2007 NLL season

2007 NLL season
League	National Lacrosse League
Sport	Indoor lacrosse
Duration	December 30, 2006 – May 12, 2007
Number of teams	13
Regular season
Season MVP	John Grant, Jr. (Rochester Knighthawks)
Top scorer	John Grant, Jr. (Rochester Knighthawks)
Playoffs
Eastern champions	Rochester Knighthawks
Eastern runners-up	Buffalo Bandits
Western champions	Colorado Mammoth
Western runners-up	Calgary Roughnecks
Champion's Cup
Champions	Rochester Knighthawks
Runners-up	Arizona Sting
Finals MVP	John Grant, Jr. (Rochester)

The 2007 National Lacrosse League season, the 21st in the history of the NLL (including the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League and Major Indoor Lacrosse League years) began on December 30, 2006 and concluded with the championship game on May 12, 2007.

The Rochester Knighthawks finished the regular season with a 14–2 record, winning their last 12 games. They followed this up by beating Toronto in the first round, and then clinched the Eastern division title by defeating Buffalo in the Eastern division finals, with league MVP John Grant, Jr. scoring in overtime.

The Arizona Sting finished third in their division, but defeated the Calgary Roughnecks in the first round, and then beat the San Jose Stealth to clinch their second division title in three years. The championship game was awarded to Rochester because of their higher seed, but the Blue Cross Arena was unavailable on the day of the game, so the Championship game was held in Phoenix.^[1]

The Knighthawks continued their winning streak in the desert, defeating the Sting 13–11. John Grant, Jr., who had been named the league MVP only two days before, was named game MVP.^[2] It was Rochester's second championship overall, and first since 1997. The championship game loss was Arizona's second in three years.

The season began with a blockbuster trade just three days before the first game, as the Toronto Rock traded star forward and 2005 MVP Colin Doyle along with Darren Halls and a draft pick to the San Jose Stealth for 1st round draft selection Ryan Benesch, Kevin Fines, Chad Thompson, and two draft picks. Doyle scored nine assists in San Jose's second game of the season, a 17–16 OT win over the Calgary Roughnecks, and finished the season second in team scoring. Benesch was named 2007 Rookie of the Year.

In February, the NLL signed an agreement with Sirius Satellite Radio to air a "Game of the Week" throughout the season as well as during the playoffs.^[3] In March, the league announced that New York Titans star Casey Powell would be hosting a weekly radio show on SIRIUS, called Inside the National Lacrosse League with Casey Powell.^[4]

Final standings

Reference: ^[5]

East Division

P	Team	GP	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	GF	GA	Diff	GF/GP	GA/GP
1	Rochester Knighthawks – xyz	16	14	2	.875	0.0	8–0	6–2	249	194	+55	15.56	12.12
2	Buffalo Bandits – x	16	10	6	.625	4.0	6–2	4–4	207	188	+19	12.94	11.75
3	Minnesota Swarm – x	16	9	7	.562	5.0	4–4	5–3	200	207	-7	12.50	12.94
4	Toronto Rock – x	16	6	10	.375	8.0	3–5	3–5	187	183	+4	11.69	11.44
5	Chicago Shamrox	16	6	10	.375	8.0	4–4	2–6	176	191	-15	11.00	11.94
6	Philadelphia Wings	16	6	10	.375	8.0	4–4	2–6	178	186	-8	11.12	11.62
7	New York Titans	16	4	12	.250	10.0	3–5	1–7	195	233	-38	12.19	14.56

West Division

P	Team	GP	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	GF	GA	Diff	GF/GP	GA/GP
1	Colorado Mammoth – xy	16	12	4	.750	0.0	7–1	5–3	209	179	+30	13.06	11.19
2	Calgary Roughnecks – x	16	9	7	.562	3.0	4–4	5–3	219	202	+17	13.69	12.62
3	Arizona Sting – x	16	9	7	.562	3.0	6–2	3–5	188	181	+7	11.75	11.31
4	San Jose Stealth – x	16	9	7	.562	3.0	4–4	5–3	181	170	+11	11.31	10.62
5	Edmonton Rush	16	6	10	.375	6.0	4–4	2–6	160	189	-29	10.00	11.81
6	Portland LumberJax	16	4	12	.250	8.0	3–5	1–7	153	199	-46	9.56	12.44

x: Clinched playoff berth; c: Clinched playoff berth by crossing over to another division; y: Clinched division; z: Clinched best regular season record; GP: Games Played
W: Wins; L: Losses; GB: Games back; PCT: Win percentage; Home: Record at Home; Road: Record on the Road; GF: Goals scored; GA: Goals allowed
Differential: Difference between goals scored and allowed; GF/GP: Average number of goals scored per game; GA/GP: Average number of goals allowed per game

Toronto won the 3-way tiebreaker with Philadelphia and Chicago due to their 5–7 record against divisional opponents (Philadelphia was 4–8, and Chicago was 5–8).^[6]
Calgary won the 3-way tiebreaker with Arizona and San Jose because of their head-to-head record (Calgary was 2–1 against Arizona and 1–1 against San Jose, while San Jose went 0–2 against Arizona).^[6]

Playoffs

	Divisional Semifinal					Divisional Final					Champion's Cup Final
	1	Rochester	10
	4	Toronto	6
						1	Rochester	14 (OT)
	Eastern Division
						2	Buffalo	13
	2	Buffalo	14
	3	Minnesota	8
											E1	Rochester	13
											W3	Arizona	11
	1	Colorado	14
	4	San Jose	15 (OT)
						3	Arizona	9
	Western Division
						4	San Jose	7
	2	Calgary	9
	3	Arizona	13

The Knighthawks had the overall top seed in the playoffs, but were unable to host the Championship game due to a scheduling conflict at the Blue Cross Arena.^[1]

Team movement

The 2007 season features two new expansion teams, both in the East Division: the Chicago Shamrox and the New York Titans.

Rule changes

A number of rule changes were made for the 2007 season.^[7] The main changes are:

• Cross-checks to the head are more severely punished
• Cross-checking a player without the ball is now illegal
• Scoring from behind the net is now allowed, provided there is no contact between the ball and the goalie or his equipment (this effectively allows the "Air Gait" move invented by Gary Gait)
• When a penalty shot is awarded, the coach can choose any player on the team to take the shot

Milestones

• January 6:
  • Chicago and New York played their first ever games
  • Chicago recorded its first win and first home win
  • New York's first goal was scored by Gewas Schindler
  • Chicago's first goal was scored by Jason Clark
  • Edmonton won its first ever home game, defeating the Philadelphia Wings 13–12
• January 12: San Jose beat Calgary 17–16 in overtime in the longest game in NLL history.^[8] The game lasted 71 minutes and 42 seconds before Luke Wiles scored at 11:42 of overtime, narrowly beating the old record of 70:45 during an Arizona-Anaheim game in 2004.
• January 20: New York records its first win and first home win at Madison Square Garden with an 11–9 victory over the Chicago Shamrox. The game is also the first loss for the Shamrox.
• January 26: New York plays their first game at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, losing 16–11 to the Philadelphia Wings. The New York Titans will split their home games between the Coliseum and Madison Square Garden.
• January 27: Rochester Knighthawk star John Grant Jr. sets a new NLL record for points in a single game with 15 (9 goals, 6 assists) in a 22–18 defeat of the New York Titans.^[9]
• February 22: After a 12–9 loss to Toronto, the Calgary Roughnecks fired head coach Chris Hall, the only coach in team history.
• March 24: Calgary teammates Kaleb Toth and Tracey Kelusky both reach 500 career points in the same game, as Jeff Dowling wins his first game as head coach.^[10]
• March 31:
  • Rochester beats Philadelphia 12–10 in Rochester, setting a new franchise record with their ninth consecutive win.^[11]
  • The 1,000th regular-season game in league history is played at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul,^[12] with Colorado defeating Minnesota 11–9.^[13]
• April 6: The Calgary Roughnecks play their 100th game in franchise history against the Edmonton Rush at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary.

All Star Game

The 2007 All-Star Game was held at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Oregon on March 10, 2007. The East won the game 20–16, on the strength of Mark Steenhuis' six goals. Steenhuis was named game MVP. Steenhuis was also named game MVP in the 2004 All-Star game, and became the first player in NLL history to be named All-Star Game MVP twice.^[14] The game was broadcast on Sirius Satellite Radio; Travis Demers and Martin Wright called the action.

All-Star teams

Eastern Division starters		Western Division starters
John Grant, Jr., Rochester		Dan Carey, Colorado
John Tavares, Buffalo		Dan Dawson, Arizona
Thomas Hajek, Philadelphia		Andrew Turner, Edmonton *
Cam Woods, Chicago		Taylor Wray, Calgary
Geoff Snider, Philadelphia		Brodie Merrill, Portland **
Matt Roik, Philadelphia (goalie)		Rob Blasdell, Arizona (goalie)
Eastern Division Reserves		Western Division Reserves
Casey Powell, New York		Colin Doyle, San Jose
Aaron Wilson, Toronto		Gavin Prout, Colorado
Ryan Boyle, New York		Tracey Kelusky, Calgary
Scott Evans, Rochester		Jeff Zywicki, San Jose
Josh Sanderson, Toronto		Ryan Powell, Portland
Ryan Ward, Minnesota		Chris Gill, Edmonton ***
Shawn Williams, Rochester		Lewis Ratcliff, Calgary
Ryan Cousins, Minnesota		John Gallant, Colorado
Mark Steenhuis, Buffalo		Pat Jones, Portland
Pat McCready, Buffalo		Peter Lough, Arizona (Starting in place of Turner)
Steve Toll, Rochester		Josh Sims, Colorado (Starting in place of Merrill)
Brandon Miller, Chicago (goalie)		Gee Nash, Colorado (goalie)
		Richard Morgan, Portland (replacing Merrill)
		Jimmy Quinlan, Edmonton (replacing Gill)
	Bruce Alexander, Portland (replacing Turner)

* Unable to play due to personal reasons
** Unable to play due to injury
*** Unable to play due to family commitments

Awards

Annual

Award	Winner	Team
MVP Award	John Grant, Jr.[15]	Rochester
Rookie of the Year Award	Ryan Benesch[16]	Toronto
Les Bartley Award (Coach of the Year)	Ed Comeau[17]	Rochester
GM of the Year Award	Marty O'Neill[18]	Minnesota
Tom Borrelli Award	Ty Pilson[19]	Calgary
Executive of the Year Award	Dave Zygaj[19]	Buffalo
Defensive Player of the Year Award	Ryan Cousins[20]	Minnesota
Transition Player of the Year Award	Steve Toll[21]	Rochester
Goaltender of the Year Award	Anthony Cosmo[22]	San Jose
Sportsmanship Award	Tracy Kelusky[23]	Calgary
Championship Game MVP	John Grant, Jr.[2]	Rochester

All-Pro Teams

First Team

• John Tavares, Buffalo
• John Grant, Jr., Rochester
• Dan Dawson, Arizona
• Steve Toll, Rochester
• Ryan Cousins, Minnesota
• Anthony Cosmo, San Jose

Second Team

• Gavin Prout, Colorado
• Colin Doyle, San Jose
• Casey Powell, New York
• Lewis Ratcliff, Calgary
• Shawn Williams, Rochester
• Nick Patterson, Minnesota

All-Rookie Team

• Ryan Benesch, Toronto
• Geoff Snider, Philadelphia
• Athan Iannucci, Philadelphia
• Bill McGlone, Chicago
• Nenad Gajic, Colorado
• Jamie Shewchuk, Colorado

Weekly awards

The NLL gives out awards weekly for the best overall player, best offensive player, best transition player (new for 2007), best defensive player, and best rookie.

Month	Week	Overall	Offensive	Defensive	Transition	Rookie
December	1	Brian Langtry	Brian Langtry	Dallas Eliuk	Josh Sims	Jed Prossner
January	2	Gee Nash	Chris Gill	Brandon Miller	Josh Sims	Bill McGlone
	3	Pat O'Toole	Jeff Zywicki	Pat O'Toole	Brodie Merrill	Kyle Wailes
	4	Rob Blasdell	John Tavares	Rob Blasdell	Mark Steenhuis	Ryan Benesch
	5	John Grant, Jr.	John Grant, Jr.	Brandon Miller	Geoff Snider	Athan Iannucci
February	6	Bob Watson	Dan Dawson	Bob Watson	Josh Sims	Jamie Shewchuk
	7	John Tavares	John Tavares	Curtis Palidwor	Mark Steenhuis	Ian Llord
	8	Steve Dietrich	Dan Dawson	Steve Dietrich	Nenad Gajic	Kyle Wailes
	9	John Grant, Jr.	John Grant, Jr.	Gee Nash	Pat McCready	Cody Jacobs
March	10	John Tavares	John Tavares	Peter Lough	Steve Toll	Brendan Mundorf
	11	No awards given due to All-Star Game
	12	Gary Rosyski	Gary Rosyski	Curtis Palidwor	Mark Steenhuis	Ryan Benesch
	13	John Tavares	John Tavares	Bob Watson	Mark Steenhuis	Ryan Benesch
April	14	Dan Dawson	Dan Dawson	Bob Watson	Brett Bucktooth	Mike McLellan
	15	Steve Dietrich	John Grant, Jr.	Steve Dietrich	Mark Steenhuis	Athan Iannucci
	16	Luke Wiles	Luke Wiles	Nick Patterson	Steve Toll	Matt Zash

Monthly awards

Awards are also given out monthly for the best overall player and best rookie.

Month	Overall	Rookie
January	Rob Blasdell	Geoff Snider
February	Gee Nash	Nenad Gajic
March	John Tavares	Ryan Benesch

Statistics leaders

Bold numbers indicate new single-season records. Italics indicate tied single-season records.

Stat	Player	Team	Number
Goals	John Grant, Jr.	Rochester	51
Assists	John Tavares	Buffalo	61
Points	John Grant, Jr.	Rochester	111
Penalty Minutes	Scott Ditzell	Rochester	68
Shots on Goal	Lewis Ratcliff	Calgary	203
Loose Balls	Brodie Merrill	Portland	196
Save Pct	Anthony Cosmo	San Jose	79.2
GAA	Anthony Cosmo	San Jose	10.22

See also

• 2007 in sports

References

1. "Arizona To Host Championship Game". NLL.com. April 30, 2007. Archived from the original on April 16, 2008. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
2. "John Grant Named Championship Game MVP". NLL.com. May 12, 2007. Archived from the original on May 17, 2007. Retrieved May 13, 2007.
3. "NLL & SIRIUS Sign Broadcasting Agreement". NLL.com. February 1, 2007. Archived from the original on May 4, 2007. Retrieved March 24, 2007.
4. "NLL & SIRIUS Announce Lacrosse Talk Show". NLL.com. March 7, 2007. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Retrieved March 24, 2007.
5. "National Lacrosse League - 2007 Regular Season - Standings". NLL.com. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
6. "Opening Round Playoff Matchups Set". NLL.com. April 14, 2007. Archived from the original on April 21, 2007. Retrieved April 14, 2007.
7. "NLL Announces Rule Changes For 2007". NLL.com. December 12, 2006. Archived from the original on December 27, 2006. Retrieved January 1, 2007.
8. "Weekend Recap: NLL News & Notes". NLL.com. January 15, 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2007.
9. "K-Hawks Outscore Titans in Shootout". NLL.com. January 27, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
10. "Week 13 Recap: News and Notes". NLL.com. March 26, 2007. Archived from the original on April 1, 2007. Retrieved March 26, 2007.
11. "Rochester handles Wings 12–10". NLL.com. March 31, 2007. Retrieved April 1, 2007.
12. "NLL to play 1,000th game on Saturday". NLL.com. March 27, 2007. Archived from the original on April 1, 2007. Retrieved April 10, 2007.
13. "Mammoth come back to beat Swarm, 11–9". NLL.com. April 1, 2007. Retrieved April 10, 2007.
14. "East Wins All-Star Game 20–16". NLL.com. March 11, 2007. Archived from the original on March 15, 2007. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
15. "John Grant Wins Dodge Nitro MVP Award". NLL.com. May 10, 2007. Archived from the original on May 13, 2007. Retrieved May 10, 2007.
16. "Benesch Named Rookie of the Year". NLL.com. May 8, 2007. Archived from the original on May 12, 2007. Retrieved May 8, 2007.
17. "Ed Comeau Wins Les Bartley Award". NLL.com. May 3, 2007. Retrieved May 3, 2007.
18. "Marty O'Neill Named GM of the Year". NLL.com. May 4, 2007. Retrieved May 4, 2007.
19. "Dave Zygaj Named NLL Executive of the Year". NLL.com. May 7, 2007. Archived from the original on May 12, 2007. Retrieved May 7, 2007.
20. "Cousins named Defensive Player of the Year". NLL.com. May 1, 2007. Retrieved May 1, 2007.
21. "Toll named Transition Player of the Year". NLL.com. May 1, 2007. Retrieved May 1, 2007.
22. "Cosmo Wins Progressive Goalie of the Year". NLL.com. May 2, 2007. Retrieved May 2, 2007.
23. "Kelusky wins Sportsmanship Award". NLL.com. April 30, 2007. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved April 30, 2007.

External links

• 2007 NLL schedule
• 2007 NLL standings