It's no surprise on the Coquitlam Adanacs when goals come from big guns like Dane Dobbie, Daryl Veltman and Jason Jones.
When unheralded names like Jon Diplock, Russell Thomas and Jon Harnett start nailing the net as well, it can spell disaster for the opposition.
Destroyed must be exactly how the Burnaby Lakers felt Friday, when they were bombed 15-8 by the A's in Coquitlam's Western Lacrosse Association season opener at Bill Copeland Arena.
The A's third round (18th overall) selection in the 2010 WLA daft, Diplock delivered three goals as the A's roasted the Lakers, who bounced the visiting Nanaimo Timbermen 13-9 in their own regular-season starter the previous Friday.
Newly acquired Russell Thomas, who like Diplock is a Nanaimo transplant, and fellow-defender Jon Harnett also contributed nicely offensively for the A's with two points apiece, with Thomas scoring twice and Harnett tallying once and adding an assist.
Toss in a three-point effort on a goal and two helpers from another relative newbie Spencer Martin, a Coquitlam native and former Jr. Adanacs standout, and the Sr. A's appear to have plenty of dependable triggermen to point to this campaign.
"I think we've got quite a bit of depth this season and I think we'll get more scoring from our back end," said Adanacs general manager Les Wingrove.
Dobbie, Veltman and Jones also did their part, netting two goals apiece, as did Veltman's brother, Peter. Dobbie added four assists for a game-high six-point night, while Cory Conway chipped in with five assists.
Daryl Veltman, Conway, Dobbie and Martin were all forwards with the NLL's Calgary Roughnecks this winter-pro campaign, and all took a meagre week off after the team's playoff surge to the May 7 semifinals before returning to the A's.
"Our NLL guys, for the most part, are pretty young and are eager to play," Wingrove said. "They showed up for one practice [before Friday] and we're ready to go come game time."
It was also sweet for the A's to get a quick call-back from goalie Brandon Atherton from the NLL's Edmonton Rush. Despite Coquitlam being outshot 56-51 by Burnaby, Atherton was strong in stopping 48 shots and allowing the A's offensive weapons to go to work. Coquitlam scored five goals in each of the three periods.
RAG LINE: The A's visit the Langley Thunder tonight (Wednesday) before opening their home season Saturday at Poirier Sports and Leisure Complex versus the Maple Ridge Burrards, 7 p.m. Ridge beat Langley 9-6 on Sunday. Saturday's game is being dubbed 'Kid's Night' with those 16 and under admitted free. There is also a tail-gate part set for the front entrance to the arena starting at 5:30 p.m....The A's are also looking forward to the debut that night of Robbie Campbell, a former Jr. Adanacs star who was key to the team winning last year's Minto Cup national title and was the A's first selection (fifth overall) in this year's entry draft. Campbell is just finishing up his university year at New York's Stony Brook, where he played midfield in the game's field version.
