The Maple Ridge Burrards were able to come home from Thursday’s night’s WLA junior draft with a pair of Maple Ridge kids they expect to be core players for years to come.
With their territorial pick, the Burrards selected Dylan McIntosh, and with first-round pick, second overall, they chose Nate Faccin. That is a pick that the club can use to keep a player from their home minor lacrosse association.
“Both of them could be franchise players,” said Burrards GM Lance Andre.
With our Territorial Protection pick in the 2021 WLA Jr Draft, the Maple Ridge Burrards are excited to announce we have selected Dylan McIntosh. Welcome back to the #BurrardsNation Dylan! #WLADraft @WLALacrosse @LacrosseNetwork @MapleRidgeNews @YourMapleRidge pic.twitter.com/e5Ho5lsyZ2
— Maple Ridge Burrards (@Burrardslax) February 12, 2021
McIntosh is a Pitt Meadows product who is playing for the Hofstra Pride field lacrosse team in the NCAA Division. He is the team captain this year.
“He’s a big kid, smart, with soft hands and a great shot,” said Burrards GM Lance Andre. “His lacrosse sense is through the roof. Dylan will contribute. He’ll be one of our top righties.”
In 24 career games with the Pride, over three seasons, the sniper has scored 38 goals and 45 points. He stepped in as a rookie in 2018, and was third on the team in goal scoring.
Faccin has been the goaltender for the Coquitlam Junior Adanacs, and was first or second in the BC Junior A Lacrosse League in all of the major goaltending categories.
Congrats to Nate Faccin being drafted by the MR Burrards Round 1 #2 overall#WLADraft pic.twitter.com/iLf3MzsiNU
— Coquitlam Jr Adanacs (@JuniorAdanacs) February 12, 2021
After having played backup to NLL star Christian Del Bianco, in 2019 Faccin was made the starter. He posted an 11-3-0 record with a 7.16 goals against average, and a sublime .849 save per centage. That earned him the Monty Leahy Award, given to the BCJALL Goaltender of the Year. He also got some Minto Cup championship experience that season. He was drafted by the Colorado Mammoth of the NLL in September 2020.
“He’s a goalie we’ve been targeting since we traded Frankie (Scigliano),” said Andre. “He’s a big, solid kid who moves well and throws the ball well. He’s up and coming.”
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The subsequent Burrards picks were:
• Brendan Szabo, 13th: He’s a Surrey product and a defender out of the Delta Junior system. Andre compares him to Burrard standouts Zack and Colton Porter. Szabo played for Ireland at the World Lacrosse 2019 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship.
• Jake Stott, 18th: Is a New Westminster player and defender for the Salmonbellies, who plays with grit that fits well with the Burrards style, said Andre.
• Mitchell Nolet, 20th: Coquitlam transition player is a nephew to Burrards great and former head coach Chris Gill, and lacrosse is in his DNA.
• Matthew Froese, 23rd: Coquitlam defender who in 2018 was the defensive player of the tournament at the Founders Cup Junior B national championship.
• Dawson Bancroft, 27th: A big lefty from Surrey who plays with the Salmonbellies. Andre has liked what he has seen scouting him.
• Dayton Vidovich, 34th: A Maple Ridge transition player, who is going to school in South Carolina and playing for Newberry College in the NCAA second division.
• Joshua Brunsch, 41st: Langley Thunder player’s father Kevin Brunsch is in the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
• Rylee Fisher, 48th
• Sam Heiling, 55th
“We did well, and we filled holes we needed to fill,” said Andre.
The WLA does not yet have a schedule for the 2021 season, although on draft night league commissioner Paul Dal Monte said it would be released by the end of the month, “with the hope of gaining clearance (from the Provincial Health Authority) to return to play at some point this summer.”