Toronto Rock
Encyclopedia : T : TO : TOR : Toronto Rock
| Toronto Rock | |
|
| |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Home arena | Air Canada Centre |
| Based in | Toronto, Ontario |
| Colors | Red, White, Blue |
| Head coach | Glenn Clark |
| General manager | |
The Toronto Rock are a member of the National Lacrosse League (NLL), a North American professional sports league. They play at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.
The franchise was originally founded as a NLL expansion team for Hamilton, Ontario to begin play in the 1998 season. They were known as the Ontario Raiders, and played their home games at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton during their first year. However, at the conclusion of the season they were sold to a group of investors led by Bill Watters, who was then the Assistant GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the NHL, and relocated to Toronto in time for the beginning of the 1999 season. They were subsequently renamed the "Toronto Rock". During their first two seasons in Toronto, they played at Maple Leaf Gardens, the historic former home of the Toronto Maple Leafs, before moving to the Air Canada Centre for the 2001 season, which they currently share with both the Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors of the NBA. The Rock has consistently ranked near the top of the NLL in lacrosse performance, attendance, and financial success.
Championships
The Toronto Rock won the Champion's Cup in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2005.
The 2002 final was against the Albany Attack, and the 1999, 2000, and 2003 finals were against the Rochester Knighthawks. In 2001, the Toronto Rock went to the league title game but came up one goal short against the Philadelphia Wings. In 2004, the Rock earned a first round bye after clinching the East Division regular season crown. The Buffalo Bandits came to town and upset the Rock 19-10. Therefore, the Toronto Rock, since their installation in Toronto, have never missed the playoffs and have now gone to the championship game six times in the past seven years.
In 2005, the Rock defeated the Rochester Knighthawks in the East Division Final by a score of 12-10 in front of approximately 17,200 fans at the Air Canada Centre. The Rock went on to defeat the Arizona Sting with a 19-13 win in front of an NLL record crowd of 19,432, becoming NLL champions for the fifth time in seven years and solidifying their distinction as an NLL dynasty.
The Rock struggled during the early part of the 2006 season however their record balanced out to 8-8 at season's end. They made the playoffs, only to get knocked off 16-8 by the second place Rochester Knighthawks at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester.
Les Bartley
Less then 18 hours after the Toronto Rock won their 5th NLL Championship, former coach and General Manager Les Bartley died on May 15, 2005 of cancer at the age of 51. Bartley is remembered as an exceptional coach, having led the Toronto Rock to win the championships in 1999, 2000, 2002, and 2003.
Roster
Players
As of July 14, 2006
| # | Name | Height | Weight | Shoots | Birthplace | Birth Date | Summer Team | Season | Forward/ Defense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Ladouceur, Dan | 6'6" | 245 | L | Thunder Bay, ON | 11/26/1973 | Ajax-Pickering Rock (Sr. B) | 5th | D |
| 7 | Doyle, Colin | 6'3" | 215 | L | Kitchener, ON | 09/08/1977 | Coquitlam Adanacs (WLA) | 6th | F |
| 9 | Merrill, Patrick | 6'0" | 180 | R | Montreal, QC | 02/22/1979 | Brampton Excelsiors | 2nd | D |
| 10 | Wilson, Aaron | 5'9" | 175 | R | Kitchener, ON | 12/20/1980 | Brampton Excelsiors | 2nd | F |
| 14 | Marshall, Rob | 6'3" | 185 | R | Mount Forest, ON | 06/23/1984 | Elora Mohawks (OLA Jr. B) | Rookie | D |
| 15 | Evans, Stephen | 5'9" | 180 | R | Peterborough, ON | 01/11/1979 | Peterborough Lakers | 5th | F |
| 16 | Manning, Blaine | 6'1" | 210 | R | Calgary, AB | 09/10/1979 | None | 3th | F |
| 17 | Beisel, Brian | 6'4" | 210 | R | Brampton, ON | 09/20/1975 | Brampton Excelsiors | 8th | D |
| 18 | Sanderson, Phil | 5'9" | 175 | L | Orangeville, ON | 01/23/1977 | Brampton Excelsiors | 6th | D |
| 19 | Sanderson, Josh | 5'7" | 150 | L | Orangeville, ON | 04/23/1977 | Brampton Excelsiors | 8th | F |
| 20 | Kruger, Rusty | 5'8" | 175 | L | Guelph, ON | 03/26/1975 | Orangeville Jr. A (Head Coach) | 8th | F |
| 24 | Shearer, Matt | 6'0" | 185 | R | Whitby, ON | 10/19/1973 | None | 7th | F |
| 25 | Dickie, J.J. | 6'2" | 220 | R | Ajax, ON | 03/31/1979 | Brampton Excelsiors | Rookie | F |
| 27 | Suddons, Derek | 6'2" | 210 | L | Oshawa, ON | 06/10/1978 | Brooklin Redmen | 3th | D |
| 28 | MacDonald, Brad | 5'11" | 190 | L | Orangeville, ON | 07/04/1983 | Coquitlam Adanacs (WLA) | 2nd | D |
| 32 | Veltman, Jim | 6'2" | 185 | L | Brampton, ON | 03/08/1966 | Ajax-Pickering Rock | 11st | D |
| 37 | Campbell, Scott | 6'0" | 220 | L | Toronto, ON | 10/23/1981 | Brooklin Redmen | 2nd | D |
| 40 | Rubel, Ian | 6'0" | 200 | L | St. Catharines, ON | 02/28/1978 | St. Catharines Athletics | 4th | D |
| 77 | O'Brien, Tim | 6'1" | 200 | L | Edmonton, AB | 05/28/1977 | Brampton Excelsiors | 4th | D |
| 93 | Driscoll, Chris | 6'0" | 190 | R | Fergus, ON | 09/12/1971 | Brampton Excelsiors | 13th | D |
Goaltenders
| # | Name | Height | Weight | Shoots | Birthplace | Birth Date | Summer Team | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Watson, Bob | 6'0" | 195 | L | Guelph, ON | 04/06/1970 | None | 6th |
| 90 | Wetherup, Phil | 6'1" | 200 | R | Waterloo, ON | 07/19/1977 | Owen Sound Woodsmen (Sr. B) | 6th |
Practice roster
| # | Name | Height | Weight | Shoots | Birthplace | Birth Date | Summer Team | Season | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Koneczny, Chet | 5'11" | 180 | L | Brampton, ON | 05/9/1984 | Orangeville Northman (Jr. A) | Rookie | D |
| 23 | Leigh, Cory | 6'1" | 205 | R | N/A | N/A | Peterborough Lakers | 4th | F |
| 30 | Preece, Jay | 6'2" | 210 | R | Toronto, ON | 05/21/1981 | Ajax-Pickering Rock (Sr. B) | 1st | G |
External links
| National Lacrosse League | |
| East Division: Buffalo Bandits | Minnesota Swarm | Philadelphia Wings | Rochester Knighthawks | Toronto Rock | |
| West Division: Arizona Sting | Calgary Roughnecks | Colorado Mammoth | Edmonton Rush | Portland Lumberjax | San Jose Stealth | |
| 2007 Expansion Teams: Chicago Shamrox | New York | |
| NLL Articles: Champion's Cup | NLL All-Star Game | NLL Hall of Fame | List of NLL MVPs | |
| Related Articles: Box lacrosse | Indoor lacrosse | Lacrosse | Major League Lacrosse | |
| Current arenas in the National Lacrosse League |
| Air Canada Centre | Blue Cross Arena | Glendale Arena | HP Pavilion | HSBC Arena | Pengrowth Saddledome | Pepsi Center | Rexall Place | Rose Garden Arena | Sears Centre | Wachovia Center | Xcel Energy Center |
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