ALBANY, NY – If there is one item that the FireWolves are abundant in this 2024-2025 season it would be youth. For the second straight year, Albany has the youngest roster in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) at an average age of 26. Not only are the FireWolves the youngest, they have played more rookies (six) than any other NLL team this season.
“It was a conscious effort a couple of years ago to get younger, to build through the draft, and I think last year you saw some of the benefits of that,” said Albany FireWolves General Manager and Head Coach Glenn Clark. “Although the record is not where we want it to be, I think it is a group that is obviously going to get a lot better as these guys start to age in their more productive years and also a group that you can grow with and be successful for a long time.”
FireWolves rookies Dyson Williams, Will Johansen and Zac Masson have made cases to be named onto the NLL’s All-Rookie team by the end of the regular season for their respective positions. Williams currently leads all rookies in scoring with 32 points (12g, 20a) and is living up to being the #1 Draft Pick in 2023. Masson has contributed 4 points (3g, 1a), 7 caused turnovers, and 29 loose balls along with playing very physical defense. Johansen has been dynamic on both sides of the floor with 6 points (4g, 2a) including 2 shorthanded goals and is 8th in the NLL in loose balls with 68.
Despite Albany sitting at 2-7 on the season, the FireWolves only hold a goal differential of -5 in the league standings, higher than several teams that sit above .500. Albany has also been the victim of three overtime losses on the season, which if they had gone the other way would put the team in clear playoff contention.
With such a young team growing pains are expected, but in the coming years success for Albany will not be a matter of “if” but a matter of “when.”
While the roster may be young, veterans in the FireWolves locker room have helped set the standard for the young players. “Guys like Nick Chaykowsky and Colton Watkinson are a part of our leadership group,” said Clark. “Ethan Walker even though he’s not very old in terms of his years, he’s sort of one of our veteran guys on the offensive side, so he’s been big in helping Tye (Kurtz) and Alex (Simmons) last year and now Dyson (Williams) this year.”
With Albany on a bye-week, Clark’s message to the team was simple: “reset.”
“You don’t always get what you want in sports, you have to ride the good and the bad. Right now it’s bad, so you’ve got to be in a position to respond to that, challenge yourself through it and be a better version than the first half.”
Albany will begin their reset for the second half of the season when they host the Ottawa Black Bears next Saturday, February 15, 7:00 PM at the MVP Arena on Indigenous Celebration Night.
Get tickets now for Indigenous Celebration Night on February 15! Fans can take advantage of the best ticket prices around starting at $15.96! For more information regarding tickets, visit www.albanyfirewolves.com or call/text the FireWolves front office at 518-675-8678 to avoid fees.
About Albany FireWolves
The Albany FireWolves is the Capital Region’s very own Professional Box Lacrosse team, playing in the National Lacrosse League out of the MVP Arena in downtown Albany, NY. For more information, contact the Albany FireWolves Front Office at (518) 675-8678 or visit AlbanyFireWolves.com. Follow the team on Facebook at facebook.com/AlbFireWolves, Twitter @AlbFireWolves, and Instagram @AlbFireWolves.
About the National Lacrosse League
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is North America’s premier professional lacrosse league. Founded in 1986, the NLL ranks third in average attendance for pro indoor sports worldwide, behind only the NHL and NBA. The League is comprised of 14 franchises across the United States and Canada: Albany FireWolves, Buffalo Bandits, Calgary Roughnecks, Colorado Mammoth, Georgia Swarm, Halifax Thunderbirds, Las Vegas Desert Dogs, Ottawa Black Bears, Philadelphia Wings, Rochester Knighthawks, San Diego Seals, Saskatchewan Rush, Toronto Rock, and Vancouver Warriors. For more information, visit NLL.com and find @NLL on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About MVP Arena
MVP Arena is a full-service entertainment and sports facility featuring a wide variety of family shows, sporting events, trade shows and concerts. Owned by Albany County and managed by ASM Global, MVP Arena opened in 1990 and is home to the Albany FireWolves of the National Lacrosse League, the Albany Firebirds of the AFL 1 Arena Football League and the Division I Men’s College Basketball Siena Saints. For more information, please visit https://www.mvparena.com/
