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Finn Topping, a goalie who was selected second overall in this year’s Ontario Junior Lacrosse League draft, has his priorities set: Lacrosse comes first before all, which he hopes leads to a career in the National Lacrosse League.
“Once my name got called, we all jumped up, screamed and yelled, and pretty much just talked about lacrosse after that.”
That was the scene at Finn Topping’s house, back on February 18, when the teenager was selected second overall in the 2026 Ontario Junior Lacrosse League (OJJL) Draft by the Toronto Beaches Lacrosse Club.
It’s only fitting, following the initial yells of joy and celebration, for Topping to simply talk about lacrosse. He’s lived and breathed the sport since he began playing in 2015, at just six years old. He’s since gone as far as representing Ontario at the Canada Summer Games.
“To be honest, lacrosse is my life,” Topping said. “I have school and lacrosse, but lacrosse fills up a lot of that time. It’s pretty good, balancing [the two]. It’s busy, but I’d rather be busy than slow or just be in my room playing video games.”
* * *
Like many Canadians, Topping started out playing hockey. But an article about lacrosse that Topping’s parents came across, and discussed with their son, got him into the sport.
“[My parents] thought it would just be fun for me to play because I’d only ever played hockey at that time. I slowly started going to tryouts in different development leagues, and I just fell in love with it,” said Topping.
After some time, he was called up to his first competitive team and was able to compete in a Six Nations tournament – as a goalie. He performed well in his first game, helping his team capture a win.
“I just kind of liked [playing in net] from there because I thought I was better at goalie than I was at playing,” said Topping.
The position stuck – and he’s been thriving there ever since.
Topping joined the London Blue Devils organization at the U7 level, playing all the way to U17 last year and currently with the Jr B. team in the OJBLL.
Looking to continue striving towards higher levels, Topping has also pursued other travel lacrosse opportunities, first competing with the HardCor Lacrosse Club before transitioning to Rock Stars Elite Lacrosse.
Rock Stars is a developmental pipeline started by the National Lacrosse League’s Toronto Rock. It is headquartered at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre in Oakville, Ontario. The program is centred on providing pro-level training to the players.
“I’ve been playing in Rock Stars for five years now, and that’s been the best program I’ve ever been in,” said Topping. “I got pro goalie coaching, and pro coaches, like the founder and my head coach, Colin Doyle. I love him to death. He’s helped me through a lot.”
Doyle is an NLL Hall of Famer, having played from 1998 to 2016, for the Ontario Raiders, Toronto Rock, and San Jose Stealth. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2021.
* * *
Playing travel lacrosse helped Topping get noticed enough that he’s represented Team Ontario twice.
“I didn’t expect to make it, to be honest,” he said. “I didn’t think I was the best goalie. But slowly I got more confidence in myself.”
The first experience didn’t go as expected, however, as Topping separated his shoulder and wasn’t able to finish the tournament Ontario was competing in.
The second time around, though, was the Canada Summer Games, hosted in Newfoundland and Labrador last August, and it was a much better experience.
“It was a great team. There was a lot of talent, the coaches were great, and the atmosphere was amazing. Newfoundland is beautiful,” said Topping. “All the other provinces are pretty good, but obviously Ontario is the best.”
The team had a lot of familiar faces for Topping, as many players came from the Rock Stars organization, including the first overall pick in this year’s OJLL draft, Vincent Ward, who was selected by the Brampton Jr. Excelsiors.
* * *
Leading up to the draft in February, Topping had talked to a couple of teams, but the Beaches had stood out. They’d told him how much they liked how he played, the kind of person he is, and that he’s a leader on his team.
Not long ago, the thought of being drafted into the province’s premiere junior men’s box lacrosse league just wasn’t on Topping’s radar – let alone being taken second overall.
“Two or three years ago, I never would have expected myself to be drafted, because I never saw myself as being the best or being one of the best at my age,” said Topping.
Since the draft, Topping has headed to Toronto for a tryout and has been in communication with the Beaches team about his focus for this season with the Blue Devils, who are wrapping up their regular season this week. The team is 7-10 in regulation with one overtime loss through 18 games, which puts them in eighth place in the West Division. Topping has played in 14 of those games, starting 12.
The Beaches currently have two goalies on their roster, but both are in their final years, so Toppings’ path to playing time seems to be clear. He hopes to get a few games in with his parent club near the end of the season.
With the Blue Devils, he’s had to adjust to junior lacrosse, playing at his highest level yet.
“This season, there’s been an average of 65 shots on me, and I never had that last year,” said Topping. “It’s a lot harder shots, higher scoring games, and I just have to mentally be there all the time and make sure I don’t get down on myself about every goal.”
* * *
Following junior lacrosse, Topping hasn’t fully decided on his future, but he’s looked at his options, including playing collegiately in the United States. And he’s already thinking about his non-lacrosse career, even if he eventually makes it to the highest level (most NLL players have full-time jobs as well as their lacrosse careers).
So far, even his side ventures have been lacrosse-related – including a children’s book he authored, My First Lacrosse Stick, which released on June 8.
“I’ve never been a big reader, but I’ve always read and loved my mom’s books,” said Topping, whose mother and stepfather write books together.
The teenager’s book is about his journey from hockey to lacrosse and how he fell in love with the latter sport.
“It brings up a story and shows people a different side of me and how my understanding of [lacrosse] was when I was growing up.”
His mother and stepfather thought writing a book would be a good idea for Topping, and that he could maybe make some money on the side, which he has had a hard time doing with lacrosse taking up the majority of his time.
Still in high school, Topping has a lot ahead of him, but the teenager has already accomplished so much that it’s only a matter of time before he makes his mark at the next level.
