All those special ‘firsts’ in life have a habit of folding into one – that first tooth, those first steps, that first broken heart.
The Burnaby Lakers have lost many a tooth, stumbled and picked themselves up, and gone through seasons of disappointment, all in search of boxla respectability.
Tuesday’s victory – 16-2 over the Langley Thunder – gave them a taste of just that coveted reward, clinching the club’s its first Western Lacrosse Association regular season title.
A monumental accomplishment for a long suffering, 27-year-old franchise. But the best, they offer, is yet to come.
Burnaby, who posted a 12-5-1 record, opens the WLA semifinal tonight (Thursday, 6 p.m.) at home, facing perennial power Victoria Shamrocks in a best-of-seven showdown. What they’ve done over the past three months, has set out some lofty expectations. Expectations that the players are eager to fulfill.
“I’ve been part of the foundation for the last nine years, so this is awesome,” remarked veteran transition player Shaun Dhaliwal. “It’s only one step into the direction we’re trying to go but, coming to this team (in 2009) with a few guys, when we were 2-18 and a bottom-of-the-league team. It has been a grind, lots of hard work and commitment every year.
“To build this and bring in so many excellent players is so rewarding. Tomorrow morning I’ll look at the standings with us in first place and feel so good.”
Key roster moves, most done by since-fired head coach Jim Milligan, addressed needs on defence, offence and transition. The Lakers’ attempt at a home-run hit prior to Milligan’s hiring, when they peeled off a list of draft picks to acquire the B.C. playing rights to hometown product Nick Bilic and Ontario native Mark Matthews, added nothing to the dressing room when Bilic was lost to a knee injury suffered late in the National Lacrosse League season, and Matthews’ Ontario rights holder refused to send him westward.
But it did show a new resolve on the part of management to go all-in. Upon his hiring, Milligan followed that up by recruiting a handful of key Ontario products and implementing a more intense gameplan that the players appeared to embrace. While Milligan’s removal from the coaching duties, and his subsequent decision to hand over his managing title as well, created a detour and potential dissension, the players to their credit didn’t let it stop them from their intended target.
And a league title was just the first step.
“That (regular season title) was our first goal at the beginning of the year and we’ll enjoy this until we get out of here tonight, then it’s onto the next one,” Burnaby captain Robert Church said after the game. “Goal No. 2 is getting past the first round, then No. 3, to the Mann Cup. The big goal all year is to win the (Mann Cup), but that’s a long way away. We have to take it one step at a time.”
Victoria presents a major challenge. Despite dropping their final three games of the season, the Shamrocks are loaded with playoff experience. Standouts Corey Small, who led all scorers with 38 goals and 88 points, and Rhys Duch demand attention. The Shamrock defence and netminding may have hit some rough waters in the past month, but there are still numerous pieces from the 2015 Mann Cup champions aboard the roster. Prior to the last three games, where Victoria gave up 40 goals, its defence stood as one of the best in the league.
Burnaby is as well-positioned for that next test as it can be, said president Ed Safarik.
“(Against) Victoria, they can’t let up. If they play strong defence and keep track of (Corey) Small and (Rhys) Duch, they have a good chance. A real good chance,” said Safarik, who has 14 years invested in the club.
“The difference seems to be that this (Lakers) team is playing for each other. You don’t see a lot of selfish play out there.”
“It’s going to be a different season going into Victoria, and we know that,” added Dhaliwal. “Bear Mountain is probably the hardest rink to play in, but getting some games in there and winning in there we know we can do this. We’ve done it before.
“We’re a better team now, and it’s that simple. We want more.”
The series continues Saturday in Victoria, and returns to the Copeland rink for a 6 p.m. faceoff on Monday. Game 4 goes Aug. 9 in Victoria. All games start at 6 p.m.
If necessary, the series will continue on Aug. 11 (in Burnaby), Aug. 13 (in Victoria) and Aug. 15 (in Burnaby).
