By Patty Gregoire
(Courtesy InLacrosseWeTrust.com)

MONTREAL -- As the final seconds ticked off the clock in the 2014 Baggataway Cup final, McGill Redmen head coach Tim Murdoch could only think to himself, "Why didn't we play like we did in the final 10 minutes for the entire game?"

In those final eight minutes, the Redmen scored seven unanswered goals to close an 11-goal gap, but unfortunately it wouldn't be enough as the Guelph Gryphons held on to beat McGill in the Baggataway Cup final for the second straight year.

With the pain of the national championship still in the minds of the Redmen, Murdoch and his team are motivated for another season and are searching for their fifth straight East Division title and to capture the program's second Baggataway Cup.

There won't be a lack of experience in Montreal this season as 14 seniors return to the field in 2015.

"One dozen of these players were members of McGill's national championship team in 2012," said Murdoch. "They are aware of the challenges and difficulty of winning the Bagattaway Cup, and eager to battle in the CUFLA to earn a championship over a grueling 12-game regular season."

Despite losing all-star defender Danny McDermott, Murdoch is very optimistic about his defensive core for this season. "The Redmen defence in 2015 will be our deepest in the team's history," he said.

McGill will look for Paul Rakoczy to anchor the defence. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound defender from Burlington, Ont., was a co-captain last season and will continue to be a big part of the team's strong defensive core. All-star Bradley Hofmann and Mississauga, Ont., native Hayden Nix round out the veteran defensive unit. The three-time all-star Quinton Bradley, a long-stick midfielder, returns for his fourth season. The Richmond, B.C., native was named CUFLA's rookie of the year in 2012 and has since been a dominant force at the LSM position.

At midfield, returning co-captain Connor Goodwin will look to build off his career-best season of 33 points last year and once again lead the Redmen offence. The three-time all-star has 89 points in 28 career regular season games with the Redmen.

Alongside Goodwin, newly elected co-captains Anders Bjella and Rufus Frost will play a much larger offensive role in 2015. Bjella, a Milwaukee, Wisc., native, netted 12 goals and seven assists for 19 points in nine games last season. Frost, a Utah product, finished 2014 with seven goals and three assists for 10 points. Fellow American, Emile Sassone-Lawless will play on the first midfield line alongside Goodwin and Bjella. The dual French - U.S. citizen had a big playoffs, tallying five goals and six assists for 11 points in three games.

After a breakout season in 2014, junior Spencer Bromley looks to continue to make strides offensively for the Redmen. The Delta Islanders Jr. A product led McGill in scoring with 35 points (26 G, 9 A) in 10 games, which led to an all-star selection. "Bromley is a crafty finisher and continues to mature into a talented attackmen," said Murdoch. "Given the departure of former McGill captain and two-time all-star Alexander Rohrbach, Bromley is expected assume a leadership role on attack."

Returning in the cage is junior netminder William Waesche. The Greenwich, Conn., native was named the league's most outstanding goalie and McGill's MVP last season. The all-star posted a league-best 4.83 goals-against average while producing a perfect 9-0 record. Waesche is not just a ball stopper as he brings a different dynamic to the clearing game with his strong stick skills and athletic ability. The McGill 'tender became just the second goalie to score a goal in CUFLA history as he found the back of the net against Queen's last season.

Although the Redmen are filled with veterans, there won't be a lack of youth in Montreal this season. Murdoch once again had a busy off-season of recruiting, bringing in 13 new players. Headlining this year's crop of freshmen is defender Brendan Mullen and hometown product Maxime Murdoch.

"Mullen turned down several NCAA lacrosse scholarships in favor of McGill," said the McGill bench boss. "Mullen headlines a talented group of incoming freshmen expecting to form the core of the Redmen defence as we look to rebuild in 2016-17."

Murdoch, a Montreal native, is a big attackman that hopes to make an immediate impact from Day 1. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound freshmen is a two-time captain of Team Quebec, while he also played for the Tri-State U.S. High School All-Stars, the Ottawa Capitals while also playing at the IMG Academy in Florida. Like Mullen, Murdoch turned down multiple NCAA offers in favor of returning to Canada to play CUFLA ball. If you haven't already guessed, Maxime is the son of head coach Tim Murdoch. Maxime has been a part of the Redmen since he served as a water boy at the age of eight, which may have had an impact on heading back up north to play for his father's Redmen.

The McGill squad will head south of the border during their bye week for a couple of exhibition games against NCAA clubs. This year McGill matches up with 2014 Div. II Final Four competitors Merrimack College on Oct. 17 in Andover, Mass. The very next day, the Redmen take on Boston University, a fast-rising NCAA Div. I program. Murdoch believes using the week off to play strong American clubs will only benefit his squad in the long run.

"Playing back-to-back road games against teams that 'on paper' would be expected to beat us at home will put us in the unusual position as an 'underdog,' and it should prepare us for big challenges that await in the Bagattaway Cup tournament in Lennoxville, Que., in early November," said Murdoch. "McGill is a proud member of the CUFLA, so we believe that any success we may enjoy versus NCAA teams can help to heighten awareness of our league."

Murdoch and the Redmen have their eyes set on their Sept. 11 home opener against Concordia but there's no doubt the Baggataway Cup final weekend will own some major space in the back of their minds.

"Assuming we manage to qualify for the Bagattaway Cup final weekend, we hope to play Guelph again," said the veteran coach. "We're dying for a rematch."