Toth faces challenge from visiting young gun
February 9, 2007 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Calgary Roughnecks News Release
Calgary, AB - Kaleb Toth has been the face of the Calgary Roughnecks since the franchise entered the National Lacrosse League in 2001.
He is also, by general consensus, the best player ever to emerge from the Calgary minor lacrosse program.
There are, of course, other contenders for that title, including slick scoring Jason Wulder now in his 13th NLL season (six of them with Calgary); Andrew Biers, an impact player with San Jose, Calgary and Minnesota, and John Kilbride, a prolific points getter in the Riggers' early days.
But no-one so far can match the success of Toth, a guy with a 100 m.p.h. howitzer in his stick, yet with the deftest of touches around the net.
Among Toth's achievements: He has won the Champion's Cup with Calgary and Toronto (he scored the winner in the last second of regulation time); the Mann Cup with Victoria in 1999 and 2003, and the Minto Cup with Burnaby in 1998. He has represented Canada at field lacrosse on a number of occasions and was the first ever Roughneck named to the NLL's All-Star team.
But now along comes 25-year-old Geoff Snider, who, like Toth, was born, bred and educated (Sir Winston Churchill High) in Calgary.
( After graduation, Snider moved to Colorado and the University of Denver where he majored in finance/marketing. He now resides in the Mile High City where he works in commercial real estate.)
Unlike Toth, however, Snider will not be in a Calgary uniform when the Roughnecks (4-1) entertain Philadelphia Saturday night (ball drop at 7.30 p.m.).
Instead, he'll don the red, black, white and grey of the visiting Wings (3-2), a team that lies 2nd in the NLL's East Division. Philadelphia made Snider their top pick (4th overall) in the NLL's 2006 entry draft.
In five games for Philadelphia, Snider has collected 13 points (6 goals, 7 assists), 13 penalty minutes, 53 loose balls (an average of more than 10 per outing) and won an amazing 53 of the 79 face offs he has taken. His over-all performance was enough to garner the NLL's Rookie of the Month award.
Snider has many other accomplishments. He led the Burnaby Lakers Jr. A squad to three Minto Cups (1998, 2000 and 2002); set NCAA records in 2006 for ground balls per game (11.41) and total ground balls (194), and also in 2006 was named MVP of the world field lacrosse championships in which Canada won a gold medal.
"There's no denying that Geoff is an outstanding talent," Kurt Silcott, the Roughnecks General Manager, said today. "He can do it all - score, hit, defend, run transition, gather loose balls, fight and take face offs. There's not a team in the NLL that would not love to have him on their roster.
"In fact, all the signs indicate he will be a superstar in this league. But you still have to bear in mind that he's just a rookie. Stardom in the sporting world in not awarded overnight. You have to perform at a high level for a long time to earn the sort of respect that Kaleb commands from his peers."
Silcott continued, "I can't say enough about Kaleb means to this franchise. He's a leader both on and off the floor - and a leader in the community, always there to help out a worthy cause.
"He represents what is good about sports. He promotes lacrosse and the Roughnecks 24/7, yet still finds time to help those less fortunate than himself. A lot of professional athletes could learn much about being a positive leader from Kaleb.
"Then there's his presence on the floor," said Silcott. "He's one of the most difficult players in the game to defend. With his size, strength and that cannon of a shot, he's a threat anywhere in the offensive zone. Not many players have all of those weapons in their arsenal and that's what makes him such a great player."
(The Calgary-Philadelphia game can be seen live on Shaw TV at 7.30 p.m.)
National Lacrosse League Stories from February 9, 2007
- Jax Sign Darren Reisig and Trade Ryan Sharp - Portland Lumberjax
- Swarm Acquires Ryan Sharp From Portland LumberJax in Exchange for Draft Picks - Minnesota Swarm
- Toth faces challenge from visiting young gun - Calgary Roughnecks
- Philadelphia To Host National Lacrosse League Hall Of Fame Weekend February 16 and 17 - Philadelphia Wings
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.
