NLL To Hold Outdoor Showcase

John Grant, Colin Doyle, Brodie Merrill and Gary Gait will take the field at Dick's Sporting Goods Park for a professional outdoor lacrosse game on September 1. The National Lacrosse League will hold its first ever professional outdoor lacrosse game with the NLL Outdoor Showcase on Saturday, September 1, 2007. The exhibition will played at the brand-new Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado and will feature many prominent NLL players. The game will be hosted by the Colorado Mammoth. Lacrosse legend and Colorado Mammoth Head Coach Gary Gait headlines the list of players who will play in the game. The NLL's outdoor debut will start at 7PM Mountain time on September 1st at the brand-new Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, a suburb of Denver. Dick's Sporting Goods Park is the home stadium of the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer

John Tavares extended his all-time career points record this season to 1,239 after adding 103 this season. Tavares is the only player in NLL history to score over 1200 career points. The top three remain the same as Hall of Famers Gary Gait and Tom Marecheck check in at second and third with 1,091 points and 773 points respectively. Both Colin Doyle (766) and John Grant (719) passed Paul Gait (712) this season to round out the top six all-time points leaders.

Doyle heads into the off-season just seven points shy of tying Tom Marecheck for third on the list.

New to the top ten list this season is Rochester Knighthawks forward Shawn Williams, who passed both Jim Veltman and Ted Dowling and moved all the way to eight on the list with 651 career points. Veltman (627) passed Dowling (597) to round out the top ten.

Top Ten All-Time Career Points Leaders
1.) John Tavares - 1,239
2.) Gary Gait - 1,091
3.) Tom Marechek - 773
4.) Colin Doyle - 766
5.) John Grant - 719
6.) Paul Gait - 712
7.) Josh Sanderson - 683
8.) Shawn Williams - 651
9.) Jim Veltman - 627
10.) Ted Dowling - 597

Others in the top 20:
Chris Driscoll sits in 12th with 557 career points. Derek Malawsky is in 13th with 537, while Cory Bomberry (533), Mike Accursi (528), Tracey Kelusky (511), Gavin Prout (505), Chris Gill (505) and Blaine Manning (501) are all in the top 20.

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Tavares Recieves Honor

June 6, 2007 - Several Mississauga athletes compiled impressive statistics while enjoying memorable seasons in 2006.
The Ottawa Senators’ Jason Spezza came of age as a star in the National Hockey League, Tomasz Radzinski took a regular spot at midfield for Fulham in the English Premiership, boxer Steve Molitor became a world IBF champion before a hostile crowd in Hartlepool, England, and Michael Peca made headlines closer to home, when he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs as a free agent.
But perhaps no professional athlete had a greater impact on his or her particular sport in 2006 than John Tavares.
A math teacher at Philip Pocock Secondary School by day, Tavares becomes a bandit by night. The 38-year-old set all-time National Lacrosse League (NLL) records in assists and points in 2006 for the Buffalo Bandits, while edging closer to the all-time mark in goals.
As a result, Tavares will be honoured as this city’s 2006 Professional Athlete of the Year, tomorrow at the 33rd annual Mississauga Sports Awards Dinner at the Capitol Banquet Centre.
“It’s always nice to get an award, especially from your own community and especially since I play in Buffalo,” said Tavares.
While guiding the Bandits to the NLL final and semi-finals, the past two seasons, Tavares has continued to be one of the most dangerous players in the league despite having played for 15 years.
This past season, in 2006-07, Tavares was first in the league in assists with 61, while adding 42 goals, for 103 points, in 15 games.
In 2005-06, Tavares had 32 goals and 53 assists for 85 points in 16 games.
Consistently high point totals have contributed to Tavares setting the all-time league marks in games (194), points (1,239) and assists (648).
While Tavares has been hampered by a hamstring injury the past three weeks, he plans to return to NLL action next season with an eye on eclipsing Gary Gait’s all-time record in goals. Gait retired from the game with 596 goals, while Tavares currently sits five back, with 591.
“I’ll keep playing as long as we can win and I can produce,” said Tavares, adding that although older, he “plays smarter these days. “I’m not into as much of the rough stuff.”
The three-time NLL most valuable player was once again named a first-team all-star this past season, along with fellow Mississaugan, goaltender Anthony Cosmo, who led the league in goals against average and save percentage while leading San Jose Stealth to the semi-finals.
Tavares, who was also the pro athlete of the year in 1993, said the award is as much an honour for the sport of lacrosse as it is for him.
Other notable pro athletes from Mississauga include car racer Ron Fellows, NHL players Wojtek Wolski, Brad Boyes, Manny Malhotra, Matt Stajan and Jamal Mayers, football player Adriano Belli, and beach volleyball player Kara Zakrzewski
-Missisauga Times