2023 Premier Lacrosse League season

The following notable players retired prior to the 2023 season:[5]

• Ryan Brown (A) – Graduated from Johns Hopkins in 2016 where he scored 159 goals and had 50 assists. He was drafted by the Charlotte Hounds of MLL in 2016. Across his seven-year professional career, he scored 180 points (146 goals, 5 two-point goals, and 24 assists). He is a three-time all-star(2017, 2018, and 2019). Gold medalist in the 2018 World Lacrosse Men's Championship where he led the US national team with 25 goals and was named to the All-World team. 2022 PLL champion while playing for Waterdogs LC. He retired on February 15, 2023.[6][7]
• Jake Froccaro (M) – Graduated from Villanova in 2017. While at Villanova he was named a two-time first-team All-BIG EAST member and was a 2017 USILA Second-team All-American. He began his professional career with the Chesapeake Bayhawks of the MLL he joined Chaos Lacrosse Club in 2019, and was traded to Cannons Lacrosse Club during the offseason after the 2021 Premier Lacrosse League season.[8] He was a three-time all-star (2017, 2019, and 2021), 2019 Gait Brothers Midfielder of the Year Award nominee, and 2021 PLL Champion with Chaos Lacrosse Club. Over the course of his six-year career, he scored 88 points (31 goals, 10 two-point goals, and 36 assists) in 45 games. He retired from the PLL on March 13, 2023. [9][10]
• Dominique Alexander (SSDM) – Graduated from Ohio State University in 2013. Throughout his 10-year professional lacrosse career, Alexander won the 2017 MLL Championship with the Ohio Machine, was the first recipient of the George Boiardi SSDM Hard Hat Award in 2019, an award given to the top SSDM that season, he was also an All-Pro that season and was an All-Star in 2021. He spent his entire career with the Ohio Machine (2013-2018) and Archers LC (2019-2022). In 123 career games, he recorded 49 caused turnovers, 176 ground balls, and 31 points. On March 16, 2023, he announced his retirement from the PLL.[11][12]
• John Ranagan (M) – Graduated from Johns Hopkins in 2013, while at Hopkins he was a First Team All-American in 2011 and a Second Team All-American in 2012. Over his 10-year professional lacrosse career Ranagan played 99 games and scored 160 points. During his rookie season in the MLL in 2013 with the Rochester Rattlers, he was an MLL All-Star. He spent his entire career with the Rochester/Dallas Rattlers (2013-2018) of the MLL and then Chrome LC (2019-2022) of the PLL. With Chrome he was a team captain. He officially retired from the PLL on March 23, 2023 and released a statement on April 24, 2023.[13][14]

• Ryan Hallenbeck (SSDM) – Graduated from Notre Dame in 2022, and went on to play in four games for the Redwoods during the 2022 season. He was placed on the player unable to participate (PUP) list on July 26 after participating in the Redwoods July 24 game against the Whipsnakes. He would not be reactivated for the remainder of the 2022 season and would retire from the PLL on February 15, 2023.[15][16]
• Drew Simoneau (FO) – Graduated from Division III Nazareth College in 2015 where he was a three-time USILA All-American, and the 2015 Division III Faceoff Specialist of the Year. He started his professional career in 2016 with the Rochester Rattlers. He was a 2017 MLL all-star. He came to the PLL for its inaugural season in 2019 where he was a player for Chrome Lacrosse Club and appeared in 6 games and had a 44% faceoff win percentage. He was selected by the Waterdogs in the PLL expansion draft in 2020, he would go on to appear in 5 games for them. In 2021 he joined the expansion Cannons where he appeared in 3 games before being traded to the Whipsnakes. He was selected by the Redwoods via a reserve roster claim on August 16, 2021. He would not appear in any more games before retiring on March 9, 2023. He retired with a 54% career faceoff win percentage, scored 23 points (19 goals and 4 assists), and recorded 487 groundballs.[17][18]
• John Crawley (M)
• Patrick Harbeson (DM)
• Jay Carlson (A)
• Jack Near (DM)

The first ever PLL free agency period was open from March 6, 2023 to April 1, 2023.[2] Players could sign one or two-year deals. Players to change teams included:[19]

• Attackmen: Mac O'Keefe (Chaos to Archers, signed through 2024), Marcus Holman (Archers to Cannons, signed through 2023), Matt Kavanagh (Redwoods to Cannons, signed through 2023), Will Manny (Archers to Redwoods, signed through 2024), and Wes Berg (Chaos to Redwoods, signed through 2024).
• Defensemen Finn Sullivan (Redwoods to Cannons, signed through 2023), and Max Wayne (Atlas to Cannons, signed through 2023).
• Defensive Midfielder Jeff Trainor (Archers to Cannons, signed through 2023).
• Goalie Adam Ghitelman (Archers to Cannons, signed through 2023)
• Long Stick Midfielders Matt Rees (Chaos to Cannons, signed through 2023), and Kyle Hartzell (Redwoods to Cannons, signed through 2023).
• Midfielders Jake Carraway (Atlas to Waterdogs, signed through 2024), Ryan Tierney (Cannons to Redwoods, signed through 2023), Challen Rogers (Chaos to Archers, signed through 2024), and Justin Guterding (Whipsnakes to Atlas, signed through 2023).

Two players were signed out of the player-pool after participating with the same team during the 2023 Premier Lacrosse League Championship Series. Those players being: attackman Marc O'Rourke (Atlas, signed through 2023), and goalie Brendan Krebs (Whipsnakes, signed through 2024)

The college draft took place on May 9 at 7 pm (ET) and was broadcast on ESPNU and ESPN+. Atlas LC acquired what became the number one overall pick from Cannons LC in a trade.[20] Defenseman Gavin Adler became the first defenseman to be selected first overall in the PLL and the second-ever in professional field lacrosse, the first being Princeton's Ryan Mollett in 2001.[21]

Format:

• Each team was awarded one pick in each of the four rounds.
• Eligible players must currently be in their senior year

Source: [22]

In the explanations below, (PD) indicates trades completed prior to the start of the draft (i.e. Pre-Draft), while (D) denotes trades that took place during the 2023 draft.

1. No. 1: Cannons → Atlas (PD). The Cannons traded their 2023 first round pick during the 2022 PLL Draft for picks used to select Bubba Fairman and Colin Kirst.[20][23]

1. No. 17: Cannons → Chaos (PD). The Cannons traded their 2023 third round pick and Andrew Kew for Jake Froccaro.[24]

On May 15, the day 30-man training camp rosters were due, it was announced that Lyle Thompson would be taking a one-year sabbatical from play to focus on himself, his family, and his community. Thompson was placed on the leagues hold out list for the 2023 season. He is under contract with Cannons LC through the 2024 season and will return to play for them in 2024.[25] Lyle Thompson won two Tewaaraton Awards while at the University of Albany. He also scored 400 points, the most in NCAA D1 History.[26]

The following acquisitions were made from free-agency during the 2023 season:

• On August 8, Atlas LC acquired attackman Dylan Molloy from free-agency after he was released by Chrome LC. He was signed through 2023.[27]

The 2023 season trade deadline was on August 22, at 2 PM EST which was the tuesday before the final regular season game.

The following trades were made during the 2023 season:

• On August 7, Redwoods LC traded midfielder Myles Jones to Atlas LC in exchange for midfielder Romar Dennis.[28]
• On August 22, Chrome LC traded their leading scorer, attackman and midfielder Jackson Morrill and their third-round pick in the 2024 college draft to Whipsnakes LC in exchange for Whipsnakes' second and third-round picks in the 2024 college draft.[29][30]

The following players retired after the 2023 season:

• Brodie Merrill (LSM) - Widely considered the greatest long-stick midfielder of all time, announced he was retiring from professional lacrosse on September 13, 2023. He graduated from Georgetown in 2005 where he won the Schmeisser Award, an award given to the top defenseman in NCAA lacrosse, during the 2005 season. He retires as the all-time leader in professional field lacrosse games played (200), and is tied with face-off specialist Greg Gurenlian for the most ground balls won (1,120). He is the namesake for the Brodie Merrill Long Stick Midfielder of the Year award, which is the only award to be named after a player that was active when the award was named. He is the highest scoring longpole in field lacrosse history scoring 146 points (51 goals, 4 two-point goals, 87 assists). He is a 10-time all-star, won the rookie of the year award in the MLL in 2005, and won six straight defensive player of the year awards in the MLL (2006-2011). He won three MLL championships (2005, 2008, 2009). He played for five Canadian National Teams where he won gold in 2006 and 2024, and won silver in 2010, 2018, and 2023. Over the course of his 18-year field lacrosse career he played for four MLL teams: the Baltimore Bayhawks (2005), the Rochester Rattlers (2006-2008), the Toronto/Hamilton Nationals (2009-2013) and the Boston Cannons (2014-2018). He also played for three PLL teams: Chaos LC (2019), Waterdogs LC (2020), and Cannons LC (2021-2023). Merrill did not play during the 2023 PLL season and was placed on the holdout list by the Cannons before the season started.[31][32][33]
• Kyle Hartzell (LSM & D) - On September 18, 2023 Hartzell announced his retirement from professional lacrosse in an Instagram post. He finishes his lacrosse career as a two-time MLL champion, the first, and as of 2023 only defenseman to win the championship MVP award when he did so in 2010, a one-time all-pro, a seven-time all-star, a team USA silver medalist in 2014 and a gold medalist in 2018. He was also the fastest shot champion twice and at one point held the world record for fastest shot at 111 MPH. He holds the record for most points in a season scored by a defenseman at 21, and also holds the record for the most two-point goals in a season with 9.
• Jordan MacIntosh (M) - On October 17, 2023 MacIntosh announced his retirement from the PLL in an Instagram post. He retires as a two-time all-star and 2022 recipient of the PLL Leadership award. He was also Chrome's captain.

On May 19, National Lacrosse Hall of Famer and namesake for the PLL's MVP award, Jim Brown died. Brown was most well known for his NFL career (where he achieved a Hall of Fame career as well) but is considered to be one of the best lacrosse players of all time. During his time at Syracuse University, Brown was an All-American in both football and lacrosse. In 2011, Brown became the first recipient of the Tewaaraton Legacy Award, an award given to outstanding players that played collegiate lacrosse prior to the introduction of the Tewaaraton Award in 2001. In 2012, Brown was part of an ownership group that purchased the New York Lizards of the MLL.[38][39][40]

The following games were broadcast on ESPN's linear platforms:[49]

Through the first two weeks of the season the PLL reported a 50% increase in ESPN+ viewership, and a 131% in views.[53][54]

On August 15, with two weeks remaining in the regular season (and 5 linear broadcast games remaining) it was announced that the PLL had seen a 69% boost in total viewership over the 2022 season. The PLL also saw a 25% increase in average viewership of games broadcast on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 over the 2022 season. With 5 linear broadcast games remaining and the all-star games excluded from both seasons, the 2023 season was averaging 254,000 per game while the 2022 season was average 150,000 at the same point.[55][56]

Following the conclusion of the season the PLL announced that the 2023 season was the most watched in league history. Average viewership on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 was up 36% and average viewership on ESPN+ was up 60% compared to the 2022 season.[52]

The following table shows the number of games each team participated in that were broadcast on linear TV. The number in parentheses shows the number of games excluding that team's postseason games.[59]

The Archers and Atlas tied for the most games broadcast on linear platforms with six. The Atlas had the most regular-season games broadcast with 5, they also had the most regular season games broadcast on ABC. The Archers would take the most games broadcast on ABC overall with four, two of which were during the post season.

The Atlas would also have the most games broadcast on ESPN2 with three, and tied the Redwoods for most regular season games broadcast on ESPN2 with two.

The Chrome had the least linear broadcast games overall and were tied with Cannons LC for least number of regular season games. The two teams only linear broadcast regular season game was their week 5 game against each other on ESPN2 that the Cannons would win 12 to 6.

On June 1, ESPN announced the commentators for the 2023 PLL season: [60]

Play-by-play duties would be handled by Anish Shroff, Chris Cotter, Jay Alter, Drew Carter, and Jake Marsh, all of whom have broadcast lacrosse before.

Game analysts include broadcasting veterans Quint Kessenich, Paul Carcaterra, and Ryan Boyle, alongside newcomers Kyle Harrison, nine-time MLL/PLL all-star, and Bill Tierney, the legendary former head coach of the Denver University men's lacrosse team.

Reporters include Katie George, Dana Boyle, and Chantel McCabe, alongside newcomers Charlotte North, and Caley Chelios.

Archers goalie Brett Dobson was awarded the Championship game MVP award after finishing the game with 18 saves (58% save percentage). Dobson's final save of the game came off of a last-second two-point attempt by Waterdogs midfielder Jack Carraway. Had the shot gone in the Waterdogs would have been up 16-15 with less than a second remaining in the game.[62][63]

The PLL championship game was broadcast on ABC with Paul Carcaterra, Ryan Boyle, and Chris Cotter in the booth, and Quint Kessenich reporting on the field.

The Archers will be without SSDM of the Year, Latrell Harris as he tore his ACL during the Archers semifinal win over the Redwoods.[64] Despite being listed on the active roster, the Archers will be without leading scorer Connor Fields who separated his shoulder in the Archers semifinal win. [65]

During the second quarter it was announced that Archers LSM Cam Wyers would be out for the remainder of the game.

During the fourth quarter following the Archers goal with 6:05 left in the fourth quarter, Waterdogs goalie Dillon Ward was helped off the field and Waterdogs back-up goalie Matt DeLuca entered the game.

• 7:40 - Waterdogs Ryan Conrad goal, 1-0 Waterdogs
• 5:52 - Archers Mac O'Keefe goal, assisted by Matt Moore, 1-1
• 3:31 - Waterdogs Michael Sowers goal, 2-1 Waterdogs
• 2:05 - Archers Ryan Aughavin two-point goal, assisted by Mac O'Keefe, 2-3 Archers
• 1:15 - Archers Grant Ament goal, assisted by Tre Leclaire, 2-4 Archers
• 0:04 - Archers Tre Leclaire goal, 2-5 Archers

At the end of the first quarter, Waterdogs goalie Dillon Ward had 3 saves, and Archers goalie Brett Dobson had 8 saves

• 11:04 - Archers Grant Ament goal, 2-6 Archers
• 10:43 - Archers Matt Moore goal, assisted by Challen Rogers, 2-7 Archers
• 9:18 - Archers Tom Schreiber goal, 2-8 Archers
• 8:46 - Waterdogs Ryan Conrad goal, 3-8 Archers
• 8:02 - Archers Mac O'Keefe goal, assisted by Ryan Aughavin, 3-9 Archers
• 7:06 - Waterdogs Jake Carraway goal, assisted by Michael Sowers. 4-9 Archers
• 4:44 - Archers Reid Bowering goal, assisted by Matt Moore, 4-10 Archers
• 4:35 - Waterdogs Zach Currier goal, 5-10 Archers
• 2:37 - Waterdogs Connor Kelly goal, assisted by Kieran McArdle, 6-10 Archers
• 0:07 - Waterdogs Michael Sowers power play goal, assisted by Kieran McArdle, 7-10 Archers

At the end of the half, Waterdogs goalie Dillon Ward had zero saves in the second quarter (three total saves) ,and Archers goalie Brett Dobson had fives saves in the second quarter (13 total saves).

• 9:43 - Archers Tre Leclaire goal, 7-11 Archers
• 9:03 - Waterdogs Connor Kelly goal, 8-11 Archers
• 8:57 - Archers Mike Sisselberger goal, 8-12 Archers
• 5:12 - Waterdogs Ethan Walker goal, assisted by Jack Hannah, 9-12 Archers
• 4:19 - Waterdogs Jake Carraway two-point goal, assisted by Jack Hannah, 11-12 Archers

At the end of the third quarter, Waterdogs goalie Dillon Ward had one save in the third quarter (4 total saves), and Archers goalie Brett Dobson had two saves in the third quarter (15 total saves).

• 9:14 - Waterdogs Zach Currier goal, 12-12 tied for the first time since it was 1-1
• 7:55 - Archers Mac O'Keefe goal, assisted by Grant Ament, 12-13 Archers
• 6:05 - Archers Tre Leclaire short-handed goal, assisted by Matt Moore 12-14 Archers
• 5:35 - Waterdogs Ryan Conrad power play goal, assisted by Michael Sowers, 13-14 Archers
• 4:33 - Waterdogs Jack Carraway power play goal, assisted by Connor Kelly, 14-14
• 1:37 - Archers Tom Schreiber goal, 14-15 Archers

When Dillon Ward exited the game with 6:05 remaining, he had three saves in the fourth quarter (7 total saves). Waterdogs back up goalie Matt DeLuca made 3 saves and allowed one goal after he entered the game with 6:05 left. Archers goalie Brett Dobson had three saves in the fourth quarter (18 total saves).

• Archers Lacrosse Club became the first team to clinch a spot in the playoffs when they defeated Atlas Lacrosse Club by a score of 14 to 13 in overtime.[66]
• Cannons Lacrosse Club became the second team to clinch a spot in the playoffs when they defeated Waterdogs Lacrosse Club by a score of 12 to 8.[67]

• Whipsnakes Lacrosse Club became the third team to clinch a spot in the playoffs after they defeated Chaos Lacrosse Club by a score of 12 to 10.[68]
• Chaos Lacrosse Club (who had lost to Whipsnakes LC earlier in the day) and Waterdogs Lacrosse Club (who would not play until the day after) both clinched the playoffs[68] after Archers LC defeated Chrome LC 13 to 5. Once Chrome hit 7 losses, it became impossible for them to reach 4 wins and so it would be impossible for them to pass either Chaos or Waterdogs in the standings.
• Redwoods Lacrosse Club became the sixth team to clinch the playoffs after they defeated Cannons Lacrosse Club by a score of 16 to 15 in overtime.[69]

• Archers Lacrosse Club clinched the number one seed after defeating Whipsnakes Lacrosse Club by a score of 16 to 11.[70]

• Atlas Lacrosse Club clinched the final playoff spot during the last week of the regular season when Chaos Lacrosse Club defeated Chrome Lacrosse Club by a score of 13 to 7. This also eliminated Chrome from the playoffs. Coming into the final week of the regular season the Atlas and the Chrome were seventh and eighth on the standings respectively with only the eighth place team missing the playoffs. The Atlas had 2 wins and 7 losses with a -15 goal differential, the Chrome had 1 win and 8 losses with a -32 goal differential. In order to make the playoffs, the Atlas needed to win or they could lose so long as the Chrome did not win while surpassing them in goal differential (being tied in goal differential would have given the playoff position to the Atlas since they defeated the Chrome twice in the regular season). Both teams would go on to lose their final regular season games and Atlas made the playoffs.[71]

On May 25, 2023 it was announced that the PLL would assign home cities to teams beginning with the 2024 season. Voting for the finalists began on July 3, 2023. The 26 finalist home-cities were announced during the 2023 PLL All-Star game. The PLL also announced that they would not be moving away from the touring model. Each team would have one home weekend and play a double-header when hosting. There will also be two neutral field weekends. The final home cities will be decided through a mix of fan-voting, ticketing performance, venue availability, and customer data.[79][80][81][82] In a press release the PLL announced that home city assignments will be announced in November of 2023.[52]

On August 24, the PLL announced the finalists for its 2023 End of Year Awards and the winners were announced on September 2 ahead of the PLL quarterfinals in Boston. The finalists for each award were determined via player vote. The winners will be determined through a round of voting by PLL coaches, general managers, members of the Professional Lacrosse Hall of Fame, PLL front office and lacrosse advisors, and members of the media.[19]

The winner of the award are highlighted in Bold.

• Tom Schreiber - Most points among midfielders (37)
• Blaze Riorden
• Asher Nolting - First PLL player to have a 20 goals and 20 assists in the same season (21 total goals, 20 assists)
• Marcus Holman - Led league in points with 44
• Trevor Baptiste

• Marcus Holman - Led league in points with 44
• Connor Fields
• Ryder Garnsey
• Asher Nolting

• Tom Schreiber
• Zach Currier
• Dhane Smith

• Garrett Epple
• Graeme Hossack
• Jack Rowlett
• Jack Kielty

• Blaze Riorden
• Brett Dobson
• Colin Kirst

• Trevor Baptiste
• Mike Sisselberger
• TD Ierlan

• Michael Ehrhardt
• Ethan Rall
• Troy Reh
• Jared Conners

• Latrell Harris
• Zach Goodrich
• Bubba Fairman

• Tucker Dordevic
• Will Bowen
• Mike Sisselberger
• Ethan Rall

• Brian Holman
• Chris Bates
• Andy Towers

• Zed Williams
• Eric Law
• Mark Glicini

• Eric Law
• Trevor Baptiste
• Romar Dennis

• Cole Kirst
• Ryan Ambler
• Austin Kaut
• Jake Richard

• Tom Schreiber
• Blaze Riorden
• Tucker Durkin

Cannons Lacrosse Club and Atlas Lacrosse Club both hired new head coaches for the 2023 season.

On February 5, 2023 it was announced that Cannons Lacrosse Club hired Brian Holman to be its new head coach/GM after Sean Quirk resigned due to health complications in December 2022.[84] On March 9, 2023 it was announced that Mike Thompson and Jim Mitchell would be the assistant coaches.[85]

Atlas Lacrosse Club hired Mike Pressler as its new head coach/GM after Ben Rubeor resigned in October of 2022. His staff includes Steven Brooks (who was the interim head coach for Atlas during the 2023 Championship Series), and Kevin Unterstein.[86]

On December 29, 2022, it was announced that Redwoods Lacrosse Club had hired John Grant Jr. to replace Todd MacFarlane as an assistant coach. MacFarlane had resigned from the position on December 5, 2022.[87][88]

Chrome offensive coordinator, Matt Kerwick, resigned from his position on September 14, 2023. Kerwick joined Chrome's staff in 2022, where he coached alongside head coach Tim Soudan, and former college teammate, defensive coordinator Jacques Monte. Chrome finished the 2022 season fourth in scoring with strong rookie seasons from Brandon Nichtern and Logan Wisnauskas. Nichtern was unavailable for most of the 2023 season due to military obligations and the Chrome offense struggled; Chrome finished the 2023 season last in scoring, assists, shots, and shooting percentage.[89]

For the 2023 PLL season each team was given a new set of uniforms developed by Champion. These uniforms replaced the uniforms that were made by Adidas. Champion began it's partnership with the PLL in 2021 as the Official Sideline Partner, but in February, 2022 it was announced that Champion would begin making on-field apparel as well. No teams changed colorways during the change.[3][90][91] The Waterdogs were given an alternate black jersey with gold trim as a reward for being PLL Champions. It is the first third jersey in the PLL. They wore the jerseys week one.[4]

Of the eight teams, only two, the Cannons and the Chrome, do not have sponsorship patches on their regular jerseys. The other six teams have the following:[92][93]

• Archers LC has a Progressive patch on the right sleeve
• Atlas LC has a ReCreate patch on the right sleeve
• Chaos LC has a Rebel Whiskey patch on the right sleeve
• Redwoods LC has a Progressive patch on the right sleeve
• Waterdogs LC has a Dude Wipes patch on the right side of the chest
• Whipsnakes LC has a Cash App patch on the right sleeve

During week four of the PLL season in Minneapolis, the PLL hosted Indigenous Heritage Weekend. As part of the celebrations each team wore limited jerseys that had been designed by Patrick Hunter—a two-spirit Ojibwe artist. Portions of the proceeds of the jersey sales went to benefit Anishinaabe Baagaadoewin, a non-profit dedicated to sharing Anishinaabe history and culture.[94]

Alongside the thunderbird depicted on the jersey, each jersey had a Anishinaabe thunderbird patch on the left sleeve meant to represent power and strength for those wearing it. The shorts worn by players also included a thunderbird feather design. There was also had a PLL medicine wheel patch on each jersey. Lastly, there was an Every Child Matters patch on each jersey, an organization that raises awareness and honors for indigenous families and victims of the residential school systems.[95]

On August 9, 2023 the PLL unveiled a new set of throwback jerseys. The jerseys are "porthole mesh" style jerseys. The jerseys were worn during week eight of the PLL season in Denver.[96] During the 2022 season the PLL also wore throwback uniforms during the leagues week eight stop in Denver.[97] Each of the teams sponsored jersey patches remained on their throwback jerseys.

Alongside the jerseys the PLL unveiled throwback logos for each team as well. The logos were featured on both the jerseys and the shorts.