Austin Staats
Canadian lacrosse player (born 1998)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Austin Staats (born April 23, 1998) is a Canadian former professional lacrosse player who played for the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League (NLL), and the Chaos Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). He was drafted 1st overall by the San Diego Seals in the 2018 NLL Entry Draft. He was known for his aggressive style of play,[1] but his career ended amongst drug use violations, and numerous counts of aggregated assault.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Born | April 23, 1998 Six Nations, Ontario, Canada |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Position | Attack |
| Shoots | Left |
| NCAA team | Onondaga Community College |
| NLL draft | 1st overall, 2018 San Diego Seals |
| NLL team | San Diego Seals |
| PLL team | Chaos Lacrosse Club |
| Pro career | 2019–2024 |
| Career highlights | |
NLL
WLC
NJCAA
OJLL
| |
Early life and education
Austin Staats was born April 23, 1998, in Six Nations, Ontario, Canada, where he grew up learning to play lacrosse from his older brother, Randy Staats. By the time Staats graduated from Assumption College High School in 2016,[2] he knew that his grades did not meet the requirements needed to play NCAA Division I lacrosse, so instead followed his brother Randy's steps by attending and playing at Onondaga Community College (OCC).[3]
In July 2016, Staats was named to the Haudenosaunee National Lacrosse team, which he competed for in the 2016 Men's U-19 World Lacrosse Championship in Coquitlam, British Columbia. The team won the bronze medal and Staats was named to the All-World Team.[4]
Additionally, throughout his high school and junior collegiate career, Staats played for the Six Nations Arrows in the OLA Junior A Lacrosse League.[5] In 2017, led by coach Patrick Merrill, he won the Minto Cup for the Six Nations Arrows and earned MVP honors in the championship game.[6][7][8]
Playing at OCC, Staats had back-to-back breakout seasons in 2017 and 2018, where he totaled 156 points and helped the team go undefeated, winning the NJCAA national championship and earning All-America honors in both years.[9]
Professional career
National Lacrosse League
Rather than continuing his collegiate career and transferring to an NCAA program, Staats decided instead to become declare himself for the 2018 NLL Entry Draft. He was selected first overall by the San Diego Seals, which was their first ever draft selection and reunited him with head coach Patrick Merrill. In his first season, he scored 61 points, helping guide the Seals to the playoffs, however Staats missed the postseason after tearing his ACL with only two regular season games remaining.[10][11] He was named NLL Rookie of the Week four times,[7] as well as NLL Rookie of the Year and he was named to the All-Rookie Team.[12]
After his ACL injury in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic shortening the 2020 season, Staats was able to play his first full NLL season in 2022. He scored 79 points and led the team to its second playoff berth, where the Seals lost 2 games to 1 in the Western Conference Final to the Colorado Mammoth. In the final minutes of the game, Staats was issued a gross misconduct penalty by the referees.[13] Though no further details were released, Staats was issued a two-game suspension to start the 2023 season.[14]
In the 2024 season, Staats scored a career high 102 points, which helped send the Seals to their fourth playoff run. The Seals lost 2 games to 0 in the semi-finals to the Albany FireWolves, and in the final moments of their final game, Staats threw two unprovoked cross-checks into the back of FireWolves player Anthony Joaquim's head. Staats was issued a major penalty for the hits, and was suspended for the first seven games of the 2025 season.[15] After his suspension was due to expire, the NLL extended it through the rest of the 2025 season after being arrested on multiple counts of assault.[16]
On November 13, 2025, the NLL reinstated Staats,[17][18] but he was released by the Seals on December 2.[19] A few days later, the NLL again suspended Staats, placing him on investigative leave as his legal issues continued.[20]
Premier Lacrosse League
After his torn ACL prevented him from playing in the PLL's inaugural season, Staats made his Premier Lacrosse League debut in 2020 playing for the Chaos Lacrosse Club.[3] He scored 6 points across his 7 appearances.
In the 2021 PLL season, after playing only a single game, Staats' contract was abruptly terminated by the PLL after an off-field fight between himself and Chrome Lacrosse Club player Matt Gaudet, in which he bit off part of Gaudet's middle finger.[21][22] Staats' PLL contract with the Chaos was reinstated in June 2022, after he completed a program organized by the PLL's Discipline and Conduct Committee.[23] In the 2022 season, he only played in two games before being let go by the Chaos.
International Competition
In 2015, Staats competed in the 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship in the Onondaga Nation in the United States, south of Syracuse, New York. The team won silver.[24]
In July 2018, Staats competed in the 2018 World Lacrosse Championship in Netanya, Israel, again playing for the Haudenosaunee National team.[25] The team won a bronze medal and he was named to the All-World team.[26]
In January 2019, World Games named Staats as their Athlete of the Month.[27][26]
In 2023, Staats again competed for the Haudenosaunee National Lacrosse team at the 2023 World Lacrosse Championship in San Diego, California. The team again came in third, winning the bronze medal, and he was named as the Best Attacker and named to the All-World Team.[28] However, in January 2024, after an investigation by the International Testing Agency found that Staats tested positive for recreational cocaine usage, his individual awards were revoked by World Lacrosse.[29]
Personal life
Because of the low pay issued to professional lacrosse players, Staats supplements his income by being a part-time firefighter.[30]
In October 2023, Staats was charged with aggravated assault in the aftermath of an consensual bar fight.[20][31] In August 2024, Staats was arrested in Brantford, Ontario, on three counts of assault.[31][32][33] In June 2025, he was charged with mischief.[20]
Player stats
National Lacrosse League
Reference:[34]
| Austin Staats | Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | LB | PIM | Pts/GP | LB/GP | PIM/GP | GP | G | A | Pts | LB | PIM | Pts/GP | LB/GP | PIM/GP |
| 2019 | San Diego Seals | 14 | 32 | 29 | 61 | 81 | 25 | 4.36 | 5.79 | 1.79 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| 2020 | San Diego Seals | 5 | 10 | 16 | 26 | 22 | 5 | 5.20 | 4.40 | 1.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| 2022 | San Diego Seals | 15 | 37 | 42 | 79 | 53 | 35 | 5.27 | 3.53 | 2.33 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 21 | 12 | 4.75 | 5.25 | 3.00 |
| 2023 | San Diego Seals | 16 | 37 | 38 | 75 | 83 | 35 | 4.69 | 5.19 | 2.19 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 4.00 | 8.00 | 0.00 |
| 2024 | San Diego Seals | 18 | 50 | 52 | 102 | 84 | 38 | 5.67 | 4.67 | 2.11 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 18 | 24 | 5.00 | 6.00 | 8.00 |
| 68 | 166 | 177 | 343 | 323 | 138 | 5.04 | 4.75 | 2.03 | 8 | 22 | 16 | 38 | 47 | 36 | 4.75 | 5.88 | 4.50 | ||
| Career Total: | 76 | 188 | 193 | 381 | 370 | 174 | 5.01 | 4.87 | 2.29 | ||||||||||
GP–Games played; G–Goals; A–Assists; Pts–Points; LB–Loose balls; PIM–Penalty minutes; Pts/GP–Points per games played; LB/GP–Loose balls per games played; PIM/GP–Penalty minutes per games played.
Premier Lacrosse League
Reference:[35]
| Season | Team | Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | G | 2PG | A | Pts | Sh | GB | Pen | PIM | FOW | FOA | GP | G | 2PG | A | Pts | Sh | GB | Pen | PIM | FOW | FOA | ||
| 2020 | Chaos Lacrosse Club | 7 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2021 | Chaos Lacrosse Club | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2022 | Chaos Lacrosse Club | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Career total: | 10 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||
GP–Games played; G–Goals; 2PG–2-point goals; A–Assists; Pts–Points; Sh–Shots; GB–Ground balls; Pen–Penalties; PIM–Penalty minutes; FOW–Faceoffs won; FOA–Faceoffs attempted