For Lemcke it’s lacrosse not hockey
Peterborough Lakers draftee has hopes of playing in pro in NLL
It looks like the Peterborough Century 21 Lakers gamble at the Major Series Lacrosse draft paid off.
While he didn’t see it coming, Justin Lemcke’s decision to give up pro hockey to go to university has opened up another door — one that would be closed to him if he were still playing pro hockey. That is, lacrosse.
On Jan. 27, the Lakers selected the six-foot-two, 203-pound defender with their first pick in the draft. Lemcke, who last played lacrosse for the Jr. A Whitby Warriors in 2016, was also claimed by the Georgia Swarm in the National Lacrosse League draft last September.
Lemcke, who captained the Hamilton Bulldogs to the Ontario Hockey League championship last season, said he plans to play for Peterborough over the summer and then, if all goes well, he will consider making the jump to the NLL, where he could play while still being enrolled at the University of Guelph.
“I’m definitely going to give it a shot, “he said.
After a short stint in the ECHL, Lemcke decided to go back to school and joined the OUA’s Guelph Gryphons varsity hockey team.
“It’s nice to turn my brain on,” he said, although it is an adjustment.
Because, for the first time in a long time, he’s more than just hockey to worry about.
“Now I can’t take my pre-game nap because I’m studying all day for a midterm,” he said with a laugh. “It’s good, but it’s definitely a change.”
Lemcke, a 21-year-old defenceman, travelled a winding road to Guelph this semester. The Whitby native signed with the ECHL’s Wichita Thunder — a minorleague affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers. He made the team in Kansas, but before he could get a game under his belt, he was traded to the Cincinnati Cyclones.
In Ohio, as in Wichita, he was the seventh defenceman. Most of his teammates were either on AHL or NHL contracts and coming down from those higher leagues, while he, fresh out of junior, was trying to work his way up. The odds of him seeing game action weren’t good.
“It got to a point where it was like, I’ve got to make a decision, “he said.
The options were to either wait around until one of his teammates got injured or called up — neither of which was a sure thing — or to cut his losses and give university a shot. He played three games for the Cyclones before opting for the latter.
“I didn’t see any opportunity if I wasn’t playing in the Coast to move up,” he said. “So, it made sense for me to go to school and start my degree.”
After five seasons in the OHL, including three in Hamilton, Lemcke could have gone anywhere in Canada and had his tuition, books and other fees paid for as part of the league’s scholarship program.
He chose Guelph because it’s close to home — his family lives in Orono — and he knew a few of the guys there, including former Bulldogs teammates Stephen Templeton and Jesse Saban.
Lemcke said having them around has been a huge help for him, both on the ice and off it.
“They helped me settle in, get my student card and pick my classes, “added the liberal arts major, who is enrolled in business, accounting, sociology and geography courses this semester.
His overriding reason, though, was that the Gryphons offered him a chance to step into the lineup and play top-pair minutes.
“That’s what I wanted,” he said. “To kind of take a deep breath and know that I’m going to be playing.”
Since joining the team last month, Lemcke has played mostly a shutdown role alongside fifth-year blueliner Reilly O’Connor. Or, if Guelph is playing catch-up, coach Shawn Camp will sometimes pair him up with Waterdown’s Templeton in a bid to get some offence going.
The strategy has worked so far. In his first 12 games with the team, he had five goals and eight points, including a hat trick a couple of weeks ago in a close win against regional rival Waterloo. The Gryphons, meanwhile, are 7-5 with Lemcke on their roster.