2025 Philadelphia Waterdogs Season Preview

2024 Record and Result: 2-8, Missed playoffs

Notable departures: Matt Brandau (traded), Jake Carraway (retired)

Notable additions: Zed Williams (PUP), Jack DiBenedetto

Draft Picks: CJ Kirst, Jake Taylor, Dylan Hess, Ben Wayer, Jimmy Freehill

The Waterdogs 2024 season was the kind that lets you know who the fans are and who is just there for the wins. A 2-8 season can do that. But this wasn’t just any 2-8 season. This one featured an 0-3 start by a combined three goals with two OT losses. That 0-3 start were all games the Dogs went without a faceoff specialist. It featured Kieran McArdle missing a game winner on the doorstep that he scores 99 times out of 100. It featured a half field two point buzzer beater from a faceoff man beating all world goalie Dillon Ward. It was just a year full of things that just don’t happen, happening. The Waterdogs lost five games by a single goal last year, including one goal losses to the teams that ultimately played for the title, the Archers and Whipsnakes. Michael Sowers and Kieran McArdle finished top five in points, Marcus Hudgins had a solid rookie season down low filling in for injuries.

The offseason made it clear that the plan was to flush last season and get back to their winning ways with the core they have. Players like Ben Randall and Kieran McArdle could have looked at the rough season and gone ring hunting elsewhere, but they returned to the Dogs, on multi year deals, a sign that within the organization they consider 2025 a fluke. The Waterdogs went from winning the title, to losing in the final, to the Champs series final, to suddenly being 2-8. A bad break for the Waterdogs, they acquired Zed Williams in the offseason but he will likely miss the summer with an achilles injury he suffered after the trade. The mission in 2025 is to come up with the few plays and bounces that made the difference along the way the way.

Best Case Scenario

Last year was an anomaly. The record wasn’t as bad as it looked. Rough bounces, injuries, and early season faceoff issues put this team in a hole they couldn’t escape, and that isn’t the norm for Philly. The addition of CJ Kirst takes the offense to the next level, with a loaded attack that no defense can match up with individually. Jake Taylor comfortably runs out of the box, and provides an interior threat that the Waterdogs lacked in 2024. Aging on the defense becomes a non issue thanks to a healthy Kenny Brower returning and Marcus Hudgins elevating his game in year two, while Ben Wayer dominates the middle of the field and is a day one threat from two point range. Jack Hannah elevates his game outdoors as he has indoors, playing his way to Midfielder of the Year finalist if not winner. A midfield line of Currier, Kelly, and Hannah becomes, as the Dogs attack is, a matchup nightmare that punishes teams with two point shots and creation off the dodge.

The Dogs flip the script, turning their one goal losses into wins, and secure the one seed in the playoffs as they charge back to championship weekend.

Worst Case Scenario

Last year was the rule, not the exception. Aging on the defense and on parts of the offense was starting to show last year, and it is on full display this year. With Kirst and Taylor both in the lineup, the Waterdogs fall into the trap of running too many converted attackmen and not enough natural midfielders, and it results in them giving up too much in transition. Injury issues again plague the Waterdogs, who have to deal with key missing pieces out of the lineup all year. They counted on production from the Zed Williams deal that they don’t get. Defending in the middle of the field is an issue, as questions about Ben Wayer’s coverage get large and they don’t run as deep at SSDM as they used to. They’re too talented to be eliminated early, but the struggles have them battling for a playoff spot down to the final week.