The 2024-25 National Lacrosse League season was one that the Toronto Rock will look to move past quickly. In their 26 years as a franchise, you can count on a single hand the amount of times the Rock haven’t been included in the postseason. This will be the fifth time ever Toronto will not see playoff lacrosse. They have been one of the pictures of consistency in the NLL, and a team that’s always in the mix for a championship.

This year’s iteration of the Rock looked to better a run that has seen them fall at the hands of the Buffalo Bandits each of the last three years. They brought back all of their biggest stars from 2024, while also adding Latrell Harris back into the fold after the former Defender of the Year missed a season due to a torn ACL.

From the jump, the bounces just didn’t go the Rock’s way, with the team seeing several key players on Injured Reserve. An 0-5 start would spell disaster for any franchise, let alone one who had lost just three games total a year prior, and five each of the two seasons before that.

By the midway mark, Mark Matthews was ruled out for the season, and the Rock were considering a re-tool on the fly. They decided to pull the trigger in February, dealing Nick Rose and Tyler Hendrycks to Calgary in exchange for a 2026 first, Robert Hudson and Gowah Abrams. The Rock then turned around and moved both Mitch De Snoo and Chris Corbeil to Philadelphia for a 2025 first-rounder.

With the Rock’s own first and Las Vegas’ pick in the mix already for this year’s draft, the Rock were in a great position to add two high-impact players at the top of the board, and after Philadelphia took an unexpected nosedive at the tail-end of the season, that set Toronto up with the top three selections in September.

Toronto now has four months to sculpt their roster before being on the clock. Let’s look through the possibilities of what they could do with their selections, who they could take, and what the Rock could look like to open the 2025-26 season.

Keep the Picks

The easiest decision of all. Toronto has the chance to just load up and add three individuals who can immediately step into their lineup and be players who either play every game or develop alongside the current stars on the Rock roster.

With a roster that is getting older, it is in the Rock’s best interest to look at both the present and future with these picks. Already having a top-five pick in Sam English coming into the fold next year, Toronto can make it four high-calibre rookies ahead of camp.

If you can add top defensive players at the top of the board, they can set your franchise up for success for the next decade-plus. The Rock might know this better than any team after they added Challen Rogers and Latrell Harris in the first 12 picks in 2016. How about getting two of the top defenders available at the top of the draft? While the defenders this year might not be what Rogers and Harris were right away, there are some players with high ceilings on the back end this year.

Up front, the Rock have a clear first overall selection this year, which will strengthen their left side. But what they do in this draft will be decided by how the rest of their off-season goes, leading up to the day. The intrigue comes in at picks No. 2 and 3.

Who do they target?

CJ Kirst, LF, Cornell & Mimico (OJLL)

Let’s go through the guys at the top of the board for this year’s draft, and there’s no other name to look at off the top than American lefty CJ Kirst. After Brennan O’Neill’s standout year with the Wings, it looks as though we’ll have back-to-back first-overall selections hailing from the United States for the first time in NLL history.

Kirst, however, is more than acclimatized to the box game. He spent a full summer in the Ontario Junior Lacrosse League with the Mimico Mountaineers in 2023, showing that he could handle himself among the top talents north of the border. He mainly operated as a forward, but he also played ball team and even took face-offs.

The next member of the Kirst family to make an impact in pro, CJ looks poised to go No. 1 in both the NLL and PLL. Older brothers Connor (Las Vegas) and Cole (Halifax) have both been solid box players, with Connor serving as the Desert Dogs’ captain. The brothers are known for their infectious attitudes and skills. CJ is no different. With one game left in his senior season with the Big Red, Kirst passed Payton Cormier to become the NCAA’s all-time leader in career goals.

The sky is the limit for Kirst. He’s a proven producer indoors and outdoors, and an easy pick to go first this year.

Levi Verch, LD, St. Joseph’s & Nanaimo (WLA)

This summer will determine who the top defender off the board is come the fall, but Verch has a great case to be that first guy to hear his name called.

In his final year of junior lacrosse, Verch posted eight goals and 21 points in 17 games out of the back gate for the Nanaimo Jr Timbermen. He made the jump to senior ball in the WLA last summer, where he gained some important reps. He’ll have another year of WLA ball to hone his skills this summer ahead of the draft.

Verch is a big, physical presence, standing at 6-foot-2, 219 pounds. Yet he also has the ability to get out and hurt opposing teams in transition. That’s a skillset that every NLL team is looking to add to its defence. Putting a player like Verch into the Rock’s defence is a scary thing to think about. If he was a player that anchored the crease in their defence, he could be a menace on slides and help defence.

Dante Bowen, RT, Ohio State & Orangeville (OJLL)

This one is close to home for a lot of the Rock coaches and staff who spend their summers with the OJLL’s Orangeville Northmen. Bowen was a key pickup for the team last year at the trade deadline, as they brought him in from Brampton in a blockbuster deal.

Bowen is the prototypical two-way threat that teams are looking to add to today’s NLL. He’s 6-foot-1, 190 pounds with strength, athleticism, and some attitude. He doesn’t back down from anyone on the floor, and he’s got the confidence to carry the ball up in transition. While his numbers aren’t eye-popping, it’s the individual efforts you see with the ball that stand out from his film. He’s scored goals by lowering the shoulder on retreating defenders, and he’s scored others by beating opponents with his legs.

He’ll fit into any defence he joins and be a disruptor for them. Adding Bowen into a Rock defence with several stars like Challen Rogers, Latrell Harris, and Brad Kri means he can develop at his own pace without having to be a matchup defender against the league’s best right away. Bowen can join the Sr. Excelsiors this summer and get his feet wet playing against older competition. He’ll be in the conversation to be the first defender off the board this year.

Braedon Saris, RF, Princeton & Cobourg (MSL)

There has been speculation that Tom Schreiber’s time in the NLL could be coming to an end, as he could choose to focus on playing solely in the PLL. That would be a huge hit to the Rock’s righty side despite having Dawick and Boushy. Enter Saris.

He’s an extremely skilled righty who has one of the heaviest and most accurate shots in this draft. While his regular-season stats in junior don’t stand out as much as some prospects, he turned into a scoring machine in the playoffs, where he always found a way to come up with timely goals when called upon. He had 16 goals and 35 points in eight games in 2022 with the Blaze, and then in the team’s Minto Cup run, Saris exploded for 39 goals and 80 points in 14 OJLL playoff games before having 22 points in five Minto Cup outings.

When the lights are brightest, Saris steps up. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound righty could step into the NLL and be an instant contributor. If he wound up in Toronto alongside their current weapons, he would be one of the guys in the running for Rookie of the Year.

Casey Wilson, RF/T, Denver & Victoria (WLA)

Casey Wilson has been a long-awaited prospect, and after a strong collegiate career with the Pioneers, the Victoria native is poised to make a big jump to the pro ranks.

Wilson is probably the best Swiss-Army Knife in the draft. He has played a lot up front during his box career to date, but he plays short-stick defensive midfielder at Denver, and he’s done the same with Canada internationally in field. He could slot into a team, like Toronto, as a transition threat who can bury the ball at a high clip. A team like the Rock that love to push transition could be a perfect fit for Wilson’s style. At 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, he’s got a great build to play on the back end.

His older brother, Max, has already proven that he’s an everyday player with Halifax during his short time in the NLL.

Unfortunately for Wilson, it sounds like he’ll miss an extended period of time due to an injury sustained at the end of this college season. That could see him slide a bit in the draft. But don’t expect teams to let him go for too long. He’s too good of a two-way threat, even with the injury, to pass up on.

Connor Nock, LD, Quincy & Toronto (OJLL)/Coquitlam (BCJALL)

Nock is more likely going to be a mid-to-late first-rounder this year, but his performance last summer can’t be discounted. As stated before, the Rock’s ties to the Orangeville Northmen are well documented, and with the team making the Minto Cup last year, they got a great look at Nock, who was nothing short of a disruptor and agitator with the Coquitlam Adanacs on their run to the Canadian National Championship.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound defender from Osgoode, Ontario product has done nothing but win during his junior career. He helped the Nepean Knights take home their first-ever Founders Cup in 2022. He made the jump to junior A in the playoffs a year later, where he was a part of the Burlington Blaze squad that captured the 2023 Minto Cup. He then joined the Toronto Beaches to start last summer, but after their tumultuous year, he found himself on the West Coast with Coquitlam. One again, he was a force, working alongside Ty Banks to anchor the Adanacs’ defence. It ended with his second Minto and third championship in as many years.

Nock is going to be more of a traditional defender than a transition threat, but he still has the ability to move the ball up the floor. But with his frame and demeanour, he excels at playing physical, unrelenting defence and getting under the skin of opponents. He’s strong and athletic. Now set to play for Owen Sound in MSL this summer, Nock could cement himself as a top pick with another steady summer out of the back gate. He’ll get lots of reps with the Northstars.

Alex Marinier, RF, Ohio State & Burlington (OJLL)

Last but certainly not least is Marinier. The younger brother of Ottawa Black Bears defender Matt Marinier, Alex applies his trade on the opposite side of the ball, and he’s a damn good scorer. If Saris has one of the best overall shots in the draft, Marinier far and away has the heaviest shot in this class. He can bomb it from a distance, and that showed with his 87 goals over his final two OJLL seasons with Burlington.

A 49-goal 2023 season was followed by 27 goals in 14 games during the OJLL playoffs before he had 11 goals in five Minto Cup games. Even despite his strong goal totals, Marinier had 95- and 94-point years in 2023 and 2024, respectively, showing his ability to dish the ball as well. He had 56 assists last summer with the Blaze.

Standing at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, Marinier is going to be in high demand. You’ll be hard-pressed to find his unique blend of size and high-end skill in most drafts. Whether he’s in the conversation to go top three will depend on this summer. He’ll join Saris with the Cobourg Kodiaks in MSL this summer, should he choose to give senior lacrosse a go. He should prove to be one of the team’s top options as a rookie, which will only strengthen his stock heading into the draft.

Trade a Pick (Or Picks)?

Before this year, the Rock were notorious for moving first-round selections for players who could help them in the present. That has turned them into a contender almost every year. Could Toronto look to do that once again? It’s certainly something that’ll be on the table.

This draft is deeper than a year ago, and Toronto could choose to either add an impact player for the present rather than a player that could pan out a few years down the road. Tom Schreiber is 33, Mark Matthews is 35, and Corey Small is 38. If that trio is back for another year together, the Rock are going to want to capitalize on the their current window. Add in that both Josh Dawick and Chris Boushy had 40-goal seasons, and the impending arrival of Sam English, the Rock are going to be deep offensively.

Defensively, they’ve always had depth, helped by hitting on later-round picks over prior years. They’re not a team that needs too many players in order to be good. But another impact lefty could make this team even scarier.

While Troy Holowchuk has proven he can handle starting minutes, do the Rock explore obtaining another option at goalie for some competition? It’s hard to envision a world in which Nick Rose isn’t back in blue and red next year. So that might be a moot point.

Regardless of who they could add, Toronto would immediately vault itself back into top contender status if they go make a splash in the trade market. Additionally, they could try to trade a top-three pick to accumulate more future firsts or assets. They moved their own first in 2026 to Halifax in the Boushy trade during the 2023 NLL Draft. Calgary’s pick gives them one selection, but could they try to add more?

Ottawa missed out on the playoffs and is without their own first-rounder. Could they look to shake things up to add a top prospect? There are some other teams like Phialdelphia or Albany that could also shake things up with moves this off-season. Could they throw their hats in to try and get a pick from Toronto?

Everything is on the table for the Rock. Despite a tough season, this off-season will undoubtedly be one to watch as a Toronto fan.

What do the Rock do with their top three picks?