CUFLA Players Joining MSL Teams Ahead of and At Draft

There are likely to be quite a few CUFLA student-athletes or grads selected in tonight's Major Series Lacrosse entry draft, but Mitch Ogilvie and Darren Elliott won't be among them.

That's because University of Toronto Blues' Elliott has already been added to the roster of the Brooklin Lacrosse Club as one of four players each team can protect ahead of the draft and Guelph's Ogilvie was protected by the Peterborough Lakers.

The MSL draft is being held virtually with the six teams meeting via Zoom and commencing at 7pm. MSL will be sharing draft picks via its social media channels as the draft proceeds. Players eligible for the draft are those who graduated from Ontario junior lacrosse last year, meaning they have their 22^nd birthdays in 2021.

Elliott led the Blues in scoring in 2019, his third year at U of T, with 22 goals and 9 assists for 31 points. The righty attack man has also been a key contributor to the Jr B Clarington Green Gaels, wrapping up his career in 2019 with 29 goals and 24 assists for 53 points in 20 games.

BLC general manager and head coach Brad MacArthur praised Elliott's work ethic, saying in a story published on the team's web site that “Darren has worked for everything he gets.” MacArthur anticipates Elliott joining the Brooklin Merchants Sr B team and striving to earn a spot with the Sr A team.

There's an interesting connection with the Varsity Blues to another of BLC's protected players. Captain Jason Barnable was one of the school's top two scorers in each of the last four seasons to be played. His brother Ryan, with whom Jason played for the Whitby Warriors, was also protected by BLC. Ryan opted to head south of the border to attend and play lacrosse at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Ogilvie was an All-Canadian honourable mention in 2019 after tying for third on the Gryphons roster with 18 points, 14 of which were goals.

Other Prospects

The number of players CUFLA students or grads selected in the 2021 MSL draft could easily reach the double digits among the 30 total players who will be picked in the five-round draft. At least seven solid prospects for the draft have already been selected in the National Lacrosse League draft over the past couple of years.

A pair of Guelph defenders went in 2019 and both have a year of NLL experience under their belts as they wait to hear when their names will be called tonight. Matt Sykes is with the San Diego Seals and Thomas Whitty with the Rochester Knighthawks.

Candidates for tonight's draft who were picked last year by NLL teams include Curtis Conley and Curtis Romanchych from Trent, Sam Firth from Bishop's, Sam LeClair and Chris Weir from Brock, and John Kit from Western.

One other player with a CUFLA connection, although not from the field of play, is a contender to be the first goalie taken in this MSL draft. Cameron Dunkerley is an Orangeville native who has played for his hometown team and helped lead the Victoria Shamrocks to the Minto Cup finals in 2019. He was selected 42^nd overall by the Saskatchewan Rush in the NLL draft that year. Dunkerley served as an intern with CUFLA in 2019.