Alright let’s get it out of the way: We’re not going to “Here we go again” this game. While yes, a 16-10 win for the Mammoth in Game 2 of the NLL Finals gives them their 7th straight win in an elimination game over the last two seasons, and last year’s finals started with a close Bandits win followed by a convincing Mammoth win, but I think that the factors in this series are a lot different in more ways than just the injury to Josh Byrne forcing the Bandits lead lefty to miss both games this weekend.

Anyways, let’s proceed.

First Quarter: Picking Back Up

Buffalo once again controlled the game early on, getting the first two goals of the night in the middle of the opening quarter. Ian MacKay broke the scoreless tie off a Chris Cloutier pick to take a run to the middle of the floor exactly 4 minutes into the quarter. Tehoka Nanticoke drew a penalty in the middle of the first quarter to set up the next Bandits goal, as Kyle Buchanan picked up a rebound off the back boards and beat Dillon Ward to make it 2-0.

After a slow start from the Mammoth offense, they finally were able to break through with 4:17 left in the second quarter courtesy of Chris Wardle, but the Bandits got back on the board soon after with another powerplay marker, this time from Dhane Smith. However, the Mammoth was quick to counter as Tim Edwards scored off the ensuing faceoff 10 seconds later, and then tied the game at 3 a minute later as the Bandits cut off Connor Robinson from getting to the middle of the floor but at the expense of an open lane to get to the net.

While the Bandits were able to take control of the pace of play and the possession matchup in the opening 15, it was that final goal from Robinson that ended up serving as a sign of what was to come into the second.

Second Quarter: Ryan Lee[ds] the Takeover

If anyone needed the reminder, Ryan Lee made sure everyone watching knew what the Mammoth were missing in last year’s finals in the second quarter. To open the second frame, Lee ran off a back door screen on the left side and dove in to beat Matt Vinc and give the Mammoth the lead off the pass from Zed Williams. Lee got back to the net on the next possession, this time receiving the pass as he cut to the net again from Eli McLaughlin. Back over on the other side of the floor, Dillon Ward made a series of big saves to start to stagnate the Bandits’ offense. The Bandits did score next out of the first TV timeout of the quarter, as Dhane Smith got an isolation look and used his speed and length to get the defense off him and beat Ward, but they also took the next penalty with Steve Priolo taking a slashing penalty on the other side of the floor while Ward was robbing Chase Fraser on a dunk attempt. The Mammoth capitalized with Lee’s third straight crease-diving goal after setting up on the crease but just behind the packed-in Bandits penalty kill formation.

And it was another powerplay goal from the Mammoth that put them up 3 after Adam Bomberry went to the box for a cross-check that was a little too high on Zed Williams. Buffalo was able to counter next with a goal from Chris Cloutier with 3:17 left, but Zed got one more back before the end of the half to get it back to a three-goal lead going back to the locker room.

The timing of the Bandits’ penalties was just as critical to the flow of the half as the goals Colorado scored on them were, as it took the ball out of the Bandits’ offense’s hands for most of the middle 5 minutes of the second quarter. When they did have the ball, they got a handful of good looks, but Dillon Ward turned it on in that quarter. If they were going to come back in the second half, staying out of the box was going to be important to get back in a rhythm on offense.

Well…

Third Quarter: Mammoth Take What The Bandits Give Them

The Bandits killed off the illegal substitution penalty they took with 37 seconds left in the half, but it wasn’t another minute later before Bryce Sweeting took an illegal crosscheck that the Mammoth scored on with an unfortunate bounce where a blocked shot went right to Eli McLaughlin for a clear look at a rebound. The Bandits got a break on the ensuing faceoff as Tim Edwards took down Max Adler with a hold, and Tehoka Nanticoke set up in the middle of the Mammoth’s box, got a pass from the point via Dhane Smith, and beat Ward.

However, for the third time, Colorado was able to respond to a Bandits’ goal with 2 of their own. Ryan Lee got his fourth goal of the game slipping to the net as Zed Williams began to draw a double team, and then Dylan Kinnear fed Eli McLaughlin on a pick-and-roll, and he buried to make it a 5-goal lead for the home squad. And then it happened again, as Nanticoke got to the middle of the floor again (this time at 5-on-5) and put together some fakes for his second of the quarter, only for Zed Williams to get another uncontested run to the net to erase it.

Bryce Sweeting took his second penalty of the quarter about a minute and a half later that the Bandits did kill off, but as the penalty expired, Nanticoke took a roughing penalty and Steve Priolo got called for unsportsmanlike conduct for clearing the ball in frustration after the whistle and the ball going right into the chest of a Mammoth player. And the Mammoth capitalized easily with Lee feeding McLaughlin from one side of the crease to the other to make it 13-7.

Buffalo killed off the second penalty but then Nick Weiss took a slashing penalty as time expired to end the third, and the Bandits were going to start the pivotal fourth quarter as they did the third — shorthanded. Whether it was the powerplays or actual on-field opportunities, the Mammoth took what the Bandits gave them and used that to pull away and take commanding control of the game.

Fourth Quarter: Frustration Boils Over Some More

And that Mammoth control carried into the final frame with Tyson Gibson joining in on the scoring with another powerplay goal to make it 14-7. The Bandits got their first string of two goals since the first two of the game in response, with Dhane Smith feeding Nanticoke once again to complete the hat trick, and then with 8:33 left to play, Smith ran a pick-and-roll with Chase Fraser for his first goal of the game after three in game one.

Buffalo got one last glimmer of hope with just over five minutes to play in the form of a holding penalty on Jalen Chaster, but it was the Mammoth scoring off a broken play and reset that saw Connor Robinson getting a transition goal alone in front of the net to make it 15-9. Nanticoke got his fourth of the game 17 seconds later to get the Bandits to double digits, but at that point, it was too far out of reach, and the frustration penalties piled up, with Buffalo taking four more penalties in the final 3:34. Colorado was able to get a 16th goal on an automatic penalty shot after the Bandits took a penalty already down two men, with Dylan Kinnear beating Devlin Shanahan, who had replaced Matt Vinc for the final 2:43.

Big Time Players, Plays, Games, Etc.

Aside from a 12-5 win over the Vancouver Warriors in April, this was the largest victory all season for the defending champion Mammoth, and given the opponent, it’s easy to say that this was undoubtedly their best win of the season.

Ryan Lee, Eli McLaughlin, and Zed Williams were all at their best on Monday afternoon, toying with the Bandits’ defense all night with two-man games at even strength and cross-floor looks on the man advantage, seeming to crack the code of the success the Bandits have had packing it in during the playoffs so far. Lee had 4 goals and 3 assists, McLaughlin had 3 goals and 4 assists, and Williams had 2 goals and 4 assists. Connor Robinson also added 3 goals and 2 assists.

The Mammoth outshot the Bandits 59-48, with Dillon Ward stopping 38 shots and halting any chance for the Bandits to string a comeback effort when they weren’t in the box. They certainly didn’t get goalied the way they did in the second game of last year’s finals, but that doesn’t take away from how well Ward played.

Dhane, Tehoka, and…How’s Josh Feeling?

Tehoka Nanticoke’s 4 goals were the other positive takeaway from the Bandits’ offense, as his presence in the middle of the floor was a well they were able to keep going back to for success at both even strength and the man advantage. Chris Cloutier led the lefties with a goal and 4 assists, but outside of that and the opening goal from Ian MacKay, the Bandits left side showed how much they were missing Josh Byrne – an absence that was covered up in Game 1 with the right side’s goal production. We probably won’t hear anything regarding his status for Game 3 until Friday at the earliest.

Matt Vinc made 42 saves in the losing effort, and outside of the last-minute goal from Zed Williams in the second quarter when he was just firing on net to look for the two-for-one, it’s hard putting together too compelling of an argument that any of the other 14 goals he allowed in his 57:17 of game time were on his shoulders. He will always say that he can play better and lead the efforts to figure out how to bounce back for Game 3, but simply put: Everyone on the Bandits’ defense needs to put together a performance in Game 3 that makes Game 2 a one-off and not a potential championship-losing trend. They were flat-out beaten and made things no easier with the penalty trouble. If their blowout loss to the Rock in April taught us anything, however, they do have the track record to bounce back from a stinker — the pressure is just a little different this time.

Game 3 will faceoff at 7 pm on Saturday, June 3, from KeyBank Center. It will also be shown on TSN, but this game is currently only scheduled to be broadcast in the States on ESPN+, although that is subject to change at this point.

Photo Credit: Jack Dempsey for the Colorado Mammoth