The Nanaimo Timbermen showed in their season opener that they'll be capable of playing top-notch lacrosse this summer.
The senior A T-men started the Western Lacrosse Association regular season with a 12-9 loss to the New Westminster Salmonbellies on Thursday, May 22, but did have a lead in the third period on the road against one of the WLA's favourites.
"To go into that barn, Queen's Park Arena, in front of a big crowd and to be able to go toe-to-toe with them for 60 minutes, I was really happy with how we played," said Jon Nicholson, Timbermen coach. "The way we worked, if we work like that every game for the rest of the year, we're going to come out with a lot of wins … Looking forward to how we progress from here."
Nicholson said in the first game of the season, missing several players, he wanted his team to try to outwork the opposition, stick to the game plan and do the little things right. They did all of what the coaching staff asked, and it was special teams that did them in, as the Salmonbellies struck for six goals on the power play.
Colton Lidstone led Nanaimo with three goals and three assists, Thomas Vaesen had two goals and three assists and Coady Adamson had two and two. Devlin Shanahan made 52 saves as his team was outshot 64-45.
The Timbermen had a lot of off-season turnover and coaches were curious to see what the mix would look like, but Nicholson said he was happy with the signs of chemistry he saw both up front and in the back end. He said the team's crop of younger players are learning fast from veterans and are showing they're ready for senior A ball.
"These guys showed up last [week] and they had no fear. They went into the corners, they did the dirty [work], they did all the things we asked of them," he said. "It's a very coachable group and it's a group that I'm really excited to be a part of."
He said the kind of players that management has brought in are capable of playing the kind of lacrosse that's worked for the Timbermen in the past. The T-men intend to be a team that runs up and down the floor and scores both on offence and in transition.
As always, it will be important to stay in the thick of things in the league through the early part the season to ensure they're in the playoff hunt later on.
"At the end of it, I think we're going to be right in the mix again," the coach said. "I really do like our personnel. When everybody gets here and everybody's raring to go, I think we're going to have a contender."
GAME ON … The T-men visit the Langley Thunder on Wednesday, May 28, then play their home opener against the Victoria Shamrocks on Saturday, May 31, at 7 p.m. at Frank Crane Arena, then head back on the road to play the Maple Ridge Burrards on Sunday, June 1.
