MacLeod Shines in NLL Debut With the Thunderbirds

By Mark Stehlin

On September 6, 2025, the National Lacrosse League (NLL) held their annual entry draft, comprised of six rounds and 89 selections. Many young players tuned into social media channels with the hopes of hearing their names called by one of the 14 NLL franchises. One of those players was Brooklin Lacrosse Club and Brooklin Merchants offensive threat, Will MacLeod. He didn’t have long to wait as the Halifax Thunderbirds called his name in the first round and with the 12th overall pick. MacLeod made his NLL debut this past weekend and contributed two goals and four assists as Halifax defeated the Ottawa Black Bears 13-11 to go 3-2 on the season.

“I was excited to be in the draft and I was very happy with where I ended up”, said MacLeod.

The opening  weekend of NLL camps coincided with the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association (CUFLA) championships, held November 7-9, 2025 in Brampton, ON.  MacLeod was on the road all weekend travelling between Brampton with his Guelph Gryphons teammates and the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena for practice, assessments and an exhibition game with his new Thunderbird teammates.

“That weekend was crazy, I played with Guelph on Saturday afternoon in Brampton. I drove to the ILA for team commitments that night and on Sunday morning. I then packed up my gear for the CUFLA finals on Sunday afternoon. It was all worth it as we (Guelph) won the championship”, said MacLeod.

“To be at camp with Cody Jamieson and Randy Staats and other guys and to see how smart they are when playing the game, it was an awesome feeling to be on the floor with those guys that I grew up watching”, added MacLeod.

The Halifax Thunderbirds had a back to back weekend road trip with a game in Ottawa on Friday January 9, 2026 followed by one in Oshawa on Saturday January 10, 2026. MacLeod featured in his NLL debut on Friday night at the Canadian Tire Centre against the Black Bears and at the final buzzer he had put up two goals, four assists for a team-leading six points with another team best, eight shots on net.

“It was during shoot-around on Friday morning that Coach (Mike) Accursi told me that I would be starting that night against Ottawa. I was nervous but decided to focus on my game. It was awesome to take the floor in that big rink. My first shift was a penalty kill so I did what I could to help the team run down the clock. My goal for the rest of the season is to help the team make the playoffs and have a deep run. I will do what I am told by the coaching staff and be prepared to play hard when I am given the chance” , said MacLeod.

Notes:

MacLeod played split the summer of 2025 between the Brooklin Lacrosse Club (BLC) of Major Series Lacrosse (MSL) and the Brooklin Merchants of Ontario Series Lacrosse (OSL).

He appeared in 17 regular season games for BLC where he notched 19 goals, 24 assists for 43 points good for 10th overall in scoring in MSL..

For the Merchants he appeared in 13 regular season games and added 38 goals, 25 assists for 63 points good for fourth overall in league scoring in OSL.  He played in the Presidents Cup for the silver medal winning Merchants, in five games he scored 10 goals, 11 assists for 21 points and was selected as a first-team all-star for the tournament.

As noted, he won a gold medal at the CUFLA finals with the Guelph Gryphons and following a year end poll of CUFLA coaches he was crowned the 2025 league Most Valuable Player.

In addition to MacLeod, Brooklin Merchants players Alex Marinier (Halifax) and Braedon Saris (Colorado) were chosen in the first round of the NLL draft. Also, from the Brooklin Lacrosse Club, Bo Columbus (Philadelphia) was chosen in the opening round of the NLL draft. Finally, Kobe Handsor (Toronto) from the Merchants went in the fifth round.

Halifax fans will soon learn what kind of player they have in MacLeod and BLC fans look forward to seeing him back on the floor at Iroquois Park Sports Centre this summer.