Toronto – General Manager Terry Sanderson has announced the Toronto Rock’s 23-man roster along with several roster moves. All NLL teams had to trim their training camp rosters down to 23 active players and a maximum of 3 players on their practice roster as of 12noon on Thursday.
The Rock released veteran forward Brenden Thenhaus, goaltender Tyler Glebe and defenders Bradley Kri and Scott Johnston from their roster. Thenhaus, Kri and Johnston were all then signed to Toronto’s 3-man practice squad pending league approval.
The roster shuffling didn’t end there as 2012 2nd round pick Mike Lum-Walker was moved to the injured reserve list and will undergo surgery in early January to repair his injured knee. He’s expected to miss the entire 2013 season. Rock defender Phil Sanderson was placed on the injured reserve list.
2012 3rd round pick Kyle Pereira was moved to the team’s draft list as he is currently attending St. Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia where he plays CIS hockey for the Huskies.
The team has signed left-handed forward Cody Jacobs to a one-year contract as well. Jacobs was in Minnesota Swarm training camp earlier this month but was released a little over a week ago. He is a veteran of 3 NLL seasons and has previously played for Chicago (2007 & 2008) and most recently Buffalo (2009).
The lone 2012 Rock NLL Entry Draft selection making the 23-man roster is transition player Kyle Belton who was taken in the 3rd round, 27th overall. Belton has seen time playing out of the back door in pre-season and has made the shift to a different role than he was pegged for coming into camp.
Below is Toronto’s current 23-man roster:
Forwards (10)
Kasey Beirnes, Garrett Billings, Colin Doyle, Scott Evans, Rob Hellyer, Brandon Ivey, Cody Jacobs, Stephan Leblanc, Blaine Manning, Josh Sanderson
Defencemen (11)
Kyle Belton, Sandy Chapman, Damon Edwards, Jesse Gamble, Bill Greer, Mike Hobbins, Stephen Hoar, Rob Marshall, Patrick Merrill, Chris White, Cam Woods
Goaltenders (2)
Zak Boychuk, Nick Rose
Rock forward Dan Carey also officially announced his retirement from the National Lacrosse League after 6 seasons. Carey played 5 seasons for the Colorado Mammoth before to being dealt to Toronto prior to the 2012 season. The Peterborough, ON native missed most of the 2009 season and the entire 2010 campaign after suffering a concussion. Carey again suffered a concussion late in the 2012 season that forced him to miss the end of the regular season and playoffs leading to his retirement.
Toronto’s final exhibition scrimmage of the pre-season will be on Saturday, December 22 at 7pm against the Philadelphia Wings at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre (TRAC). There is no charge for admission, however fans are reminded that there is seating for less than 750 spectators. Fans can lineup at 5pm to receive a free ticket to the game with the doors opening by 5:30pm.
Also on Saturday, it’s the official grand opening of the TRAC. The local community is invited to come and join in on the Family Fun Fair running from 3 to 6pm with the official ribbon cutting ceremony taking place at 4:30pm.
Toronto Rock Single Game, Group and Season Tickets for 2013 are on sale now. For ticket inquiries, please call 416-596-3075 to speak with a ticket representative or visit www.torontorock.com.
