Merchants Open 2020 Regular Season At Home Versus Ennismore James Gang

By Sam Laskaris

The 2020 Ontario Series Lacrosse (OSL) regular season schedule is out.

The Oshawa-based Merchants Lacrosse Club will commence its season on Friday May 15 against the visiting Ennismore James Gang.

That match, as well as all other home contests for the Merchants, will be staged Children’s Arena in Oshawa. The opening faceoff for the home opener is scheduled for 8 p.m.

The following Friday, May 22, the Merchants will host the defending OSL champion Six Nations Rivermen, who also went on to capture the President’s Cup, the national Senior B title last summer.

The Merchants will hit the road for the first time on May 24 when they square off against the Oakville Titans. That contest, which has a 7 p.m. start, will be at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre in Oakville.

The Owen Sound North Stars are the other entrant in the five-team OSL this season. The Merchants’ first meeting against Owen Sound will be June 6 at Children’s Arena.

The OSL will operate with one less squad this season. That’s because it was officially announced last month that the Kitchener-Waterloo Velocity was ceasing operations after three seasons in the league.

All OSL clubs will play 16 regular season matches this season. They’ll all have four games (two home and two away) against each of their four rivals.

This year the Merchants will be looking to improve upon their 9-6-0 record and their third-place finish in the then six-squad circuit. It should be noted the Merchants were also scheduled to play 16 regular season contests last season but one of their matches against the Rivermen was postponed and then not rescheduled as its result would not have affected the final standings.

The Merchants’ 2019 campaign concluded when they were edged by Oakville in five games in their best-of-five OSL semi-final series.

This year the OSL champions will represent the league at the President’s Cup tournament, which will be held in Leduc, Alta.

The Merchants complete 2020 regular season schedule follows:

HOME 

May 15 vs Ennismore James Gang 8 p.m.

May 22 vs Six Nations Rivermen 8 p.m

May 29 vs Ennismore James Gang 8 p.m.

June 5 vs Six Nations Rivermen 8 p.m.

June 6 vs Owen Sound North Stars 7 p.m.

June 19 vs Oakville Titans 8 p.m.

July 4 vs Oakville Titans 7 p.m.

July 17 vs Owen Sound North Stars 8 p.m.     

AWAY   

May 24 at Oakville Titans 7 p.m.

May 31 at Six Nations Rivermen 4 p.m.

June 12 at Ennismore James Gang 8 p.m.

June 14 at Owen Sound North Stars 7 p.m.

June 28 at Owen Sound North Stars 4 p.m.

July 3 at Ennismore James Gang 8 p.m.

July 11 at Six Nations Rivermen 7 p.m.

July 19 at Oakville Titans 7 p.m.