Coach Ryan Looks Toward 2010
What are your early hopes and expectations for the team this upcoming season?
Last year at the start of the season we wanted to make the playoffs. Halfway through the season we started to focus on the Champions Cup. Our inexperience showed a bit against a veteran Buffalo Bandits in the playoffs. We learned from that experience and I expect us to play like a more mature team this year. We are returning a majority of players from last year so I hope we can pick up where we left off.
Dan Dawson had an outstanding year for Boston last year, how do you think he can improve his game for this season?
Dan played quarterback on a young team last year. It was probably a scenario that was relatively new to him, yet he excelled at it. Dan lead the league in assists last year and at times he was unselfish to a fault. Hopefully we can take some of the weight of his shoulders this season and allow him to be a little more selfish with the ball and work hard to get his own shots.
With your inaugural season in the past now what did you learn the most about the league that will help you out the most this season and why?
I don’t know if I learned anything new about the league that I didn’t already know. What I learned most was what can I do personally that will help our team succeed. With players like Dan and Coz you need to know when to step up and make changes and when to just get out of the way. As a coaching staff we can make the most impact on our preparation. What can I do to better prepare the team? What can I do during the game to impact it in a positive manner? This game is all about learning from your experiences and doing better next shift. I plan on doing a better job this year at focusing during the game on what is going on and what I can do to set us in the right direction.
What aspects of the team do you think you improved the most with this years draft and why?
Unlike last year we have very few spots to fill from the Entry Draft. For that reason we felt like we were in a better position to take a chance on American Field Players. The 5 guys we chose can be categorized as Athletic. We had good team speed last year which should improve with this year’s rookies.
Which addition to the team are you most excited about and why?
Last year we finished 1 goal shy of Calgary with the second best goals against average in the league. Obviously you can attribute a good portion of that to Coz. That being said I believe we have a lot of room to improve. I am most excited about the addition of Mike Kirk. Our defense got better the minute we traded for Mike.
Which departure do you think the team will miss the most and why?
Jason Bloom had an amazing season for us last year. He filled in where needed and scored a ton of goals from the tranny position. We were successful last year because we came together as a family. We had a group of guys that enjoyed spending time with each other. Jay Thorimbert had some clutch moments for us at the face-off circle. Carter Livingstone was our Assistant Captain and was an invaluable leader. They will be missed.
What do you want to tell young potential fans and players about lacrosse to get them aware and excited about the Boston Blazers?
We talked at the beginning of last year about who we are as a team…about defining ourselves by our play. Fans left our games last year excited about the team and the return of the Blazers. We selected a team of guys who were willing to make this team a priority in their lives…guys whose effort and attitude stand out from the rest. Boston fans are among the most passionate in the world. I saw the excitement in the stands and it feels good that they appreciate the talent and effort we display at The Garden.