Connor O'Toole Re-Signs with Warriors as Team Philosophy Aligns with his NLL Goals

Sports stats



NLL Vancouver Warriors

Connor O'Toole Re-Signs with Warriors as Team Philosophy Aligns with his NLL Goals

July 18, 2024 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Vancouver Warriors News Release


For Vancouver Warriors' goaltender Connor O'Toole, staying with the franchise that drafted him was important.

He's been coached by his dad, lacrosse Hall of Famer Pat O'Toole, for most of his lacrosse career, and being part of the Warriors organization is in keeping with that familial feel.

The Warriors' first-round pick in the 2023 NLL Entry (18th overall) re-signed with Vancouver for the upcoming season.

"I feel at home with the leadership style and the coaching style that Curt [Malawsky] has implemented, and it feels like a really good fit. I was excited to be asked to be back there and I'm looking forward to being back," O'Toole said.

Throughout the season, the netminder had conversations with Malawsky about the importance of being there for each other which resonated with O'Toole.

"We are a family and Curt is really trying to establish that with us. It was really exciting for me to be able to go back and try and progress my career in Vancouver with the team that gave me that shot [in the NLL], the fans have always been awesome, the players are awesome, coaching staff, equipment staff, training staff, everyone in the organization is like a family and being back there feels really good for me." O'Toole shared.

The 21-year-old still has another year at Brock University, and he helped the team to a 9-4 record and a Baggataway Cup semifinal finish last season. O'Toole has achieved academic honours alongside his athletic success at Brock and was a recipient of the 2022-2023 Badgers Academic Excellence Award.

Last season with the Warriors, O'Toole attended only a handful of practices due to his scholastic and athletic schedule, but he's hoping to get more practice time and games in with the team this year to build on what he learned last season.

O'Toole soaked up as much as he could in the time he was with them and says being exposed to practices at the pro level has helped him this OJLL season.

"It's a different challenge. In the NLL you have guys that have been in the league for so long that they've seen a lot of different goalies, they've had such great careers - Ryan Dilks, Matt Beers, [Brett] Mydske, all these guys. Competing against them and having them point out mistakes and what you can do better in a constructive way is really helpful," O'Toole said.

"I felt like I got a lot better during the year every time I was practicing there so it's really exciting to be a part of it and to learn from these great guys."

Being around players with years of NLL experience has given O'Toole new tricks that he has been able to incorporate into his routine is his preparation for games. He's been starting the week before and working on the details like watching video and taking care of his body physically and mentally so he's ready to rock come game day.

"Re-watching games has really helped me this year. I learn more about shooters, team's tendencies and what I can expect during games. Being mentally ready for game days, the importance of taking care of my body are things I learned as well. It was new for me this year to see all the guys taking care of themselves in a more professional way and I was able to implement that, and it's made me feel a lot better in Junior this year," he said.

As O'Toole looks towards his future, he feels the philosophy of the Warriors' coaching staff and what they're building in Vancouver aligns with his goals to one day win an NLL Cup.

"We place such a high value on winning," O'Toole said. "[The coaching staff] wants us to succeed and they want us to have the best careers that we can. I know Curt's won, Rob's won and them having that experience and being able to pass it on it's great."

He talked about the veteran core sharing the importance of coming together to be able to achieve that level of success and he feels supported in Vancouver to chase that dream.

Re-signing with the Warriors is O'Toole taking another step towards greatness.

Check out the Vancouver Warriors Statistics

• Discuss this story on the National Lacrosse League message board...

National Lacrosse League Stories from July 18, 2024


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central