Stealth no longer
Corey Small no longer flying under the NLL radar after scoring 46 goals with Vancouver this year
In another life, Vancouver Stealth forward Corey Small was probably splitting apples with arrows.
When it comes to opposing netminders, the 29-year-old southpaw from St. Catharines can overpower on occasion. More often than not, though, he neatly finds his mark, tucking the ball in a cranny that he was the only person in the building to spot as available before winding up.
Small isn’t the type usually to wound a goalie’s machismo. His regular shtick is messing with their heads, making them question their technique.
With that affinity for accuracy leading the way, the Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School graduate is a major reason the Stealth are hosting the Colorado Mammoth in the onegame, winner-take-all West Division semifinal at Langley Events Centre today (7 p.m., TSN 1410), a contest that marks the club’s first National Lacrosse League playoff action since moving to Langley from Everett, Wash., for the 2014 campaign.
Small finished third in NLL scoring in the 18-game regular season, thanks to his 111 points, including 46 goals. The most valuable player ballots should be going out to the NLL governors, general managers and coaches in the near future, but you’d think that Small would at least be in the conversation.
The two guys who finished with more points – Georgia Swarm righthander Lyle Thompson (116 points) and Saskatchewan Rush lefty Mark Matthews (113) – were members of division-leading teams, so you can debate greatest value to a club.
Small has excelled before, particularly in the summers with the Western Lacrosse Association’s Victoria Shamrocks, but it feels like he’s taken a step forward. This Stealth season marks a 27-point jump from his previous career high in eight years in the NLL, up from the 84 points he produced a campaign ago for Vancouver.
“One day, when I grow up, I want to be as good a shooter as Corey Small,” said fellow Stealth lefty Logan Schuss, 25. “He doesn’t need to shoot the ball 100 m.p.h., because he has the ability to place the ball in the tightest of areas from the most bizarre angles.”
“No doubt in my mind Corey is one of the elite players in today’s game. He’s been an absolute force in the WLA for years, and now this breakthrough season in the NLL has finally given him some nationwide exposure he deserves.” Part of Small’s boost in scoring has come from the power play. He had 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) with the man advantage last season, compared with 33 points (11-22) with the added player on the floor this season.
Vancouver’s power-play numbers overall haven’t changed that much in a year, going from 54.3 per cent (44-of-81) a campaign ago to 51.8 (43-of-83).
Small quarterbacked the unit more often from the top position this season, rather than playing the shooter spot, which has given him a chance to handle the ball more.
Also at play here is that he’s shooting overall as well as he ever has in the NLL this season. He was good on a career-best 18.9 per cent (46 goals, 244 shots), up from his previous high of 17.3 per cent (32 goals, 185 shots) in 2015, when he joined the Stealth for 15 games after playing a pair of games with the Edmonton Rush.
Ask opponents around the league, and people talk about how they see him wanting the ball even more at crunch time and how he’s playing with as much confidence as they’ve ever seen. For a little evidence, he did score the tying goal with 18 seconds left and the winner in overtime in Vancouver’s 17-16, extra-session victory on the road against the New England Black Wolves on Saturday that assured the Stealth home floor against the Mammoth for Saturday.
“He won the Mann Cup most valuable player two summers ago,” said Stealth defender Jon Harnett, pointing to a Shamrock national club championship run when they were also teammates, “so he has been playing at a high level for a few years now. I’m happy to see him succeed, because he puts a lot of work into his game.
“What makes Corey so dangerous is his shot. He can shoot it accurately at all four corners of the net. He also has a deceptively quick first step, which gives him time and space.”
Small, who won an Ontario high school lacrosse championship with Holy Cross, played field lacrosse at the University of Albany in upstate New York for four seasons.
He scored 127 goals and amassed 278 points in only 102 regular season games in junior B box lacrosse with the St. Catharines Athletics. He added 40 goals and 77 points in 30 playoff games for the Athletics.