A few days ago, the Philadelphia Wings traded John Ranagan to the Georgia Swarm for a 2023 fourth-round pick in the NLL Draft.
Ranagan spent three seasons with the Swarm. Returning to his former team will eclipse the overall time spent with the Wings in terms of games played.
Georgia won the NLL Champions Cup in 2017. Ranagan was cited as one of the “key defensive players,” according to John Arlotta. In his eighth NLL season, he brings experience and a veteran presence.
When the Swarm won the NLL Champions Cup in 2017, Ranagan totaled nine points (5G, 4A) and recovered 56 loose balls while forcing nine turnovers. During the 2017 postseason, he scooped another ten loose balls and aided with one assist.
In 2019, the New York Riptide selected Ranagan during the NLL Expansion Draft. Before 2020, Ranagan became a Philadelphia Wings defenseman, rejoining the club where his NLL career began in 2014.
Ranagan notched his NLL career-high in points (4G, 6A) with the Wings in 2014 but didn’t make the postseason with them until 2022.
In 2023, he played in five games with Philadelphia, stringing together three points (1G, 2A) and recovering eleven ground balls while creating four turnovers.
This trade marks the fourth of the season for the Wings. Paul Day sent a 2024 third-round selection to the Albany Firewolves for Taite Cattoni, swapped 2025 sixth-round picks with the Buffalo Bandits for Marcus Minichiello, and traded Steph Charbonneau with a 2023 first-round and 2024 second-round selection to the Vancouver Warriors for Mitch Jones.
Receiving a 2023 fourth-round pick for Ranagan recovers a mid-draft selection after sending a first-round pick to the Warriors. Ian Llord could return as early as the upcoming homestand beginning on Saturday when the Riptide visits the Wells Fargo Center.
Philadelphia and Georgia are two similar teams. Both teams are defensively efficient, among the elite of the league in that department thus far in 2022-2023. Ranagan will help the Swarm, and the trade gives the Wings another draft pick in 2023. Day and Arlotta struck a mutually friendly deal between the two clubs.
The Wings host the Swarm on Saturday, March 18th, 2023. Day said it best when these two teams met earlier this season:
“Whenever we play, it’s usually a one-goal game.”
Paul Day; 12/17/2022
He said that during the telecast, then after regulation, Philadelphia won 13-12. Joe Resetarits, Blaze Riorden, and Ben McIntosh were critical on offense as Zach Higgins found his groove between the pipes. Chad Tutton and Llord held down the fort on defense. Ranagan did not make an impression on the stat sheet.
(Photo Credit/Alex McIntyre)
