Brodie Merrill has been a star in the National Lacrosse League since he first stepped on the floor as a rookie with the Portland Lumberjax. And this weekend, his incredible indoor career was put in perspective with a historic milestone.

Merrill recorded his 2,518th loose ball, passing Jim Veltman and becoming the all-time leader in league history. Fittingly, the loosie that helped him set the record came on a transition opportunity, an area he’s succeeded in whether he was playing for Portland, Edmonton, Toronto or in his current home in San Diego.

From the first loose ball in 2006 to the 2,518th loose ball today, we couldn't be happier for our captain.

Congrats, @BrodieMerrill_! pic.twitter.com/5wi5jynW9m

— San Diego Seals (@SealsLax) February 23, 2020

“I couldn’t be happier for Brodie,” said Patrick Merrill, the Seals head coach, general manager and Brodie’s brother. “I’m his biggest fan. The key thing about that stat is that it’s a hard-working stat. When you pick up loose balls, you control the game. With his ability, his grit and his determination for all these years, I’m really happy he was able to accomplish that, especially with a big win.”

As Patrick Merrill said, making the night sweeter was a victory for the Seals, who bested West Division foe Vancouver 15-10 thanks to an incredible 10-goal run spanning the second and third quarters.

Casey Jackson scored four times during the scoring streak, while Austin Staats found the back of the net twice. The Seals were down 7-2 until Jackson started the run, and they didn’t trail again after it was over.

Welcome Back Dane

What a difference an MVP can have on the look of an offense.

The Calgary Roughnecks were able to survive a shootout with the always lethal Georgia Swarm, getting an overtime goal from Dane Dobbie in his first post-suspension game in an 18-17 win.

Dane Dobbie called GAME as the Calgary Roughnecks beat the Georgia Swarm 18-17 in Overtime. pic.twitter.com/bVNUtHfk51

— NLL (@NLL) February 23, 2020

Dobbie scored six goals with an assist after returning from a six-game suspension mired in secrecy. The Roughnecks seemed to be on their way to an easy victory in the third quarter, going up 11-6 on a Rhys Duch goal, but Georgia responded with four straight to cut the lead to one.

The squads traded punches the rest of the way, with Lyle Thompson equalizing in the final 30 seconds of regulation to force the extra frame. But it was the Riggers with the last laugh, getting the winning goal from the man they are very excited to have back in the lineup.

“You can’t quantify it,” Roughnecks coach Curt Malawsky told CalgaryRoughnecks.com of Dobbie’s impact. “Dobbie says the right things at the right times, he leads by example, he calms the group down, and he gets the group excited. He gives us the belief when the game is tied and when he gets the ball, we know he’s going to put the team on his back.”

All things considered, Calgary has fared well despite his absence, currently sitting in second place in the West at 4-4.

Thundering Applause

It was another dramatic ending in front of an electric crowd in Halifax as the Thunderbirds held on for a 9-8 victory against the Toronto Rock Friday.

A reported 9,337 watched as Toronto made things interesting, scoring the final three goals of the game, but the T-Birds and goalie Warren Hill held down the fort for the final seven-plus minutes to earn a victory with Alterna Cup ramifications.

Ryan Benesch led the squad with a goal and three assists, with his goal earning the spotlight on the SportsCenter Top 10.

TOP @beniboi21 with a beautiful BTB to @b_robinson9 for the #8 goal of the night on #SCTop10 #FeelTheThunder pic.twitter.com/SmPlFWB0rX

— Halifax Thunderbirds (@HFXThunderbirds) February 22, 2020

The contest was for first place in the North Division, with Halifax now sitting one game ahead of both Toronto and Buffalo at 7-2.

Rush Keep Rolling

Saskatchewan got a trio of hat tricks from Ben McIntosh, Ryan Keenan and Jeff Shattler, and Mark Matthews put up nine points on one goal and eight assists in a 15-10 victory against Philadelphia on Saturday.

The Rush, still the only West Division team over .500, have won three straight heading into next week’s matchup with Toronto.

Back on Track

Callum Crawford came up big again for New England, notching 12 points against Rochester in the most one-sided contest of the weekend. The Black Wolves had runs of five and seven goals in an 18-7 triumph, snapping a three-game losing streak.

Stephan LeBlanc and Reilly O’Connor also notched five points as the Black Wolves inched to a half-game back of Philadelphia, the East Division leader.

“We needed a win,” Crawford said postgame on B/R Live. “That’s all that matters.”

Noteworthy

The New York Riptide sent forward Tyler Digby, who was leading the team in scoring, to Colorado in exchange for a pair of second round picks … Curtis Dickson had a strong day working with Dobbie again, totaling 10 points against Georgia … You can now bid on the Bandits’ Tucker Out Lymphoma night jerseys … The Alterna Cup trophy made its first road trip over the weekend, making a stop in Halifax.

Up Next
All times EST

Friday

New England at New York, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

New York at Rochester, 7 p.m.
Halifax at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Toronto at Saskatchewan, 8:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Colorado, 9:30 p.m.
San Diego at Calgary, 9:30 p.m.
Georgia at Vancouver, 10 p.m.

Sunday

Halifax at New England, 5 p.m.