Friends and former Clippers teammates taken in NLL draft
The friendship will take on a new twist for Andrew Garant and Josh Jubenville.
The two met in grade school and played lacrosse together growing up in Windsor. Now they face the prospects of being opponents after being selected in Monday’s National Lacrosse League Draft.
The 21-year-old Jubenville, who won a Minto Cup with the Six Nations Arrows, was taken in the fourth round by the Toronto Rock, while the 21-year-old Garant, who became the Windsor Clippers’ alltime leading scorer this past season, was taken in the sixth round by the Vancouver Stealth.
“I was texting with him throughout the whole thing,” Garant said, referring to Jubenville. “We went to the same grade school together. I got him into the sport and we’ve been best friends for a lot of years. Toronto got a great defender.”
The two were teammates until Jubenville moved up to junior A with Six Nations this past season. The two did face one another when Garant was called up to play for the junior A Orangeville Northmen.
“We played against each other once and that was fun,” Jubenville said. “He’s a good athlete and works hard. He’s a good guy to battle and we don’t take any shifts off.”
Despite winning the junior B scoring title this season with 45 goals and 146 points in 20 games, Garant had a much tougher road to the draft.
He attended the NLL combine in Oakville before the draft, where he was up against players from junior A and American colleges and universities.
“It was tough,” the five-foot-10, 175-pound Garant said.
“It was two full games with four 20-minute quarters and they were played two hours apart. My legs are still sore.
“The points (with the Clippers) helped for sure, but I think I got 17th out of 74 overall in agility and speed testing. I think that helped me a lot, too.”
He spoke with the Stealth before the combine and then again before the draft.
“It was Vancouver all the way,” Garant said. “I was going to move out to B.C. anyway.”
Garant will attend Okanagan College in Kelowna in January where he will study to be an educational assistant. The Vancouver selection was a perfect fit.
“There are always questions when you take a guy from junior B, but the fact of the matter is Andrew knows how to score,” Stealth head coach and assistant general manager Jamie Batley said. “There have been a bunch of guys who have come out of junior B and have had successful professional careers and we are really hoping Andrew is the next one on that list.”
Jubenville did not attend the combine and is recovering from shoulder surgery he had Sept. 1. However, he did have a great NLL connection in Patrick Merrill, who coached him with Six Nations and is also a veteran defender for the Rock.
“Having him in the Toronto Rock organization probably helped for sure,” said Jubenville, who played five years with the Clippers before joining Six Nations this season. “I’m sure he talked to some guys. He was a great coach and I loved playing for him.
“I wasn’t too sure what team would pick me, but Toronto’s great because it’s close to home, (former Clipper) Brett Hickey’s already there and it’s just a perfect scenario.”
NLL training camps open in November. Garant will be ready to go, but Jubenville’s recovery from surgery will take up to six months.
“I should be healthy by February and we’ll go from there,” said the five-foot-nine, 195-pound Jubenville, who is on scholarship at Davenport University in Michigan.
“I’m going to focus on getting bigger, faster and strong as fast as I can without pushing it too quick.”