NLL Player Rankings: 2023 Defensive Player of the Year
While The Lax Mag’s National Lacrosse League Player Rankings typically orders the league’s Top 30 players from #1 to #30 since soon after the league’s opening weekend and right up to the end of the regular season, now that we’re in playoff mode, we’re shifting our focus to NLL Year-End Awards.
Specifically, who our rankings system (more on that here) says should win all of the NLL’s most important end-of-season honours.
Last year, The Lax Mag’s Player Rankings math correctly predicted 2022’s MVP (Dhane Smith), Defensive Player of the Year (Mitch de Snoo), Goalie of the Year (Matt Vinc), Transition Player of the Year (Zach Currier) and Rookie of the Year (Jeff Teat).
How about this year? We’re starting with 2023’s rookie class and working our way to MVP prior to the NLL Cup being awarded. Our Player Rankings: Best Dressed Edition, which generated more traffic than the other five combined, will come out after the playoffs.
Nick Weiss, Buffalo Bandits (Photo: Michael Hetzel)
Defensive Player of the Year
Last year, the Toronto Rock’s Mitch de Snoo was for the most part a lock when it came to picking the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year (unofficially by us & officially by the league). He was defensively dominant while also a threat in transition, although we outlined earlier why he or anyone else could never be considered for both of those year-end honours (DPOTY & TPOTY).
de Snoo started the 2023 season as an early frontrunner for the award again. The Lax Mag had him ranked as high as #8 in our weekly Top 30, but a lengthy stay on the Rock’s injured-reserve list all but erased him from any year-end consideration. Placed on Toronto’s IR on February 18, de Snoo would only return to the team’s active roster in mid-April.
Mitch de Snoo, Toronto Rock (Photo: Ryan McCullough)
As mentioned in our Transition Play of the Year post, based on his play & statistical totals (specifically the defensive ones), The Lax Mag was prepared to crown the Vancouver Warriors’ Reid Bowering this year’s top defender, only to find out he’d recently been reclassified as a transition player.
This year, our five highest ranked defensemen finished incredibly close in our Player Rankings calculations (more on that here), with the first three of those five on our Top 30 since the opening week.
Unlike last year when de Snoo was the clear favourite, league award voters likely split their votes fairly evenly amongst the defensemen we have ranked 1-5 below - based on what this year’s TLM NLL Player Rankings calculations confirmed.
Top 10 Defensive Players
Matt Hossack & Connor Sellars, PCLC (Photo: Adger Bowen)
10. Matt Hossack, Panther City Lacrosse Club
Hossack has gone from providing a championship-calibre club (Saskatchewan) D-door depth to Panther City’s most important defender & locker-room/on-floor leader. Few defensemen anywhere in the league have seen their stock rise like Hossack’s has over the past two seasons in Forth Worth. He covers the absolute best offensive players in the West every week, and is a big reason why Panther City was one of just five NLL teams to allow under 200 goals over 18 regular season games. Surprised to see his name here? If you stayed up after the 7pm (ET) games finished, you wouldn’t be.
9. Nick Weiss, Buffalo Bandits
Although we have their captain ranked higher, Buffalo players actually voted Weiss the team’s Defensive Player of the Year for 2023, and we probably know why. While many have praised Dhane Smith for significantly stepping up when the Bandits were down key offensive contributors, it was Weiss that did the same on the other end of the floor this year in Banditland. One of the few defensive players for Buffalo that got in a full 18-game season, Weiss’ pure defensive skillset coupled with a spark in transition that has connected often in the clutch (this was ridiculous btw), easily made him one of this year’s top defensemen (even though he was a T-listed player all year, but a D-confirmed player for awards consideration).
Jake Withers, Halifax Thunderbirds (Photo: Trevor MacMillan)
8. Jake Withers, Halifax Thunderbirds
Withers ranks high (was listed in our Top 30 for 10 of 16 weeks) partly because he sits so high statistically when it comes to face-off wins (360) & loose balls (238), but also because his physical brand of ball, constant disruption of the opposition’s offensive flow, and ability to kick start the team’s transition are critical components to Halifax’s in-season success. Withers’ 2023 LB total was the fourth highest single-season sum ever (behind Jay Thorimbert & Geoff Snider twice), while his FOWs were two short of matching Trevor Baptiste’s record of 362.
7. Robert Hope, Colorado Mammoth
The Lax Mag’s Player Rankings system takes into account two main areas: where a player ranks across the league in all major (and some more minor) stats per game, but also how often we pick that player as one of their team’s Top 6 stars in every game they play. Hope’s defensive stats are always strong, but not necessarily league leading, while he rarely provides those offensive extras some year-end voters value (he’s scored one goal over the past two regular seasons). Where Hope excels in our system is how often we’ve ranked him as one of the team’s most impactful & important players over their 18-game schedule. Last year, he led the Mammoth (and later Peterborough Lakers) to a Cup-winning campaign. He might do it again.
Eli Salama, Calgary Roughnecks (Photo: Angela Burger)
6. Eli Salama, Calgary Roughnecks
“In our opinion, Eli is an elite defender in the National Lacrosse League. He has a blue-collar work ethic, a will to win and a motor that doesn’t quit. He is a lead by example type player that brings up the energy for the entire team.” - Calgary Head Coach, Curt Malawksy (December 22, 2022)
Five months later, and Malawsky was right, again. In addition to his coach’s on-point analysis of his game, Salama had strong defensive stats across the board (38CTO, 116LB, 15BLK) and was a persistent pain in the ass to play against all season long. There is zero quit in this Coquitlam kid, who is giving a pretty strong second act during this year’s playoffs too.
Latrell Harris, Toronto Rock (Photo: Ryan McCullough)
5. Latrell Harris, Toronto Rock
Earlier this week, we reviewed why Harris’ statistical regular-season resume was likely more what you’d expect from a transitional two-way threat than simply a pure defender, but honestly, whatever positional box you want to place him in, he’s one of today’s best, period. A next-level athlete that can wreak havoc in the Rock’s own end without the ball (24CTO), Harris is equally as lethal screaming up the floor and finishing in transition (more than doubled his point total vs. 2022).
Steve Priolo, Buffalo Bandits (Photo: Ben Green)
4. Steve Priolo, Buffalo Bandits
Buffalo’s captain finished in either first or second on the team in all defensive statistical categories, is a leader like no other, and continued to show why he is one of the most physically feared players in the league. Plus, no defensemen listed today (or few anywhere in the league) were dropping OT daggers like Priolo did in San Diego towards the end of the year.
Brad Kir, Toronto Rock (Photo: Ryan McCullough)
3. Brad Kri, Toronto Rock
It’s taken a while for the rest of the league to realize how defensively good Brad Kri is. He could have easily been a finalists for the NLL’s DPOTY honour in any of the past three regular seasons, and finally got in there this year. What hurt Kri from gaining earlier deserved recognition was that he did’t enter the NLL with a college/junior rep like say Kyle Rubisch, and he doesn’t have those offensive extras that award voters often consider so critical. Kri is a no nonsense, meat & potatoes, pure defensive presence whose play & defensive statistics are still able to standout on a Toronto team many feel has the best D unit in the league. Plus for those that need it, Kri set a new single-season high for points (15), so there!
Kyle Rubisch, Saskatchewan Rush
2. Kyle Rubisch, Saskatchewan Rush
Although he comes in at #2 for our year-end rundown, no defensemen this year sat higher on our weekly Top 30 for longer than Rubisch, who only started sliding when the Saskatchewan’s season slipped away in the second half. Like we mentioned with Hope, Rubisch regularly ranked within the Rush’s Top 6 players in our every-game star rating, matching the man below him for the most 2023 star selections. From a technical & positional standpoint, even after a dozen years in the league, no defensemen plays the position more perfectly than Rubisch. He again registered over 100 loose balls and over 30 caused turnovers, the ninth time he’s hit that defensively dominant ratio during eleven non-COVID seasons. In comparison to the only player we’ve put above him here, Hossack has only hit that statistical slash twice in six full seasons.
Graeme Hossack, Halifax Thunderbirds (Photo: Trevor MacMillan)
1. Graeme Hossack, Halifax Thunderbirds
While not many had the balls to say it out loud last year, Hossack was just not in his usual DPOTY form in 2022. He was still extremely good, better than most, but not what we were used to seeing. Well, that wasn’t the case this year. Leaner, meaner and seemingly more motivated than a season ago, Hossack easily led the league in caused turnovers (49), at times mercifully mauling the opposition (it’s only a penalty if the officials say so) in order to obliterate a play. Yes, his offensive numbers are not what they were during 2019 or 2020, but that really shouldn’t matter when grading pure defensive difference makers like Hossack in this category. If you want defenders who can put points up, put a T on their name and move on. Not even a nominee last year, Hossack is looking to win his fourth DPOTY Award, which would tie him with Rubisch for the most ever. Plus, Rubisch never did it with these flat-ass things on his feet.
Below are the only players to ever win one of the NLL’s top year-end prizes (MVP, GOTY, TPOTY and DPOTY) more than once. Not a bad list to have your name on, huh?
MVP
Gary Gait (6)
John Tavares (3)
John Grant (2)
Shawn Evans (2)
Dhane Smith (2)
Goalie of the Year
Matt Vinc (8)
Steve Dietrich (2)
Bob Watson (2)
Transition Player of the Year
Brodie Merrill (3)
Jordan MacIntosh (2)
Joey Cupido (2)
Challen Rogers (2)
Defensive Player of the Year
Kyle Rubisch (4)
Graeme Hossack (3)
Ryan Cousins (2)