Rock replace Roik with Rose
Since Bob Watson retired, Toronto has had a need for a top goalie, now they have one in Nick Rose
The Toronto Rock have found their saviour — his name’s Nick Rose, and his job is to replace legendary goaltender Bob Watson.
The Rock have struggled to replace Watson — who led them to each of their six championships — since he retired before last season.
The Rock brought in 10-year veteran Matt Roik, who’d beat them in the 2010 championship while with the Washington Stealth.
Roik, a proven goaltender in the National Lacrosse League, was expected to provide a seamless transition from one veteran to another. That didn’t happen.
Roik struggled with the Rock’s defensive style, at times letting in a rash of goals as he was chased out of the net.
Halfway through the season — after a three-game losing streak that included a breakdown of seven goals allowed on11shots — the Rock dropped Roik.
In came Rose, a career backup with three years’ experience who cost the Rock a first-round 2014 draft pick in a trade with Calgary.
“It was a tough situation for all of us,” said Rock head coach Troy Cordingley. “Roik’s a quality guy.”
Cordingley plays a high-pressure defensive style, keeping the opposition on the outskirts of its own end.
This means a Rock goaltender will often face long-balls, so Cordingley needs a goalie who will come out of his net and challenge shooters. Roik didn’t play that way. Rose does, and the Rock staff knew it. Eyebrows were raised by the trade, but a history sheds a lot of light. Rose played junior lacrosse in Orangeville, Ont., where Rock assistant coach Matt Sawyer won two championships with him using the same defensive system. Rock general manager Terry Sanderson knows Rose well — he played lacrosse with Rose’s father in the 1970s. So when Rose joined the Rock and went 5-1 in his first six games, neither Sanderson nor Cordingley was surprised. “He’s done exactly what we believed he could do,” said Cordingley. Rose says he got a call from Sanderson last season on a Tuesday telling him to get on a plane because he was starting their game Saturday. “It was so hectic, I didn’t really have time to think about Watson, or anything,” said Rose, who won his first three games and helped the Rock win their first division title since 2005. Rose, 24, still lives in Orangeville, but he’s moving to Oakville for an easier commute to the Air Canada Centre. He plans on settling in with the Rock.
He began the 2013 season 2-0, earning the defensive player of the week award as he heads into Saturday’s home opener against Philadelphia.