The 2026 MSL season ended too soon for the Peterborough Century 21 Lakers, who had been hoping to play into September. For the fourth consecutive season, the Lakers were knocked out of Mann Cup contention by the Six Nations Chiefs. This year, the Lakers fell in six games, losing the final game 10-3 on home floor at the Peterborough Memorial Centre. “We took a good team to six games, and a lot of people might not have been expecting that,” said forward Braedon Saris. “But that just goes to show the belief we have in our locker room, and I think that will show again next year and we’ll be hungry again.” The Chiefs will host the WLA champion Coquitlam Adanacs in the Mann Cup beginning September 11 at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena. They are trying to become the third team to win four national championships in a row after the Peterborough Timbermen/Trailermen (1951-54) and Lakers (2017-22). This is Coquitlam’s first Cup appearance since they lost to Peterborough in 2007. With the Lakers finishing the regular season in third place, expectations were not high for a club that struggled to find a consistent lineup early on. Those fears were laid to rest as the team’s lineup solidified late in the season, finishing on a four-game win streak. They dispatched the Oakville Rock in four games before meeting the Chiefs for the sixth consecutive year in the Finals. “We’re proud of how we came together and put together a good effort. It’s not what we set out to achieve and it’s challenging at times when you have people in and out of the lineup but we showed what we’re capable of for a couple of games in this series. We just didn’t have it for enough games,” said defender Dylan Hutchison. Until Game 6, the home team had won every game with the Lakers taking Game 2 9-8 and Game 4 12-8. The Lakers survived the first five minutes of Game 6, but the Chiefs broke through at 6:15. Ian MacKay scored a pair before Rob Hellyer got the Lakers on the board. Chris Cloutier and Shayne Jackson made it 5-1 before the first period was out. Each team scored twice in the second period, with Saris capitalizing on the Lakers only power play of the game. Brad McCulley snuck a shot in from the side of the net with 3.8 seconds left. The Lakers were held scoreless in the third period. “Our offence, they work hard every game,” said goaltender Drew Hutchison. “It just wasn’t our night. Our shots weren’t sinking. But you have to give Six Nations credit, they have a great defence and they have two great goalies. We gave it our all, but we just didn’t have enough juice to get by them.” Hutchison started Game 1 after taking command of the net towards the end of the regular season. He was lifted midway through the game for the experienced Nick Rose, who locked it down in Games 2-4. But late in Game 4, Rose felt something tweak in his knee. He backed up Game 5 and arrived early to Game 6 for treatment but didn’t feel like he could be effective. Head coach Mike Hasen said with a wry smile after the game that there were too many injuries to list after such an intense playoff season. The Finals were rough and took a toll on every player. The bruises will fade but the memory of losing never gets easier. “It’s a bad taste in our mouth right now, just having that still fresh,” captain Robert Hope said. “I wish we could play right now, play again. It’s a long wait. I’m already thinking about next year. Anytime you miss out on an opportunity it’s difficult because you have that bad taste and you only get so many runs at it.” Hasen expects the core of the team to return next summer. “The bitter pill of defeat is on the tips of their tongues right now,” he acknowledged. “A lot of the guys have a long winter ahead of them (in the NLL), some are still in school. We’ll circle back and we’ll see but I do expect a good core of this group back to continue to battle.” The experience of this season will only help them in the future, he added. “Moreso because there’s a lot of new guys that are being introduced to this series, which bodes well for us moving forward. We’ve made a cognizant effort, while we’re trying to load up with superstar talent, to really have the core pieces that are young, learn.” Hope believes this was the closest the Lakers have come in four years, and that they’ll continue to close the gap next summer. “I really love this group. I really do… I believe the future is bright for us. We’ll learn lessons from this one and right back at it next year.” Of Note - Attendance was 3,134 – the biggest crowd of the season - Jake Withers won 15/16 faceoffs - Peterborough was 1/1 on the power play while the Chiefs were 1/3 - The Chiefs outshot the Lakers 66-41 - Doug Jamieson was named the playoff MVP and winner of the Johnny Shooter Davis Award - Rob Hellyer and Ryan Lanchbury tied for first in playoff scoring with 36 points each. Hellyer picked up 16G/20A and Lanchbury 11G/25A. Dhane Smith finished third with 13G/19A/32P. Full Lakers Scoring Rob Hellyer 1-1 Braedon Saris 1-0 Brad McCulley 1-0 Ryan Lanchbury 0-2 Thomas Hoggarth 0-1 Matt Gilray 0-1 PHOTOS BY DAVID PICKERING @_picks_pics

The Peterborough Century 21 Lakers want seven games. The Lakers fell to the Six Nations Chiefs 11-5 in Game 5 of the MSL Finals on Thursday night at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena, meaning they now trail the Chiefs 3-2 in the best-of-seven. Game 6, on Sunday night at the Memorial Centre, is a must-win, or the season is over. If they win, Game 7 is Tuesday night back at the ILA. Over the next two days, the Lakers will “rest, recover and refocus and get ready to lay it all on the line for each other,” according to head coach Mike Hasen. The biggest games are always saved for last. “It’s going to be the most exciting game all year,” said defender Jordan Stouros. “We’re looking forward to it; we’re as dialed in as we can be.” Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster, or through the box office by phone at 705-743-3561 or in person at the PMC. The Lakers were held scoreless through the first period and trailed 4-0. The Chiefs upped their lead to 7-0 on a hat trick from Lyle Thompson that included a penalty shot goal, before Ryan Lanchbury got Peterborough on the board. “We just couldn’t get going,” said Hasen. “Just kind of stuck in first gear a bit and they slowly pecked away at us. It’s not like we let it get out of hand or out of control, we still had our opportunities, we just weren’t our best to start, to say the least.” The Chiefs were awarded the penalty shot after a crease melee saw Liam Patten take a five and a two after a Chief fell into Drew Hutchison, with Colton Armitage already in the box. Adam Jay and Dhane Smith also received offsetting minors, and Jake Withers a 10-minute misconduct. Lanchbury kicked off a three-goal run with shorthanded and power play markers. Brad McCulley added a behind-the-back highlight reel marker. Dhane Smith and Rob Hellyer traded goals to end the period with the Lakers trailing 8-4. Hellyer’s second of the game was a sharp bounce shot four minutes into the third period. But, the Chiefs scored the next three: Chris Cloutier on a crease dive, Ian MacKay on a fast break and Andrew Kew scored on a sidearm shot. Hutchison got the call in goal. It was his first action after he was pulled in Game 1 at the ILA. Nick Rose had played in his place. “That was a little bit of overthinking a bit,” Hasen explained. “We expected a long series. Hutchy’s been really good for us and we just wanted them to have different look at him to start… He settled in and gave us an opportunity.” The Lakers will be ready to lay everything on the line Sunday to continue his season. Get your tickets now for the game of the season. It’s a 7 p.m. start on Sunday at the PMC. Of Note - Jake Withers won 12/14 faceoffs with Frank Coyle 1/2 and Matt Gilray 0/3. The Chiefs won 6/19. - Peterborough was 1/4 on the power play with one shorthanded marker while the Chiefs were 3/5 with a penalty shot goal. - A good crowd took in the game outdoors at Quaker Square on the big screen. The Boro will host another free watch party for Game 7! Full Lakers Scoring Ryan Lanchbury 2-1 Rob Hellyer 2-0 Brad McCulley 1-0 Justin Sykes 0-1 Braedon Saris 0-1 Frank Coyle 0-1 Colton Armitage 0-1 Photos by Samuel Gassira @gasstanksports and Anna Taylor