Buffalo Bandits 13 – Toronto Rock 12

An opening shift goal for Corey Small set the tone for the Rock, as they would take that early lead and only expand on it from there. Chris Boushy would take fellow #21 Justin Martin to the net for a crease dive and a 2-0 lead, and then a transition turnover forced by Billy Hostrowser led to Challen Rogers flipped a pass to Mitch de Snoo for another tally. Then late in the opening frame, it would be Josh Dawick adding a powerplay goal and then a second early goal on his next touch with 1:39 to play. In a 15 minute blink of the eye, along with 11 saves from Nick Rose, the Rock had a 5-0 lead.

But as they’ve done plenty of times before, the Bandits would re-gain their composure and fight back, starting with Josh Byrne sending Kyle Buchanan a cross-floor quick stick on their first possession of the new quarter to get the Bandits on the board. Lots of whistles saw the rest of the first five minutes go down to 4-on-4 and then 3-on-3 at a stalemate, but then back at 4-on-4, Dhane Smith intercepted a Josh Dawick pass and went the other way and fed Chris Cloutier to a net-front goal on the odd man rush. After the stretch of 7 total penalties across 7 minutes of game play was over, Buchanan finished the first full strength possession of that entire stretch with a midrange tally to cut the deficit to 5-3 with 6:20 to go, and that score would hold into the locker room for halftime, with one final Bandits penalty kill to finish the last 2 minutes.

While TD Ierlan scored off the opening draw of the second half, the Bandits would continue to control play in the middle frames, as bread and butter from Kyle Buchanan net front on his off side cut the deficit back down to 2. While Josh Dawick scored soon out of the under 10 timeout, it was erased about a minute and a half later by a low-to-high rip from midrange for Chase Fraser. And then it was Fraser again sneaking past the transitioning Rock defense and taking a pass from Ian MacKay to the net for his second consecutive goal. After a stop the other way on the next possession, the Bandits took it back with some more offensive bread and butter, this time with Josh Byrne sending a behind the back pass to a rolling Chris Cloutier to tie the game with 5:34 left on the clock. The 7-7 tie would stick to the end of the quarter, with coincidental minors to Latrell Harris and Josh Byrne as the horn sounded setting up what would become a mayhem filled fourth.

Chris Boushy scored from outside with the game at 4-on-4 to give the Rock the lead back in the first minute, and then off the ensuing faceoff, a clean win from TD Ierlan led to a side arm goal on the run from Tom Schreiber to push the lead back up to 2. Chris Cloutier’s third goal about 2 minutes later got the Bandits back on the board and became the springboard to a run alongside a high illegal screen from Boushy leading to a 5 minute major called, getting an extra two minutes for a dead ball foul and bringing Steve Priolo and Thomas Whitty with him as part of the extra curriculars. On the 4-on-4 before a three minute Bandit powerplay, Dhane Smith got in on the scoring after backing down his man on an isolation and scoring on a turnaround. After a faceoff win, the Bandits got the ball back and got Tehoka Nanticoke’s first goal of the game on a five-hole dive, giving the road Bandits their first lead of the game. The three minute powerplay opportunity did not immediately benefit the Bandits, as the clock-killing opportunity allowed time for Tom Schreiber to stall and fire from outside on a good ol’ American hand switch, but Smith’s second of the quarter 30 seconds later would ensure the game did not stay tied too much longer, burying a quick stick from Cloutier. After Ian MacKay got an unsportsmanlike call after the goal celebration and Mitch de Snoo went to the box 30 seconds later, 4-on-4 play carried on. Fresh after the game was back to 5-on-5, MacKay scored, followed by Smith’s third of the quarter 2 minutes later.

Buffalo was unable to score on a late powerplay as the game entered its final two minutes, and as the Rock were setting up their first 6-on-5 try, de Snoo stepped in a picked a corner to cut the deficit back to two with 1:07 on the clock. Toronto got the ball back and got a shot and a reset in transition before Dan Craig scored a jumper from midrange to make it 13-12 with 49.7 still to play. The Bandits got a breakaway after winning the faceoff, but Nick Weiss with denied by Troy Holowchuk, who entered the game for late goalie sprints. Back the other way, a breakdown led to Schreiber finding Craig on the other side of the floor, beating his man’s contest, and drawing the helpside defender to feed an open Boushy for a quick stick, but Matt Vinc went post to post and made the critical save. After the Rock got the rebound, they struggled to find a shooting lane as the Bandits packed it in, with Dan Craig’s offering with 6 seconds left from outside being easily turned away from Vinc, and then Thomas Whitty provided the box out until the horn sounded. Despite chaos ensuing on the floor after the game had ended with the benches beginning to clear and even the coaches sharing some pleasantries. Regardless, it was a Bandits win.

Dhane Smith and Chris Cloutier each had 3 goals and 5 assists, and while he was held without a goal, Josh Byrne also had 5 assists. Kyle Buchanan pitched in with 3 goals, Ian MacKay had a goal and 2 assists, and Cam Wyers had 3 assists out the back end and added 10 loose balls. For Toronto, Tom Schreiber led with 2 goals and 5 assists, Chris Boushy had 2 goals and 3 assists, and Dan Craig had a goal and 3 assists. Nick Rose still made 43 saves despite the loss.

San Diego Seals 14 – Buffalo Bandits 13 F/OT

The Seals continued the trend of good first quarters with Ben McIntosh scoring 1:44 in. After Dhane Smith appeared to score on the next Bandits possession, he was determined to have stepped in the crease, overturned by a Patrick Merrill challenge. His club was able to respond with their second goal of the game, as Wes Berg scored on a rebound off a shot from Tre Leclaire, and then after a stop on the other end, Zach Currier scored on the run from outside for a quick 3-0 lead with 10:43 still to play in the third. A goal from the point on the powerplay from Berg extended the lead to 4-0. Lots of whistles carried the first quarter forward on both sides, but the score remained until the final minute when near simultaneous penalties on the Seals gave the Bandits a full 2 minute 5-on-3. Dhane Smith was able to step into an outside shot on an odd man rush in the final 10 seconds to ensure they would not be shut out in the first on consecutive nights, 4-1 Seals after 15.

San Diego won the faceoff clean to open the new frame, and Zach Currier scored on a 2-on-1 in transition for the shorthanded goal. Despite not being able to score on the second of the two powerplays, the Bandits did strike next, as Josh Byrne rolled off a hard screen and got open in front for his first goal of the weekend, and then he popped open and buried a second consecutive shot to cut the deficit to 2. After forcing a transition turnover on San Diego’s next possession, the Bandits came back the other way and got right back on the board as Dhane Smith spun off his man and found Kyle Buchanan back in his office for a pump fake and a goal to make it 5-4. The goals would keep coming from there, starting with the second goal of the game for Ben McIntosh. Matt Vinc stopped Currier on a nearly identical 2-on-1 off the ensuing faceoff, and Buffalo rewarded their goalie back the other way with Smith feeding a back-door cutting Ian MacKay for a goal. And then, one of the biggest moments of this era of Bandits lacrosse.

Connor Farrell won the faceoff and ran to find space, and as space cleared along the bench, he saw a lane to head back towards the net and got closer, and closer, and next thing you know, he was net front for an open shot opportunity, and if you didn’t see the goal beat Chris Origlieri, you probably heard the roar of the 18,224 at KeyBank Center echo into the night. The fan favorite finally had his first NLL goal, and a goal that tied the game at that. He has scored 3 professional goals in the PLL, but certainly no goal was like that.

Rob Hellyer perhaps may have been accused of spoiling the party, as after the game came back from the under 10 timeout, the veteran forward sent a sweeping shot in traffic past Matt Vinc to give the Seals the lead back, and then he added another tally in transition about 3 minutes later, with a Kyle Jackson crease dive coming off the board in between due to another successful coach’s challenge. The 8-6 lead would carry into halftime.

Josh Byrne completed the hat trick in the first 90 seconds of the third quarter, pump faking his man and scoring on a jumper. After a second quarter that only saw a single penalty, the whistles returned in the third, starting with two penalties within a minute on the Bandits to give the Seals a 5-on-3. While the Bandits PK put together a couple of stops under the pressure of the powerplay, they faced some serious misfortune that ended that string of stops. As Cam Wyers was stalling out time with possession, Matt Spanger went down on a non-contact injury. As he labored to his knees and attempted to move before going back down, the Seals went 4-on-2 back the other way and Dylan Watson scored to the chagrin of the fans.

If the Bandits were able to gain possession, the play would have been whistled down, as is seen in the NHL and NBA, for example. There is a clause in the rulebook that if the injury is serious enough the refs can rule the play dead regardless, but at minimum when the ball started going back the other way, Spanger had made the attempt to stand and that probably would’ve been the last they saw of it until hypothetically the Bandits would’ve gotten the ball back. Unfortunately, Spanger will miss the rest of the season due to the injury, and while I’m not an injury expert, it looked like a potential achilles tear. One of the more quiet handle business Bandits defensemen, Spanger was having another steady season on the back end with 28 loose balls, 4 blocked shots, and 4 caused turnovers on the ledger in addition to a goal and an assist.

Midway through the frame, Chris Cloutier would score to get back to 9-8 with 6:54 to play, but an extended possession from San Diego led to Wes Berg taking a rebound to the net and scoring with the defender draped all over him on their next possession. The Seals were once again victims of two penalties on the same possession, as Josh Byrne baited Matt Wright into a dead ball foul after the play for the second of the two infractions. Some positive overpassing between Dhane Smith and Ian MacKay led to MacKay’s second goal of the game on the doorstep, and then Smith intercepted an outlet pass on the next possession to send Kyle Buchanan on a breakaway to tie the game at 10. The Seals would still take the lead into the fourth, however, as on the next possession, Zach Currier got a flip pass off in traffic for Dylan Watson, who trickled a shot past Matt Vinc with 2:45 to go.

Just as they did in the second, Buffalo took a run to open the fourth quarter, starting with a powerplay goal from Ian MacKay once again on the doorstep. With 10:19 to play, Dhane Smith put a big time jab step on his defender to get to the net and open things up for another goal to give the Bandits their first lead of the game, and then Nick Weiss extended the lead to 2 going coast-to-coast and scoring with some help from a screen from Cam Wyers. As the game entered its final five minutes, Wes Berg scored his fourth of the game off the bench from a pass from Trent DiCicco to cut it back to a one goal game. Into the final two minutes, the Bandits got a fantastic bounce, as Tehoka Nanticoke’s man collided with the official and Josh Byrne fed him open in front, but he was denied by Chris Origlieri.

San Diego’s first 6-on-5 chance appeared to be fruitful, as Berg bounced a shot through traffic to tie the game, but the automatic review would reveal otherwise due to the setup. Rob Hellyer sent a pass cross-floor that didn’t have a recipient, and as the ball bounced back towards the crease, Dylan Watson wacked it to the other corner where it was picked up by Ben McIntosh, who was the one who passed to Berg for the goal. But Watson was pushed through the crease and then was the first to touch the ball after, meaning the goal would be wiped off and play would resume.

Buffalo got the ball when play resumed and Dhane Smith was stripped by Zach Currier, but Kyle Buchanan recovered the loose ball and immediately called timeout with 17 seconds on the shot clock and 32.5 on the game clock. Out of the timeout, Tehoka Nanticoke stalled out time with Danny Logan trying to strip the ball from his possession but eventually getting a step around for a shot. While it went wide, Josh Byrne got the rebound an immediately fired uncontested in front, but Origlieri made a shoulder save and also got the rebound off the boards to call timeout with 15 seconds to play. Tre Leclaire brought the ball up the floor and passed to Zach Currier on the wing, who swung the ball to Wes Berg. The captain swung the ball back to Zach Currier, receiving an off ball screen from Ty Thompson firing a laser to the near top corner to stun everyone in the arena except those in purple and gold. 5.3 seconds later, we would have overtime.

Kyle Buchanan was stopped by the shoulder of Chris Origlieri on the doorstep off the opening faceoff, and it turned out that would set a tone for the extra frame. Matt Vinc denied Wes Berg on a drive to the net as the ball went back the other way, and then as the Bandits set up for their first full offensive possession, Dhane Smith found Buchanan in front again, and once again, he was stopped by Origlieri. After another stop for the Bandits defense, whistled down as the officials huddled to ensure that Rob Hellyer released the ball from his stick with enough time after losing his helmet after a check (he did.), Tehoka Nanticoke got a post up on Zack Deaken and got a look off, but was stopped again. Back-and-forth play continued on, with the biggest chance of the next handful of minutes was a stop from Vinc on a crease dive from Zach Currier and then another from Ben McIntosh in front on the next possession while the Bandits struggled to get another shot on net during that time. A midrange shot from Chase Fraser was stopped by Origlieri, and then with San Diego getting the ball back, Tre Leclaire played a pick and roll with Berg, and the Seals captain received the flip pass after Leclaire drew both defenders and popped a shot over Vinc’s shoulder before the helpside defense could get over. All of a sudden, a 16 game win streak had come to an end the same way their previous loss ended — an overtime defeat.

San Diego’s leaders did all they could to pave the way for a road upset, with Wes Berg finishing with 5 goals and an assist and Zach Currier adding 3 goals, 2 assists, and 14 loose balls. Rob Hellyer and Dylan Watson each had 2 goals and 2 assists, and Chris Origlieri made 12 saves in the fourth quarter and 4 in overtime to secure the win. The win puts the Seals back at .500 before next week’s rematch in San Diego.

For Buffalo, Dhane Smith once again led the way with 2 goals and 6 assists, while Ian MacKay had 3 goals and 3 assists and Josh Byrne had 3 goals and 2 assists. Matt Vinc was also strong in the high-volume shot totaled final 20 minutes, making 11 in the fourth quarter and 5 in overtime.

Saskatchewan Rush 17 – Rochester Knighthawks 9

Look, I just wrote a lot and this game was a stinker. Promise you won’t be mad if I skip the full recap?

After nearly beating the Rush in the home leg of their head-to-head series, the Knighthawks did start strong. Two goals from Connor Fields (3G 1A) and Ryan Smith (2G 2A) in the quarter and one from Ryan Lanchbury (2G 4A) helped Rochester lead 5-3 after the first, but Saskatchewan would start the second quarter with a goal from Austin Shanks (4G 3A) 30 seconds into the second quarter sparked what would become a 6 goal run which included a transition goal from Matt Hossack (1G 2A), Keegan Bell (1G), and three from Clark Walter (3G 1A) to go up 9-5. Fields would add his third goal to make it 9-6 at the half, but Shanks scored on the first possession of the third quarter as well. Goals from Matt Gilray (1G 1A) and Graydon Hogg (1G 1A) cut the deficit to 10-8, but the Rush’s offense would take back over and score the next four goals and the last 3, broken up only by another Lanchbury goal. Frank Scigliano’s 16 saves in the second quarter and 13 in the fourth quarter played a massive role in making sure that the strong offensive performance led into the decisive win as opposed to a high scoring shootout. Rylan Hartley struggled in the other crease, giving up 16 goals and only making 18 saves. While not all the goals were his fault, and he was a victim to a fair share of breakaways and odd man looks, his late-third early-fourth quarter performance may have been what made the difference. The Knighthawks fall to 4-7 and will head back to the center of Canada next week for another road affair in Calgary.

Week 12 Around The League

Saskatchewan Rush 16 – Calgary Roughnecks 13

Seven point outings from each of Robert Church, Ryan Keenan, and Austin Shanks started the Rush’s weekend out strong as well, as the pair of wins and the Bandits loss meant they were the first team to reach 8 wins on the season. Curtis Dickson had 7 points for the Roughnecks in the loss. However…

Calgary Roughnecks 21 – Las Vegas Desert Dogs 8

…The second leg of Calgary’s two game homestand weekend was a route of the Desert Dogs with a 6-2 first quarter to set the tone and a 7-3 fourth quarter as the bookend. Three Roughnecks reached double figures, led by 2 goals and 9 assists from Tyler Pace, 6 goals and 4 assists from Dane Dobbie, and 3 goals and 7 assists from Jesse King, while Haiden Dickson had a sock trick of his own and an assist. Jack Hannah had 4 goals, and Casey Jackson had 2 goals and 3 assists in the loss for Vegas, who…

Vancouver Warriors 12 – Las Vegas Desert Dogs 8

…also dropped their first game of a two game weekend at home against Vancouver on Friday, albeit by a smaller 12-8 margin, with a 4-0 second quarter being the difference. Keegan Bal led the Warriors with 2 goals and 7 assists, while Marcus Klarich had 4 goals and an assist, and Adam Charalambides had 2 goals and 4 assists. Aden Walsh made 34 saves in the win. Jonathan Donville had a goal and 5 assists to lead Vegas, and Kyle Killen was the lone member of their offense with multiple goals.

Halifax Thunderbirds 13 – Philadelphia Wings 10

Finishing the game with a 7-2 fourth quarter, the Thunderbirds completed the sweep of the Wings in their home leg after the Wings leg 8-6 through 3, outshooting Philly 63-40 on goal and 88-58 overall, including 23 shots on goal in the fourth quarter. After a couple of games where Halifax’s offensive output was led by its transition game, the set offense took control in this one, specifically the righties, including 2 goals and 7 assists for Randy Staats, 3 goals and 4 assists from Clarke Petterson, and 3 goals and 2 assists for Thomas Hoggarth. On the other side, 13 Wings got at least a point, including Nick Damude, who had 50 saves despite the loss, with a fourth quarter assist. Their offense was led by 3 goals and 3 assists from Mitch Jones.

Ottawa Black Bears 18 – Albany FireWolves 9

Ottawa’s offense has been in a funk lately, but Reilly O’Connor’s (2G 2A) return gave them optimism they’d be able to start working back towards getting back on the right track, but Jeff Teat decided that the right track was just going to be a baseline, as he had 5 first quarter goals as part of a 9-3 opening quarter to propel himself to a 6 goal 3 assist evening in Albany, as the Black Bears doubled up the home FireWolves. Kiel Matisz and Connor Kearnan each had a goal and 7 assists. Zach Higgins made 47 saves in a winning effort. For Albany, Tye Kurtz had a goal and 5 assists, while Ethan Walker and Alex Simmons combined for 5 of the 9 goals.

Week 13 Preview

No rest this week either. 7 games are on the docket after the 8 last week

Buffalo Bandits (7-1) @ San Diego Seals (5-5) – Saturday February 22, 10:00 pm

The game with the most hype heading into this weekend, we will see if the Seals can repeat their performance from last week’s classic and prove to be a kryptonite for the Bandits or if Buffalo can bounce back and go to 8-1.

Rochester Knighthawks (4-7) @ Calgary Roughnecks (6-4) – Saturday February 22, 9:00 pm

The Roughnecks homestand continues as they welcome in a Knighthawks team that is probably going to have to start desperation mode with 7 games left and probably only 2 losses to play with, as 9-9 is probably going to be the cutoff for the playoffs this year as opposed to last year’s 8-10. On the Roughnecks side, it’s the final game before a brutal schedule in March, so getting that 7th win will be pretty important for their aspirations to return to the playoffs. The Knighthawks have won all three meetings against Calgary in the Expansion Era, but they have never played at the Saddledome, with the last Calgary vs Rochester game in Alberta taking place back on March 17, 2018.

Friday February 21

Halifax Thunderbirds (5-4) @ Ottawa Black Bears (5-4) – 7:30 pm, TSN Game of the Week

The Thunderbirds head to the road to look for their 6th win in 7 games against an Ottawa team returning home for the first time this month for their first time hosting Halifax. In the Riptide Era, the Thunderbirds were 7-0. They will play again in Halifax on March 21.

Saskatchewan Rush (8-2) @ Vancouver Warriors (5-5) – 10:00 pm, TSN Game of the Week

The second leg of the TSN doubleheader taked place in BC, where the Warriors are 3-1 so far this season. With the Rush taking a brighter spotlight as they keep winning, a road win would be a really good way to head back home for their March 1st matchup with the Bandits. The road team won each of last season’s two matchups.

Las Vegas Desert Dogs (2-8) @ Colorado Mammoth (6-4) – 9:00 pm

Tied for third with the Roughnecks, who they play next weekend, the Mammoth could take another step towards the top tier if they continue to win, returning to action this weekend after a bye last weekend. A win over Vegas would end a win then loss trend that dates back to week 2. The Mammoth defeated the Desert Dogs back on December 6, and they are hosting Vegas at home for the first time since March 31, 2013.

Saturday February 22

Georgia Swarm (5-4) @ Toronto Rock (3-7) – 7:00 pm

The Swarm snapped a four game losing streak against the Rock head to head back on December 14 and will look for the season sweep in Mississauga on Saturday night.

Philadelphia Wings (5-5) @ Albany FireWolves (2-8) – 7:00 pm

The Wings and FireWolves play for the first time since December 16, 2023, the first time at MVP Arena since April 23, 2023, as Albany has their backs against the wall and will need a lengthy win streak to get back to the playoffs. The Wings will have Sam LeClair back from injury while Michael Sowers heads to injured reserve

(Photo Credit: Buffalo Bandits)