Toronto – The Toronto Rock selected seven players in Monday night’s NLL Entry Draft including their top pick defenceman Bradley Kri in the second round, 14th overall.
Kri, a 20-year old Acton, ON native saw his draft stock rise tremendously after making the jump to Junior A lacrosse in 2012 with the Orangeville Northmen and winning the Minto Cup Canadian Junior A title. Previously, Kri had played three seasons of Junior B with his hometown Halton Hills Bulldogs and captured the Founders Cup Canadian Junior B championship in 2010. Kri also won the Ontario Junior B League’s East Division Defender of the Year Award in 2011.
“I had a number of opportunities to watch Brad play this summer in Orangeville,” said Rock GM Terry Sanderson. “He’s got another year of Junior A eligibility, we’ll be patient with him and he’s still got a lot of time to develop into a regular in the NLL.”
With Toronto’s second pick in the second round, the Rock selected another gritty defender in Whitby Warriors standout Mike Lum-Walker 20th overall. Another Minto Cup Canadian Junior A champion joins the Rock fold as Lum-Walker won the championship with Whitby in 2011.
In the third round, the Rock again had a pair of picks and targeted Kyle Pereira with the 25th overall selection. Pereira started the season with the Brampton Excelsiors Junior B club and led the league in goal scoring 66 goals in 20 games. He did all that after not playing lacrosse since his Midget minor lacrosse days as he played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League.
Langley Thunder right-handed forward Kyle Belton was Toronto’s second pick in the third round 27th overall. Belton grew up playing lacrosse with Rock forward Garrett Billings and also played in the Mann Cup alongside him.
In the fourth round, the Rock grabbed forward Dustin Caravello from the Orangeville Junior A Northmen with the 34th overall pick. Caravello was a member of the 2012 Minto Cup Champion Northmen and was a key contributor to their title run.
Another Northmen grad, 23-year old Robert Koger was selected in the fifth round, 43rd overall. Koger is a Toronto, ON native and played the bulk of his Junior A lacrosse with his hometown Toronto Junior A Beaches before being dealt to the Junior A Northmen to finish his Junior A career. On the field lacrosse side, Koger played at Georgetown University as a defenceman.
With their final pick in the draft, the Rock selected the only goaltender in the entire draft when they selected Tyler Glebe from the London Junior B Blue Devils in the sixth round, 52nd overall.
Check www.torontorock.com for more on the 2012 NLL Entry Draft on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, October 2, the NLL Hall of Fame induction ceremony for Class of 2012 member Steve Dietrich will take place, also at the Westin Harbour Castle. The Hall of Fame Class of 2012 Ceremony will also be broadcast live online at NLL.com on October 2 at 7pm Eastern.
Steve Dietrich, who was voted into the Hall of Fame this year following an 18-year pro career, has chosen Troy Cordingley to serve as his presenter for the ceremony. Cordingley, the head coach of the Toronto Rock, has been around Dietrich for his entire career as a teammate, rival and coach.
Fans interested in purchasing tickets can contact the league via email at tickets@nll.com.
