After a perfect 24-0 season in which they won the Prince George Senior Lacrosse Association regular season and playoff titles, then captured the B.C. Senior C championship, what do the Westwood Pub Devils do for an encore?
The Devils plan to let their actions on the floor answer that question when they gather at the Coliseum April 30 to begin their 2015 PGSLA season against the Northland Nissan Assault.
If the Devils play anywhere near as well as they did last year, the other four teams in the league have a lot of work ahead of them to try to catch up. Devils manager Chris Scott has heard a few grumbles from the peanut gallery from people who think maybe it's time for the league to take measures to sap some of the Devils' strength and force them to share some of the wealth through a dispersal draft.
Considering it was only three seasons ago the Devils won just three of 12 games and missed the playoffs, one winning season does not make a dynasty. Scott would much rather see the rest of the teams in the league bring their level of play up to the standard the Devils are now setting.
"I think those teams need to start practicing harder and own up to not being at the calibre we're at," said Scott. "If they want to make this league better in Prince George it's up to them to get to our level. Don't complain our team's too strong. A lot of the guys that were on our team last season were on our team for years and when everyone is showing up, it shows what a difference it makes."
The Devils have been practicing since January and began regular workouts at the start of March. Scott says the roster will be full again with more players fighting for roster spots and competition for some of those positions will be fierce.
"We have to keep building, we can't sit back and relax and hope things go the same way," said Scott. "I believe the league will be more challenging this year and we need to step it up this year as well as the other teams. They better be ready because we'll be stronger this year than we were last year. We're out to do it again."
Already surrounded by a veteran core of talent which includes scoring champion Cam Braun, Andrew Schwab, Danton Nicholson, Scott Anderson, Blake McIntosh, Danton Nicholson and goalies Steven Brizan and Jamie Bellamy, the Devils have added junior A forward Pierce Watson to the mix.
Watson picked up six goals and 13 assists for 19 points in 17 games last season in the B.C. Junior A Lacrosse League for the Port Coquitlam Saints. The Devils acquired Watson's rights in a trade which sent Brock Paciejewski, Mitch Schultz and a first-round draft pick to the Assault. Watson left the Lower Mainland to take a job in his hometown of Prince George.
"He's got a really heavy shot and he's a really good player," Scott said.
"We're full and we're looking really strong. The hardest thing for me is I only have 25 (player) cards I'm allowed to sign. The players we don't sign we'll definitely disperse to the league."
Now that the Central Interior Intermediate Lacrosse League has folded after just one season, that means senior teams in the city can call up midget-aged players and that means McIntosh, a former league MVP, will get to play senior lacrosse with his 15-year-old son Jake.
The season opens Wednesday, April 22 with the BX Pub Bandits taking on the Cowboy Ranch Stylers. League games will be played at the Coliseum for the first two weeks of the season, then they move to Kin 1. Quesnel will host a doubleheader on Saturday, May 2, with the Stylers-Devils game followed by the Bandits-Quesnel Cariboo Hotel Crossfire matchup.
This marks the 25th anniversary of the league, which began play in 1991. Glen (Moose) Scott, who spent 10 months in hospital with a blood infection, is back at the helm as league commissioner/president for the 25th season.
"I keep trying to say this is my last year but somehow I keep coming back - I just got out of hospital in time to go to our AGM and get re-elected," laughed Scott.
Each of the five teams plays a 12-game schedule and the season ends June 25. Playoffs will include two best-of-five semifinal series and a best-of-seven championship series for the Dale Rolufs Memorial Trophy.
The Treasure Cove Senior Invitational tournament and a 12-team B.C. senior C championship will be hosted in Armstrong, Aug. 7-9. Teams which play for the Fred Doig Trophy that goes to the senior C champion are allowed just three pickup players.
"We wanted to help senior lacrosse grow in the Okanagan," said commissioner Scott.
