Defense a highlight for Arizona Sting duo

Arizona Sting forward Peter Veltman, right, and defenseman Bruce Codd are important reasons as to why the Sting are in the National Lacrosse League's championship game.
By George Witkowski

The Arizona Sting made it to the National Lacrosse League's championship game for the second time in three years. Two players have helped make an impact on the team's fortunes.

The Sting play the Rochester Knighthawks 1 p.m. May 12 at Jobing.com Arena. It will be the second trip to the championship game in three years. The Sting lost 19-13 to the Toronto Rock May 14, 2005, at Toronto's Air Canada Centre.

Defenseman Bruce Codd and forward/defenseman Peter Veltman have been integral parts of the team and Sting coach and general manager Bob Hamley knows that.

"Bruce is probably one of the most underrated players in our league," Hamley said. "He is a pretty important part of our team, getting after loose balls. He is also the assistant captain, which fills a lot of leadership holes."

Hamley is also impressed by Veltman since he finished the 2006 season in NLL face-off efficiency among NLL players.

"Peter's a real flexible guy for us because he can play defense or offense," Hamley said. "He is a real character guy in the dressing room, and he always wears his heart on his sleeve."

Codd, 29, was not always on the defensive side of the ball.

"I kind of started as an offensive my first three years," Codd said.

Codd played in 2000 for the Albany Attack, where he scored three goals. He played for the Columbus Landsharks (the Arizona Sting since Aug. 28, 2003) in 2001 and tallied five goals and in 2002, the Montreal Express where he scored nine goals.

Codd's forte is defense and he prides himself on getting to the ball quickly.

"Picking up loose balls n it's one of those things that's an extra possession and in some ways is not celebrated n like rebounding in basketball, that's an extra possession."

Although he admits to not playing the "perfect" game, Codd said he tries to be consistent at what he does. He does not want to say he has seen it all or knows it all, because there is always something new on the horizon he has not yet witnessed.

"Certainly, in lacrosse, there is always something that someone does that makes you shake your head and you're kind of in awe," he said. "There's so much parity in this league and that's the good thing about this league. Anyone can beat anyone on a given night and we certainly have good rivalries with Colorado and Calgary.

"Every night, you always reflect on how you play, and the big thing is to learn from your mistakes, and hopefully, they won't be there the next time."

Codd said he was "pretty close" to meeting his goal, but saw him team slip from sole possession of second place in the NLL's Western Division to a three-way tie with the Calgary Roughnecks and San Jose Stealth when the regular season ended.

Veltman, 23, is used to playing offense and defense going back to his days in playing in the lacrosse junior league.

"I played both sides of the floor for about 10 years," he said.

Championship lacrosse takes everyone playing their roles to the fullest, he said.

"It's hard to narrow it down, because you can't win championships without defense, but you need the offense," he said. "You need to get focused on whatever job you have to do.

"I'm hoping to say that after the Western Conference finals, but I try to stay consistent throughout every match."

Veltman has been playing lacrosse since he was 3 years old and credits his uncle, Jim Veltman, of the Rock as an inspiration. In fact, lacrosse is a family thing with the Veltmans.

"I used to watch him win championships with the Buffalo Bandits and I knew that's what I wanted to do," Veltman said. "My younger brother, Daryl, goes to school at Hobart College in eastern New York and is one of the top players on juniors and will get drafted highly."

Veltman, who spends the off-season playing in the Ontario Hockey League for the North Bay Centennial, said the lacrosse season has gone well, with some exceptions.

"Personally, I'm pretty happy with the season, I had some (knee) injury problems in the first half," he said. "The second half of the season has been pretty good, because it's never fun watching."

Hamley said Codd and Veltman were two important players in the Sting's scheme of things.

"Going into the season, we knew he (Codd) was a valuable guy," Hamley said. "He's one of those guys people forget about until they look at the stats. Bruce came out of a scrum in Portland last year (for a loose ball) with no helmet or stick and just the ball n that's all we needed."

Hamley said Veltman's contribution is immeasurable.

"He plays a lot with (forward and leading goal-scorer) Dan Dawson and Dan finished second in the league in scoring," he said. "Peter has been a big part of that and Peter creates a lot of space and plays with a lot of heart."

Codd and Veltman hope their roles lead the Sting to a successful finish May 12.