth period. Whether it was fatigue or a loss of focus with the big lead, they let the Ironmen creep back and make a game of it. Kudos to them for putting the brakes on the Iroquois run and pulling out the win, but they need to show a full 60 minutes before they move up the Power Rankings.

6 Iroquois Ironmen (0-3)
They were blown out by the Inferno and Turfdogs and were on the way to a similar fate against Oshawa. The question now is, was that fourth quarter an aberration or a sign that the team is starting to come together? So far they haven’t shown much explosiveness on offense, stoutness on defense or stability in goal. If they can keep playing like they did in the last 12 minutes Saturday, they’ll be alright. If they play like they have for the other 168 minutes so far, it could be a long season for the Ironmen.

CLax Stars of the Week

Defense
Gary Muzzin (Durham)
Stopped 40 of the 48 shots he faced in a win over Iroquois. His play early in the game gave Durham a chance to come together and put up a solid performance. Honourable mentions to Andrew Tober (Peel) and Dilan Graham (Oshawa).

Transition
Damon Edwards (Durham)
3 goald and 3 assists in a pair of weekend wins, but more than his numbers it was his two-way play and blazing speed that earned him the award. Made one of the defensive plays of the weekend when he chased down a Demons runner breaking after a long pass down the floor, passed him, and established body position so the ball could roll to goalie Joel Weber. Honourable mentions are Mack O’Brien (Oshawa) and Brice Queener (Peel).

Offense
Kim Squire (Peel)
What a great story. Squire has overcome personal demons and a bout with necrotizing fasciitis (flesh-eating disease) to get back in the game he loves. His 8 points and leadership on the floor were instrumental in the Avengers’ first win. Not an easy pick over honourable mention Chris Attwood, who was the top O guy in Week 1. Attwood had 11 goals in two games on the weekend. Scott DeFrancesco (Durham) earns the other honourable mention with his 7-goal weekend.

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