The streak ended last year for the Westwood Sport Pub Devils.
Having clobbered local opponents in two seasons of utter domination in the Prince George Senior Lacrosse Association, the Devils went down to Armstrong to try to defend their senior C provincial championships and lost in double overtime in the semifinal to the Port Moody Express. That ended a perfect 44-0 run and the exhausted Devils ended their season with a loss in the bronze medal game to Armstrong.
Eight months later, a new lacrosse season is dawning and the Devils are the overwhelming favourites to pull off a trifecta and claim their third-straight PGSLA title.
Fueled by an abundance of bodies on the bench, the Devils wore out their opponents and won all 12 regular season games last year. Then in the playoffs, they swept the Northland Nissan Assault and the BX Pub Bandits, winning each game by lopsided margins. Will it be that easy this time?
Chris Scott hopes not. The Devils coach loves winning with his team but it's a lot more fun when the games are close.
"You never want to lose, but honestly, if we lost a game in the regular season it would be great to see the league at that level, where a team like ours actually has challenging games," said Scott.
Four years ago the Devils were at the bottom of the league, edged out for the final playoff spot by the second-year Mackenzie Lumberjacks. They made the postseason cut in 2013, beat the Bandits and with only 12 players showing up for duty they lost in the finals to the Assault in a five-game series. Scott recruited a full team for 2014 and the Devils have never looked back. They are the team to beat in 2016 in what is once again a six-team league.
The Devils' ageless wonder, Scott Anderson, returned to a forward position last season and rediscovered his scoring touch, leading all shooters in the playoffs with 17 goals and 33 points in just six games. Now 48, Anderson might have lost a step or two, but he's still a threat whenever he's on the floor.
Cameron Braun and Nathaneal McFayden have left the Devils, which takes two potent weapons away, but they still haven the likes of Danton Nicholson, Pierce Watson Parker Wilcox Steve Clayton and Jamie Klarenbeek to put the ball in the net. Crafty veteran Blake McIntosh, a former league MVP, and tough-as-nails Dave Bennett are also key contributors to the Devils success story.
In net, they have one of the league's top tandems with big-bodied Steven Brizan and Jamie Bellamy forming a human eclipse in the crease. Midget graduate Bobby Legare, drafted fourth overall, will be one to watch.
"I'm not worried in the least about the quality our team is going to be," said Scott. "I just hope the other teams are at our level. A two- or three-goal game gets the fans going in the crowd and everybody gets more amped up."
The season starts Monday at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena with the Devils taking on the Cowboy Ranch Stylers at 8 p.m. On Tuesday night, the Assault meet the Bandits at the Coliseum. The PGSLA scene switches to Quesnel on Thursday, where the host Quesnel M. Daniels Crossfire host the Stylers. Senior lacrosse returns to Mackenzie next weekend when the Lumberjacks take the floor to play the Stylers in a two-game set.
Here's how the rest of the teams in the league are shaping up:
BX Pub Bandits (9-3-0, finished second in 2015)
The Bandits won nine of their 12 regular season games, beat Quesnel in three straight playoff games, then ran short of bodies in the final against the Devils. If they can keep their numbers healthy they have the best shot at hanging a loss on the Westwood Pub boys.
Practice makes perfect and the Bandits have some work to do before they'll be ready to take aim at the title. Drew Doig is their workhorse and despite his lack of size, his work ethic never seems to lag. He finished the season with 34 goals and 61 points, five off the pace of scoring champion Matt Rochon of the Stylers. The 26-year-old Doig will be expected to light the way again for the Bandits' offence, which has serious shortage of right-handed shooters. Lefties Damon Calfa and Cole Paciejewski can make opposing goalies look sick. Paciejewski put the caps on a stellar NCAA field lacrosse career in North Carolina last year and he should be around for more than the six games he played in 2015. In those six games, he collected an amazing 27 goals and 44 points. Trevor Clark is another veteran the Bandits will be counting on heavily.
The Bandits added to their depth in goal when they drafted goalie Jonathon Wittmeier and Jake McIntosh, who will be playing intermediate lacrosse in Delta this year. Liam Miller, 19, played every minute of every game in the Bandits nets and he'll welcome some relief.
Key additions are Mackenzie natives Liam Barwise and Carson Toth, while Taylor Attree brings senior B experience from the West Coast League. Grant Stubley anchors the defence with Ryan Waddington, Dan Martin and Dylan Reid, who's back from a broken ankle.
The Bandits ran into problems in the final last year when they had to play three games in four nights with a diminished lineup. The league has addressed that by shortening the length of the playoff series. The first rounds are best-of-three and the final is best-of-five series.
"We have a pretty explosive offensive attack and we'll be back in the finals, for sure," said Doig. "Our defence is always improving."
Northland Nissan Assault (3-9-0, finished fourth in 2015)
The Assault is a team in transition, having lost the core of its 2013 league championship team. They can no longer depend on super-sniper Craig Dunfield or John Makowsky, the league MVP in 2015. Dunfield now lives in Terrace and Makowsky, who finished third in the scoring race with 57 points, has a new address in Vancouver. They also have to deal with a second season without kingpin Davey Jenkins, who is still awaiting knee surgery. The old man of the Assault, 57-year-old Tom Makowsky, had a stellar season last year but has decided to retire from active duty. He'll still be around to help mastermind the team's strategies
The Assault did well in the midget draft, picking Cameron Prouse (second overall), Jared Huston and Nathan Stokes from the midget A2 Posse, which adds speed and skill around the net. Senior veterans Phil Michel, Dom Sia, Josh Kelly and Kyle Pacheco will show the rookies the ropes. Paul Bryant brings his muscle to the Assault defence and goalie Kyle Frederick is back from a junior stint in the Lower Mainland, joining the ever-capable Russill Mills in the crease.
New to the Northland lineup is Joel McCall, a two-way player with a smart stick, who built a long lacrosse resume in Ontario. Dave Lawrence of Vanderhoof adds to the team's depth.
"We're definitely younger and faster overall, but you're not going to replace all those goals that Davey (Jenkins), Craig Dunfield and John (Makowsky) produced," said Tom Makowsky. "But this year, we have five or six guys now that are fast, good with the sticks, and we're really going to be rolling on offence. I expect we're going to make the playoffs and we'll go from there."
Quesnel M. Daniels Consulting Crossfire (5-7-0, finished third in 2015)
Youth will be served this season in Quesnel on a Crossfire team that will give its graduated midget- and intermediate-aged players an abundance of playing time. Nine of the 12 midgets from last year's provincial B team are making the jump to senior with the Crossfire, prompted by the fact there is no intermediate lacrosse in the region. That gives Quesnel plenty of bodies to work with. Brodie Lawlor and Garth Kennedy, have decided not to take their lacrosse talents south this season and that will take some of the heat off captain Devin Whalen and Bryston Waffle to do it all for the Crossfire in the fourth season of the team's existence.
Bob Mills is a steadying influence in goal and has made the Crossfire a playoff team the past two seasons. Chase Ballandine, J.T. Moore and Dillon Cathcart head the new wave of Crossfire talent and they'll be playing with many of the same guys they had as teammates when they were tykes.
"There's probably nine or 10 of them who have been together since they were five-year-olds," said Crossfire manager Lisa Scott. "We have a lot of chemistry with our team because they've been together for so long.
"We anticipate doing better than last year, and we finished third last year. This is probably the most forward we've been, going into a season. It's nice to have those numbers again."
Cowboy Ranch Stylers (1-12-0, finished fifth in 2015)
There's only one way go for the Stylers and that's ups. They've been in rebuilding mode for a few seasons now and the future looks bright indeed, but this season they will still take their lumps. Douglas Porter was the Stylers' choice for the first overall pick in the midget draft and his versatility in both ends of the floor and creative offensive instincts will blend in well with Rochon and the rest of the returning cast. Brandin Daychief is big, aggressive and talented, and he and Mike Bayley and defenceman Josh Sidhu will help fire up a young Stylers lineup. Dawson Ellery and Alex Winch of Vanderhoof, both 18, will add speed to the transition game. Tyler Broughton and Steven Moleski live in Quesnel but plan on playing all 15 games this year, as does Chris Rochon, Matt's 19-year-old brother.
Jamie Thorne, Kyle Wilson and 66-year-old Ray Masson will handle the goaltending duties.
Rochon and Bayley run the team now and they're are intent on turning the Stylers into perennial contenders, like they were in the mid-90s when they were the team to beat in the PGSLA.
"Right now I have 17 or 18 full-time guys and our goal is to make the playoffs," said Matt Rochon. "We can't do much worse than we did last year. We had a lot of commitment issues last year."
Mackenzie Lumberjacks (did not play in 2015)
The Lumberjacks first joined the league in 2011, made the playoffs that year, and survived two seasons before they packed it in due to a lack of players. But the economy is Mackenzie has improved and the jobs that come with that renewed activity have attracted some veteran lacrosse players.
"I put the feelers out to see if we had interest and probably 25 or 30 people came out on the first day to say they wanted to play," said Lumberjacks manager Karl Peet. "We're going to be a young team mostly between 16 and 20 years old. The league has been really welcoming to have us come back."
When the team folded in 2013, the players were dispersed among the rest of the teams. But with the Lumberjacks' revival, those veterans received their releases without compensation required to help the team get established. Lumberjacks player-coaches Darcy Bell and Chad Gratton no longer have to leave Mackenzie to play. They've also picked up Kyle Pacheco from the Assault.
Peet's 17-year-old son Samuel, who won the midget C provincial title last year with a combined Mackenzie-Vanderhoof team, will get his first taste of senior action this year, playing with his 20-year-old brother Jared. Jayson Minion and James Teer will get the starts in goal.
"Eight of our 15 regular season games will be in town here, so it's great for the town," said Karl Peet. "The numbers for minor lacrosse are up and we're hoping this is going to get the kids re-interested in the game and get them out on the floor."
