Vancouver Warriors netminder Aden Walsh has been taking steady strides to establish himself as a reliable starting goalie in the National Lacrosse League. Through the process, he’s made the most of every opportunity, gathering as much experience as he can.
This season, with a 9.15 goals-against average and an 80% save percentage, his growth is evident, solidifying his role as a backbone for the Warriors’ defensive unit.
Walsh joined the Warriors for the 2023-24 season and is in his third year with the club, and fourth year in the NLL. He’s played under Warriors’ General Manager and Head Coach Curt Malawsky for two seasons, who says Walsh has found a rhythm, maintaining a high level of play from the first draw to the final buzzer.
“He’s been really consistent,” said Malawsky. “That’s a lot to do with his commitment to training off the floor. He’s living in-market now, so he’s training here, and he’s got himself in really good shape. Obviously, Tyler Richards (Warriors’ Director of Player Development and Goalie Coach) has a lot to do with his success, and Walshy’s been really committed to getting better and better. He’s now comfortable in a starting role, and I think he’s flourished with the defence in front of him. He’s stopping the balls he’s supposed to and then some.”
Malawsky calls Walsh a natural athlete with good game sense and goaltending fundamentals.
That trust between Walsh and his defence has been the key to their success. Walsh credits the team in front of him for making his job easier, but at the same time, his own growth has had a major impact on the Warriors’ defensive unit.
“He’s a very vocal guy back there,” Malawsky added. “He’s always giving the defence praise when they get in front of shots or make good plays, so he’s a really good teammate. Guys want to play for him and support him and I think that’s a big part of it. I also think the defence understands that if they do break down, Walshy’s been there to bail them out, basically doing his job, and he’s been doing an exceptional job of it so far this season.”
A major turning point for Walsh came in the offseason when he made the decision to move to Vancouver full-time. The Oakville, Ontario native joked he had been getting a lot of flight points over the last couple of years, but travelling for every game instead of half the games was tiring.
Living in Vancouver was a discussion between Malawsky, Richards and Walsh in the offseason and Walsh made the decision to live in B.C. He trains with the Warriors’ Strength and Conditioning Coach Matt Holtzmann and is able to get shots from his teammates every week and the results speak for themselves.
“It’s definitely huge. Matt’s done a great job with us this year getting us in shape. Seeing the guys on a daily basis, we’re always talking about lacrosse – the previous game, who we’ve got the next weekend. It’s great talking strategy all week long,” Walsh said. “In Ontario, I was mostly on my own, so it was hard to see shots during the week. We’ve got a good little routine going here in Vancouver.”
That routine includes a combination of strength training, on-floor work, and extensive film study. Walsh and Richards go through scouting reports on opposing shooters, analyzing their tendencies to prepare for each matchup.
Beyond the technical aspects of goaltending, Walsh says Richards has helped him with the mental approach for games. The 24-year-old is composed, and he’s learned to stay even-keeled throughout games.
“T-Rich and I have a mental reset that I try to do after each possession,” Walsh explained. “Whether it’s a save or a goal, I just try to approach each possession the same way—stay even-keeled emotionally and mentally and just stay dialed in for each shot.”
Walsh is the ultimate competitor, whether it’s battling opposing shooters in games or facing off against teammates in practice, he thrives on competition.
“I shoot with Bidesy [Adam Charalambides] the most, and we’re pretty competitive,” Walsh said. “We have a shooting game where it’s the players against the goalies, and whoever is winning the game definitely lets the other one hear it. He and I both thrive off that type of environment—where we’re at each other’s necks and just want to get the next save I can rub it in his face and vice versa.”
Over the summer, Walsh suited up for the Langley Thunder in the Western Lacrosse Association (WLA), helping the Thunder to the WLA playoffs. With a lot of NLL talent playing summer ball in the WLA, getting consistent game action against top-tier shooters helped Walsh develop his timing, composure, and confidence heading into this NLL season.
“Anytime you get to be in the net and take shots, it definitely helps your game,” he said, also noting that the games he got into in his first year with the Warriors was incredibly helpful in getting him acclimated with the NLL environment and gave him something to really build on.
For Walsh, this season has been another step forward in his journey. His game has evolved year after year and has risen to the occasion as a true No. 1 goaltender.
Walsh has put in a lot of elbow grease to perform at an elite level through the first half of the season and he is looking to match that in the second half.
