End-of-Year Awards Predictions
By Austin Owens | Jul 29, 2021
After five weeks of jammed packed action and a star-studded All-Star Weekend, we had another week to wait until the return of PLL action.
Last week, I went and took a look through each team’s MVP through the first part of the 2021 season.
Now, before the season kicks back into full swing in Colorado Springs on Friday, let’s talk awards one more time and go through early picks to take home each honor.
The races are going to be close down the stretch, with the final two weeks set to provide fireworks as teams look to secure their respective spots in the 2021 playoffs.
Players are always playing for the name on the front, not the back. But let’s give some props to the top players in the PLL this season.
Here are my picks, with some honorable mentions, for each award.
Jim Brown Most Valuable Player - Grant Ament, Archers
This is going to be a fun race to watch down the stretch. But there is one leader in my eyes for the Jim Brown Most Valuable Player award at this point, and it’s 2020 first overall College Draft pick Grant Ament.
As if his performance in the Championship Series as a rookie wasn’t already impressive enough, he’s gone out and upped his play this summer.
Ament currently leads the league in points with 26 in six games. He’s been able to find the back of the net at a solid clip, but like last year, it’s his passing acumen that has helped get the party started for this Archers offense.
Will Manny and Marcus Holman have been awesome alongside him and Tom Schreiber is always going to do his thing from up top. But Ament’s lacrosse IQ and vision have shined through to this point of the campaign.
The Archers have three games remaining in their season, and if Ament continues to play at the level he has through their first six games of the campaign, he’s going to wrap up this award easily.
Honorable Mention: Jeff Teat, Rob Pannell, Zach Currier
Eamon McEneaney Attackman of the Year - Grant Ament, Archers
There have been some awesome seasons for attackmen, but if Ament wins the MVP award, he’s a shoe-in for this award as well.
There’s not too much to say here that I didn’t touch on already in the MVP section. Ament has a loaded attack group behind him that’ll be making their cases for this award in the final games. It’ll come down to who can help lift their team to the postseason and make waves.
Honorable Mention: Teat, Pannell, Lyle Thompson
Gait Brothers Midfielder of the Year - Zach Currier, Waterdogs
This award has gone to one man in the history of the Premier Lacrosse League: Tom Schreiber.
It could very well go to him again based on his offensive output down the stretch. However, the best midfielder across the board this season has been Canadian Zach Currier.
Currier is currently tied for third in scoring among midfielders with 19 points to date. But what sets him apart is his play on the defensive side of the ball.
He’s tied with fellow Canadians Ryland Rees and Jake Withers for third on the Waterdogs in caused turnovers with seven. Currier also sits fourth in the league in ground balls – the three individuals above him are all face-off specialists -- and is first among short-sticks in face-off win ground balls
The Waterdogs have just two games remaining compared to three for other teams – like Schreiber and the Archers.
Currier and Schreiber will be in the race for the award, and the former Princeton teammates are going to put on a show to end the year.
As I’ve said before, he’s the best two-way midfielder in the game right now, and if he can continue this production at both ends, he should be the man to receive the honor this year.
Honorable Mention: Schreiber, Paul Rabil, Connor Kelly
Dave Pietramala Defensive Player of the Year - Graeme Hossack, Archers
Graeme Hossack joined the player pool for the PLL just over a week before the 2021 Entry Draft, and he was immediately considered as the lock for the second pick behind Lyle Thompson.
Chris Bates wanted to get bigger and more physical on the back end, and you don’t get much better than The Cyborg when it comes to size and physicality.
In his first few games, Hossack had solid numbers, but he started to tune up the physicality and become that dominant force in the Archers’ third game of the year, posting three caused turnovers and three ground balls against the Waterdogs.
Graeme Hossack is strong pic.twitter.com/QwrjK87mkM
— Joe Keegan (@joekeegs) June 27, 2021
That started a stretch of three straight games with multiple caused turnovers for Hossack.
Alongside the likes of Matt McMahon, Warren Jeffrey, Scott Ratliff, and the Archers’ short-stick defensive midfield corps, Hossack has been an x-factor for this defense, taking on the opposition’s top competition every single game.
He’s in the conversation as the best defender on the planet, and he’s showing PLL fans that the stretch away from the field game didn’t hamper him one bit. He’s a physical freak who’s nightmare fuel for opposing attackmen.
Honorable Mention: Eddy Glazener, Matt Dunn, Michael Rexrode
Brodie Merrill Long Stick Midfielder of the Year - Michael Ehrhardt, Whipsnakes
There have been some extremely solid performances when it comes to LSMs this year, but once again, Michael Ehrhardt has just continued to be a steady presence for the Whips on the back end.
He’s had a caused turnover in all but one game and has been a vacuum when it comes to ground balls, scooping up 19 to date.
Ehrhardt has also managed to maintain his regular clip offensively, with seven points in five games. He’s had at least a point in four of those five games and he had five points in his first three games.
He’s been a bit of a unicorn in lacrosse due to his size, athleticism, and offensive ability. There’s definitely more competition for this award as the LSM talent continues to rise every year. But Ehrhardt’s consistency on both ends makes a big difference for the Whips.
Honorable Mention: Scott Ratliff, Ian MacKay, Ryland Rees
Rookie of the Year - Jeff Teat, Atlas
This is going to be the race to watch down the home stretch. Through the first few weeks of the season, TD Ierlan had a stranglehold on this award, especially with his play in Boston during the Woods’ Week 1 doubleheader.
However, once Jeff Teat was able to cross the border, he helped vault Atlas into a top position in the league.
I named Teat as Atlas’ MVP in my piece last week, and he’s been the most impressive rookie in the league this year. I like that Ben Rubeor hasn’t relied on Teat to operate from X on every possession. He also has been able to slide out to the wings and operate from different spots on the field to hurt teams. It’s paid dividends, as he and Jake Carraway have been amazing at attack while Bryan Costabile, Romar Dennis, and John Crawley take care of things up top.
22 points in just four games. Just think about that for a second. The Canadian has been dominant since stepping on the field with Atlas.
With their remaining schedule, Atlas has the opportunity to close out the top seed in the league for the postseason. But a Week 7 doubleheader with a scrappy Chrome squad and the Cannons – who are fighting for their playoff lives – will heavily test the Bulls.
If Teat wants to lock up some hardware, this weekend is pivotal. This award is still up for grabs though. He has to keep posting solid performances in the final three games of his season.
Honorable Mention: Ierlan, Jackson Morrill, Stephen Rehfuss
Paul Cantabene Faceoff Athlete of the Year - TD Ierlan, Redwoods
Many figured the Redwoods were just one piece away from being a serious contender. With their struggles at the stripe in the Championship Series, the addition of NCAA faceoff king TD Ierlan was a no-brainer.
He stepped in and did exactly what everyone expected him to do. Ierlan currently leads the league in faceoff wins (103), faceoff percentage (66%), and ground balls (61).
Nat St. Laurent told me at the beginning of the year that he was just looking for TD to get them to 50 percent to see what they could do with those extra possessions. He’s already had three games over 70 percent, and he’s had at least 12 ground balls in all of those outings.
Ierlan has lived up to the hype surrounding his arrival in the pro game. He’s gone up against the best in the business and come out above 50 percent every time.
He’s the slam dunk pick for this award.
Honorable Mention: Joe Nardella, Trevor Baptiste, Jake Withers
George Boiardi Hard Hat Award - Zach Goodrich, Cannons
When you win the MLL’s Defensive Player of the Year as a short-stick defensive midfielder, you’re obviously a special individual.
Sean Quirk has said on multiple occasions that he views Zach Goodrich as a fifth close defender rather than a shorty. He’s not afraid to throw the Towson product out against any offensive player on the field. That was clear when Goodrich was face-guarding Michael Sowers from X in the team’s second game of the season.
The triple-double has been popularized this season, but Goodrich has a double-double in nearly every game this season. He’s posted at least two caused turnovers and two ground balls in four outings.
Goodrich currently sits with 10 caused turnovers and 12 ground balls in seven games. But it’s his ability to be put on an island with anyone that gets him the nod. He can guard anyone and hold his own, with his reverse V-hold becoming one of his signatures to help stifle opponents.
Barring some massive performances from other SSDMs over the final two weeks, Goodrich should continue to improve on his numbers and take this honour home.
This seems like an award that could go to Goodrich for the foreseeable future.
Honorable Mention: Mark McNeill, Ryan Terefenko, Danny Logan
Dick Edell Coach of the Year - Nat St. Laurent, Redwoods
This award goes to St. Laurent not only for his ability to lead the Woods this year, but also his moves to be able to put his team in the best position to succeed.
Trading for Rob Pannell and drafting the likes of TD Ierlan, Ryan Lee, Isaiah Davis-Allen, and Charlie Bertrand. Not to mention adding depth pieces like Kyle Thornton and Kyle Hartzell to strengthen the team down the stretch.
St. Laurent has been able to make the Redwoods even better than they already were – which is just scary to think about.
The Pannell trade has moved Jules Heningburg into the midfield, and St. Laurent’s implementation of the 2-2-2 on offense has made a massive difference in this team’s offensive execution.
The Woods already had one of the best defensive units in the league. Add the additions to the offense and TD Ierlan controlling draws and St. Laurent’s squad is going to be a serious contender for the PLL Championship.
Honorable Mention: Ben Rubeor, Andy Copelan, Jim Stagnitta
