- Toronto Rock
NLL Team Infobox
team_name=Toronto Rock
bg_color=#1C39BB
title_color=white
division=Eastern
logo=TorontoRock.jpg
founded=1998
home_arena=Air Canada Centre
hometown=Toronto, Ontario
team_colors=Blue, Red, Gold, Black
head_coach=Glenn Clark
general_manager=Mike Kloepfer (Director of Lacrosse Operations)
plpa=
champs=1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005
media=Rogers Sportsnet East, Rogers Sportsnet Ontario
division_champs=1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
website= [http://www.torontorock.com/ www.torontorock.com]
formerly=Ontario Raiders The Toronto Rock are a
lacrosse team in theNational Lacrosse League (NLL). They play at theAir Canada Centre inToronto ,Ontario . The Rock of the late 1990s / early 2000s has been called a dynasty, having won five NLL championships in seven years. From 1999 to 2003, the Rock appeared in an NLL-record five straight championship games. In ten seasons, they have an 11-4 record in playoff games.The franchise was originally founded as an NLL expansion team for
Hamilton, Ontario to begin play in the 1998 season. They were known as theOntario Raiders , and played their home games atCopps Coliseum in Hamilton during their first year. However, at the conclusion of the season they were sold to a group of investors led by Bill Watters, who was then the Assistant GM of theToronto Maple Leafs of theNHL , and relocated toToronto in time for the beginning of the 1999 season. They were subsequently renamed the "Toronto Rock". During their first two seasons in Toronto, they played atMaple Leaf Gardens , the historic former home of the Toronto Maple Leafs, before moving to the Air Canada Centre for the 2001 season, which they currently share with both the Maple Leafs and theToronto Raptors of the NBA. The Rock has consistently ranked near the top of the NLL in lacrosse performance, attendance, and financial success.__TOC__
Championships
The Toronto Rock won the
Champion's Cup in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2005.The 2002 final was against the
Albany Attack , and the 1999, 2000, and 2003 finals were against theRochester Knighthawks . In 2001, the Toronto Rock went to the league title game but came up one goal short against thePhiladelphia Wings . In 2004, the Rock earned a first round bye after clinching the East Division regular season crown. TheBuffalo Bandits came to town and upset the Rock 19-10.In 2005, the Rock defeated the
Rochester Knighthawks in the East Division Final by a score of 12-10 in front of approximately 17,200 fans at the Air Canada Centre. The Rock went on to defeat theArizona Sting with a 19-13 win in front of an NLL record crowd of 19,432, becoming NLL champions for the fifth time in seven years and solidifying their distinction as an NLL dynasty.2006 and beyond
The Rock struggled during the early part of the 2006 season; however, their record balanced out to 8-8 at season's end. They made the playoffs, only to be defeated by the first place Knighthawks at
Blue Cross Arena in Rochester with a score of 16-8. Head coach and GM Terry Sanderson was fired after the season, [cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=437|title=Rock Search for New Head Coach|work=NLL.com|date=May 9 ,2006 |accessdate=2008-04-29] and was replaced by new Director of Lacrosse Operations Mike Kloepfer and new head coachGlenn Clark . [cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=415|work=NLL.com|title=Rock Completes Coaching & Operations Staff|date=May 23 ,2006 |accessdate=2008-04-29] Clark had played eight seasons with the Rock and had just finished an All-Star season as a member of thePhiladelphia Wings , but retired from playing to take the head coaching job with his old club.Kloepfer made his mark on the team quickly, trading perennial All-Star, former Rookie of the Year and league MVP Colin Doyle to the
San Jose Stealth along with Darren Halls and a draft pick for first overall draft pickRyan Benesch , Kevin Fines, Chad Thompson and two draft picks. [cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=2629|title=Colossal Trade as Season Nears|work=NLL.com|date=December 27 ,2006 |accessdate=2008-04-29]Les Bartley
Less than 18 hours after the Toronto Rock won their 5th NLL Championship, former coach and General Manager
Les Bartley died onMay 15 ,2005 of cancer at the age of 51. Bartley is remembered as an exceptional coach, having led the Toronto Rock to win the championships in 1999, 2000, 2002, and 2003.In 2004, the NLL Coach of the Year Award was renamed the
Les Bartley Award in honour of Bartley.In 2007, the Toronto Rock established an award also called the Les Bartley Award, given to "the Rock player that best exemplifies Les' emphasis on the importance of character and commitment to the team". [cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=2856|title=Rock Establish Award in Bartley's Honor|work=NLL.com|date=
March 29 ,2007 |accessdate=2007-04-14] The first winner of this award was team captainJim Veltman .Awards & honors
References
ee also
*
External links
* [http://www.torontorock.com/ Official website]
*youtube|3cXjRZZDA6c|Toronto Rock featured on the Mercer Report
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