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Colorado Mammoth

Mammoth Sets NLL Record with Four on All-Rookie Team

September 29, 2015 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Colorado Mammoth News Release


OAKVILLE, ONTARIO - Just how bright is the future for the Colorado Mammoth? If league accolades are an indicator, then fans of the burgundy, silver and black have a lot to look forward to.

On Tuesday, the National Lacrosse League announced that four Mammoth players were named to the 2015 All-Rookie Team, setting a new league record for players from a single franchise to be named to the squad.

Forwards Jeremy Noble and Eli McLaughlin, defenseman Robert Hope and goaltender Alex Buque received the honor at the NLL Season Awards & Hall of Fame Ceremony at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre in Oakville, Ontario. They are joined on the All-Rookie Team by Ben McIntosh (Saskatchewan Rush) and Miles Thompson (Georgia Swarm).

McLaughlin was the first player chosen by the Mammoth (fourth overall) in the 2014 NLL Entry Draft. He scored 15 goals and assisted on 23 others in 17 games played. The Surrey, British Columbia native scored two goals in a game five times, and posted a season-high six points on March 29 in Colorado's 12-6 home win over the Vancouver Stealth.

Hope was the first defenseman selected in last year's draft (seventh overall). He set a new NLL rookie record with 28 caused turnovers, and chipped in offensively with five assists. The Peterborough, Ontario native is the first defenseman named to the All-Rookie Team since Kyle Rubisch in 2011.

Buque, who backed up 2014 NLL All-Rookie Team goaltender Dillon Ward for much of his rookie campaign, was the starter for three games when Ward went down with injury in the middle of the season. The second-round pick was 2-1 during that stretch. His .808 save percentage for the season was tops among all netminders to play 100 or more minutes.

Noble, the second-overall selection in the 2014 Draft, was a midseason acquisition by the Mammoth. The right-hander was picked by the Rochester Knighthawks, but didn't appear in a game until the trade to Colorado. A Rookie of the Year finalist, Noble was the NLL's Rookie of the Month in March. He was named the First Star of the Game in each of his first two career NLL appearances, and finished the season with 13 goals and 26 assists in nine games. The University of Denver product posted 17 power-play points (5g, 12a).

Colorado has had one or more players on the NLL All-Rookie Team four straight years, and is the only team in the league with two active goaltenders who have received the league award. How rare is it for a goalie to be named to the All-Rookie Team? Since its inception in 2001, the NLL All-Rookie Teams collectively have only featured six goaltenders.

The previous record for players from one team to be named to the All-Rookie Team was three by the Stealth in 2009.

Past Mammoth All-Rookie Team members include Brian Langtry (2003), Dan Carey (2006), Nenad Gajic and Jamie Shewchuk (2007), Adam Jones (2012), Joey Cupido (2013), and Dillon Ward (2014).

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