Hamburg, New York, is an unlikely place from which to spearhead a potential Victoria Shamrocks run to the 2017 Mann Cup. But the Shamrocks are suddenly a lot stronger with the addition of Joe Resetarits from that upstate town. The NLL Rochester Knighthawks pro, one of the best offensive talents in the game, was signed by the Shamrocks this week and will join the team next month.
Although an American, out of NCAA field lacrosse at the University of Albany, Resetarits is well-acquainted with Canadian box lacrosse. He won the Mann Cup with the Brampton Excelsiors in 2011 and was the Ontario Major Series MVP with Brampton in 2015. The five-foot-11 dynamo has 113 goals and 251 points in 95 games for Brampton and 237 points in 91 NLL games over six seasons for Rochester and Buffalo.
The 27-year-old is a right-handed shot, a spot from which Victoria has three rookies playing.
鈥淥ther teams were able to key on our left-side shooters, so this signing brings balance to our offence,鈥� said Shamrocks GM Chris Welch.
Resetarits did not return this summer to Brampton for a sixth season.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait to get out there [Victoria] and play,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 have a lot of good buddies on that team and I鈥檝e heard nothing but great things about Victoria and the Shamrocks organization. I want to do everything I can to help in going for another Mann Cup.鈥�
Of immediate concern tonight for Victoria (6-3-1) is the Western Lacrosse Association鈥檚 Island derby against the improving Nanaimo Timbermen (3-6-1) at The Q Centre.
Nanaimo needs no incentive to get up for games against Victoria. Despite having made the playoffs only once (2007) in the 12 seasons since re-entering the WLA in 2005, the Timbermen have managed to record a few upset victories against Victoria in recent seasons.
鈥淭he Timbermen are always at their best against us,鈥� noted Welch.
鈥淎 lot of their players are Victoria kids who grew up wanting to play for the Shamrocks. They are always fired up to play us.鈥�
Victoria head coach Bob Heyes, a native of Nanaimo, concurred: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very motivating game for Nanaimo, as it is for us. There are so many ex-teammates on both sides.鈥�
Not to mention on the bench, where former Shamrocks Mann Cup champions Kaleb Toth and Dave Bremner are head coach and assistant coach, respectively.
Both Welch and Heyes say it鈥檚 a common misconception that the Shamrocks don鈥檛 like to see top Island players diverted to two clubs.
鈥淲e would love for Nanaimo to be a strong team. The league needs for Nanaimo to be competitive and viable,鈥� said Welch.
鈥淚n the last few years they have been building a good team through the draft. A Victoria-Nanaimo playoffs series would be a dream come true for us.鈥�
鈥淭he [seven-team] league needs for Nanaimo to be competitive and relevant,鈥� agreed Heyes.
鈥淭he Timbermen are moving in the right direction.鈥�
Victoria beat Nanaimo 16-9 on June 18 at Frank Crane Arena, which is also where the clubs will close out their three-game 2017 regular-season account July 15.
BOXLA BITS: Lawrie Smith, head of security for the Shamrocks for more than five decades, was a fixture at the old Memorial Arena and always greeted fans with a smile while ushering during Shamrocks WLA and Cougars WHL games. He stayed associated with the Shamrocks through the move to The Q Centre until his death in January. There will be a moment of silence before tonight鈥檚 game in honour of Smith, who was also well known locally as a coach in lacrosse, hockey and baseball. . . . Victoria firefighters will be hosting a tailgate party outside the arena before tonight鈥檚 game, in honour of former chief and former Shamrocks star Doug Angrove, with proceeds going to the firefighers鈥� Ride to Conquer Cancer.
