🧐 PLL WEEK 1 OVERREACTIONS?

Recency bias is a helluva drug, and there are a lot of flaming hot takes flying around after PLL Opening Weekend in Albany.

It’s important to remember that the PLL season is 10 games long, and a lot will be settled over the next few months. But are there any conclusions we can confidently draw after one weekend of games?

This newsletter will target three of the hottest takes coming out of PLL Opening Weekend and determine which ones are overreactions.

“Connor Shellenberger should have been drafted No. 1…”

Overreaction? We’ll see.

After one week, Shellenberger is enjoying a much smoother transition to the pros than No. 1 pick Brennan O’Neill. In a 19-12 win over the Boston Cannons on Saturday, the New York Atlas rookie attackman tied the record for most points in a pro debut (8).

O’Neill had his moments in a 16-11 loss to the Carolina Chaos, finishing with a goal and an assist, but he has yet to find his home in Denver’s offense. While Shelly is playing his natural attack position with the Atlas, the Outlaws are running O’Neill through the box as a midfielder — something he did with Team USA last summer, but not at Duke this past spring.

“I enjoy both playing midfield and attack,” O’Neill said after the game. “I really don’t have a preference. It’s just about what works best for the team.”

Shellenberger would have fit much easier into Denver’s starting attack with his two-handed quarterbacking ability, but the Virginia product always wanted to be with New York.

“Honestly, I really hoped that I would drop to the Atlas,” Shellenberger said after his PLL debut. “Obviously, there’s a competitive side of you that wants to go No. 1 just to kind of fulfill your ego. But in the back of my mind, I knew going No. 2 to the Atlas was a better fit for me.”

Shellenberger was lucky enough to find his perfect fit with the Atlas. Until we see Denver’s offense truly take shape around O’Neill, it’ll be too soon to say who actually should have gone No. 1 in the 2024 PLL Draft.

“Brett Dobson is the best goalie in the world…”

Overreaction? Nope.

The Utah Archers are reigning PLL Champions and 1-0 in 2024 thanks in large part to one man: goalie Brett Dobson.

The Archers built a 12-4 lead over the Philadelphia Waterdogs in their title-game rematch on Saturday, but Utah’s offense went ice cold after that. They did not score another goal the rest of the game and needed a last-minute save from Dobson to secure a 12-11 victory.

Dobson finished the game with a ridiculous 22 saves and a 66.7 save percentage.

“Thank God we got the best goalie in the league in there,” Archers attack/midfielder Grant Ament said while seated next to Dobson in their postgame press conference.

Carolina’s Blaze Riorden has won four of the past five PLL Goalie of the Year awards, but Dobson is coming for his throne in 2024. Dobson led the league in goals against average last season (10.4), and Riorden’s recent knee injury opens the door for Dobson to take center stage as the PLL’s best goalie.

“The Whipsnakes already miss Will Manny…”

Overreaction? Yup.

The Maryland Whipsnakes made the most surprising move of PLL training camp when they decided to release veteran attackman Will Manny, who led the team with 32 points a season ago.

“Sometimes your system is not aligned with someone’s skillset,” Whipsnakes head coach Jim Stagnitta said while explaining the decision to release Manny before the season.

The Whipsnakes lost 17-13 to New York in their season opener, but it wasn’t because they were missing Manny on offense. The player who took Manny’s spot in the starting lineup, third-round rookie TJ Malone, was outstanding in the losing effort. He was Maryland’s leading scorer with six points (3 goals, 3 assists).

Maryland definitely has some question marks after starting 0-1, but Malone looks like a dynamic playmaker and the right direction for the franchise moving forward.

Reply to this email with your biggest takeaway from PLL Opening Weekend.

✍️ Register For PLL Jr. Champs 2025

If you’re a young player with hopes of one day making it to the Premier Lacrosse League, the PLL Junior Championships is a dream experience. This year’s rosters are already set, but the registration window for 2025 just opened today.

Check out this video we produced for last year’s inaugural PLL Junior Championships to get a taste of what this event is all about…

Registration is open for players between the ages of 10-14. Training camps will be held in Orlando, Florida in January of 2025. Players will be selected in a live-streamed draft on the PLL’s YouTube channel, and the Championship games will be streamed on ESPN+.

Click the button below if you want an opportunity to compete on the biggest stage in the game!

🔜 MPLS From PLL Opening Weekend

We have another awesome episode of The Mitchell Pehlke Lacrosse Show coming your way this week! Pehlke’s crew recorded the episode in Albany for PLL opening weekend, and the energy levels on-site were through the roof.

Last week’s episode from the Notre Dame Championship tailgate was a blast, and now the show is diving headfirst into PLL season. This episode will feature interviews with Archers face-off athlete Mike Sisselberger and PLL co-founder Paul Rabil, as well as a special Mitch’s Mailbag segment with fans who attended opening weekend.

Click the button below to subscribe to our YouTube channel and set up notifications so you never miss an episode!