Buffalo Bandits 11 – Calgary Roughnecks 6

An early powerplay for the Roughnecks saw Dane Dobbie, who missed last week’s game in Buffalo due to injury, open the scoring, and then another player who didn’t play in last week’s game, Kiel Matisz, took advantage of some transition miscommunication and ran in for his first goal after being traded from Ottawa to Buffalo. Another penalty and another Dane Dobbie goal and then a goal from Haiden Dickson on their next touch gave Calgary a 3-1 lead with 4:33 left in the quarter, but that would be the final extension on the night of the Roughnecks lead.

Chase Fraser scored from way outside with 25.6 seconds left in the opening quarter to make it 3-2 after the first quarter, and then after the quarter flip, the Bandits were able to tie the game at 3 courtesy of a runner from Josh Byrne. A fortunate bounce halfway through the quarter gave Buffalo their first lead of the game, as a Dhane Smith offering was stopped by Nick Rose but the ball deflected off of Kyle Buchanan’s stick on the rebound and found its way into the net on the doorstep of the crease. While they were stopped on a 5-on-3 as the quarter began to wind down, Byrne’s second of the quarter followed by Buchanan’s second on a quick stick pass from Tehoka Nanticoke extended the lead that they would take into halftime to 6-3.

After being shut out in the second quarter, Calgary wasted no time to ensure that didn’t happen again in the third, as Jesse King cut off a screen and put a feed from Curtis Dickson into the net 30 seconds into the quarter. The Roughnecks would maintain a string of productive offensive possessions following the goal, albeit to no additional goals, as after a loose ball push on a rebound extended a Bandits possession, Chase Fraser scored from midrange to make it 7-4. After Nick Rose denied Chris Cloutier on a rebound on the ensuing possession, Calgary capitalized on their next touch with Haiden Dickson’s second of the game. Late in the quarter, Tehoka Nanticoke rebounded his own miss to make it an even scoring quarter and help the Bandits carry an 8-5 lead into the fourth.

The fourth opened with a Roughnecks powerplay that was unsuccessful, only for the Bandits to extend their lead right after with Kyle Buchanan once again adding to his goal total catching a quick stick from Josh Byrne amidst all 5 defenders. While Tanner Cook scored to help Calgary keep pace, a transition interception from Thomas Whitty and an outlet pass up to Nick Weiss propelled the alternate captain for a breakaway to make it 10-6. A laser shot from Josh Byrne that went off the post and Nick Rose and then in the net extended the lead to 5, and with the defense chipping in limiting the Roughnecks to 9 shots on goal in the frame, the Bandits had themselves an 11-6 win to once again bounce back from a home loss with a road win against the same team a week later.

Hat tricks from Josh Byrne and Kyle Buchanan led the Bandits, and while Dhane Smith was held without a goal, he joined the formers with a combined 9 assists on the night. Matt Vinc followed up a tie for his worst GA total as a Bandit with 45 saves, as he and the defense got their fifth sub-10 goal output of the season, and in the context of comparing to last weekend, held Curtis Dickson scoreless after last week’s sock trick. The win pushed them to 10-2 and with help out of town extended their hold of first place.

Rochester Knighthawks 18 – Ottawa Black Bears 8

Well if you like seeing a ball enter the back of the net and hate waiting, this was the start of a game for you. Matt Gilray scored from outside in transition to open scoring 1:49 into the opening quarter. A goal from Jeff Teat from similar distance tied the game on the next possession before Travis Longboat score his first goal with the Black Bears a little over a minute later to give Ottawa the lead, but a minute later, a delayed call gave the Knighthawks the extra attacker, in this case Thomas McConvey, and the big body set a screen for Connor Fields who picked the far corner to re-tie the game. Getting the ball back off the faceoff, Kyle Waters was stopped by Zach Higgins, but as Higgins’s stick briefly listed off of the ball, Ryan Smith snuck in to take the ball away and start a scramble in front that led to Waters picking a rebound off the back boards for a goal. The next two possessions were more of the same, as Fields once again scored from outside followed by a dunk from Waters after back-to-back faceoff wins from Mike Sisselberger. Over the stretch, the Black Bears went almost 3 minutes between their offense getting a possession. Rochester killed off a penalty and drew one of their own late in the quarter, where McConvey would cut to the net and score on a heavily contested shot, and then another faceoff win led to a first quarter hat trick for Fields.

While Connor Kearnan scored on the doorstep with less than 4 seconds left in the first to make it 7-3, the Knighthawks were still far from losing their rhythm carried over from their 21 goal outburst in Vegas last weekend. Ryan Lanchbury to Ryan Smith opened the second quarter scoring in the first minute, and then despite being shorthanded, Rochester got a 3-on-2 break the other way with Matt Gilray feeding Chad Tutton who pumped and scored over the top. Following the kill, Smith picked up his second of the quarter on a drive to the net, bouncing off three defenders on the way to putting a backhand on net and in the net. After another faceoff win, one of the weirder sequences of the season played out, as a wide shot from Graydon Hogg hit Thomas McConvey below the belt, was picked up by Andrew Borgatti who sent an outlet pass up the floor. The pass was errant and picked up in the near corner by Rylan Hartley who flipped the ball to Jake Piseno while laying out Jake Stevens, and then Piseno sprung a fastbreak that led to Tutton’s second of the quarter. It was one of those afternoons for Ottawa. Graydon Hogg joined in on the scoring with 5:35 to play in the half before Connor Fields had his fourth outside goal of the first half and then McConvey scored in front on a delayed penalty to make it 14-3. Jeff Teat ended the 7-0 and 13-1 runs from midrange with 2:14 left in the half. While Ottawa got 20 shots on goal in that quarter, Rylan Hartley made saves on 19 of them, only adding further insult to the injury of their deficit extending from 4 after 1 to 10 after 2.

A transition crease dive from Graydon Hogg broke the third quarter stalemate after 5:10 before a settled drive to the net and transition trailer goals from Larson Sundown made it 15-7 with 4 minutes left in the quarter. After Rochester headed to the box, Ottawa had 8 shot attempts on the ensuing powerplay to no avail, and as the game returned to full strength, Hogg flipped a rolling pass to Josh Medeiros who joined in on the scoring. Into the fourth, the game entered formality mode. Sundown got his third in a row deflecting in a pass from Jeff Teat before a 5-on-3 goal from Ryan Lanchbury with 11:18 to play. Connor Fields got his fifth of the game halfway through the quarter to go back up 11, but Ottawa would get one more goal in the final two minutes courtesy of the first in the career of Jake Stevens. But alongside those formalities, it would go down as a 10 goal victory for the Knighthawks.

The fourth win in a row for the Knighthawks put them at 8-7, above .500 for the first time since Week 1. Following their final road game of the season, they finished 6-3 away from Blue Cross Arena, with 117 goals for and 101 goals against for a 53.7% goal share. Since losing to the Rush on February 15, they have scored 68 goals and held their opponents under 10 twice. They’ve matched last season’s playoff-clinching win total with 3 games and 2 bye weeks remaining in the last 5 weeks, starting with one of those byes this upcoming weekend. All three of those games are at home, including a rematch with Ottawa.

Connor Fields registered his 4th double digit point game of the season with 5 goals and 5 assists. He has 37 points during the win streak and eclipsed the 100 point mark for the third straight season — the first American player to accomplish the feat. Ryan Lanchbury added a goal and 7 assists, with his assist total reaching 72 on the season, which, as pointed out by Adam Levi, puts him in rare air with Cody Jamieson and Dan Dawson being the only two Rochester Knighthawks (original and expansion eras) to reach that total, and he still has three games remaining. Ryan Smith, Kyle Waters, and Thomas McConvey combined for 6 goals and 9 assists, while Rylan Hartley finished with 50 saves, his first 50 save game since March 2023.

For the Black Bears, who dropped to 5-7, Jeff Teat led with 2 goals and 4 assists, while Larson Sundown registered a hat trick and each of Travis Longboat and Connor Kearnan had a goal and 2 assists.

Week 16 Review

Halifax Thunderbirds 17 – Saskatchewan Rush 9

The home Thunderbirds had the luck of the Irish on their side Friday night, as they blitzed the Rush to the tune of a 9-2 first quarter to drop the Rush to 10-4 while keeping pace in the top 4 and improving their record to 8-5. While they still have a gauntlet of a three game stretch upcoming, they are beginning to control their own destiny towards their first home playoff game. Contrary to previous games in their recent strong play, it was the forwards, not the transition players, providing the offensive spark, led by 3 goals and 6 assists from Clarke Petterson and 3 goals and 4 assists from Mike Robinson in his new career high in his rookie season. Ryan Keenan led the Rush with a goal and 3 assists.

Vancouver Warriors 13 – Toronto Rock 8

Christian Del Bianco needed no time to get re-acclimated to the NLL, making 30 first half saves as part of a 49 save night as the Warriors played one of their most complete games of the season in front of him to the tune of a 13-8 victory over the Rock. The offensive core of Keegan Bal (4G 5A) and Adam Charalambides (3G 3A) led the way in what was a 13-4 rout after 3 quarters. Tom Schreiber had 2 goals and 3 assists for the Rock, whose playoff aspirations are down to their last life at 4-9 with 5 games to play.

Colorado Mammoth 10 – Philadelphia Wings 8

After the Mammoth got out to a 6-2 start through 35 minutes, the Wings rallied for 5 straight goals to take a 7-6 lead. With the game tied at 7 in the final 5 minutes, Thomas Vela broke the tie only for Joe Resetarits to even the game at 8 with 1:40 to play. However, a shot from Ryan Lee from outside the restraining line as the shot clock was expiring with 1:14 to play broke the tie and stunned the Philly faithful before adding a dunk with 32 seconds left to give the Mammoth the win and an 8-5 record. With Connor Kelly joining Eli McLaughlin and Zed Williams as missing the afternoon affair, Lee stepped up with 4 goals and 2 assists. while Tyson Gibson had 4 assists. Mitch Jones had a goal and 7 assists, while Joe Resetarits had 3 goals and 4 assists for the Wings, who have now lost 6 straight.

Albany FireWolves 11 – Georgia Swarm 10

Georgia tied the game at 10 with 1:51 to play, but Jeremy Thompson was called for a tripping penalty on the ensuing faceoff to put Albany on the powerplay, where Dyson Williams picked up the game winner with a minute to play to give Albany their third win in their last four games. The largest crowd of the season so far at MVP Arena saw 8 different goal scorers for the FireWolves, with Ethan Walker’s goal and 5 assists leading the way, while 44 saves from Doug Jamieson solidifying the victory. The FireWolves still have an uphill climb for whatever hopes for final push they still have left at 5-9, especially with the Bandits coming to town this weekend, but the March to May has been off to a good start for them. Shayne Jackson had 3 goals and 3 assists to lead the Swarm, who now sit at 7-6.

San Diego Seals 20 – Las Vegas Desert Dogs 11

The Seals said “I’ll have what they’re having” and followed the path of the Knighthawks the week before with a 20-11 onslaught of the Desert Dogs to even their season series, led by matching 6 goal 6 assists performances from Wes Berg and Rob Hellyer. While held without a goal, Ryan Benesch had 9 assists. Since losing three in a row, the Seals have now won 4 of their last 5 and find themselves at 7-6 despite the countless injuries on the back end. Things are not as sunny in Henderson, as the Desert Dogs have now given up 20+ goals in 3 of their last 5 games and head to Buffalo tonight. They were the first team to be mathematically eliminated at 3-11. Jack Hannah had 4 goals and an assist in the game, and Jonathan Donville had 5 assists.

Week 17 Preview

Rochester rests in week 17, while the Bandits play catch up on the calendar with a back-to-back to finally play their games in hand.

Las Vegas Desert Dogs (3-11) @ Buffalo Bandits (10-2) – Friday March 21, 7:30 pm

KeyBank Center hosts a rare Friday night Bandits home game, as the Desert Dogs make their first ever trip to Banditland, with the faithful likely licking their chops considering the state in which Vegas is entering this week’s matchup. The Bandits won 14-5 in last year’s season finale on the strip. Buffalo clinches a playoff spot with a win and also could pick up the first Tucker Out Lymphoma Cup along the way.

Buffalo Bandits (10-2) @ Albany FireWolves (5-9) – Saturday March 22, 7:00 pm

The opposite of the drive they took between games 1 and 2 of last year’s NLL Finals, the Bandits will get on the bus and head to Albany for a Saturday Night matchup with a FireWolves team that is expecting another great crowd this weekend with their playoff lives on the line. Since Buffalo’s 16-10 win against Albany back on February 1, the FireWolves are 3-2, so they are playing better lacrosse, but both teams are aware of the recent history and the stakes ahead. Ethan O’Connor will likely make his Albany debut this weekend after being cut from the Knighthawks to make room for the return to the lineup of Dan Coates from injury.

Ottawa Black Bears (5-7) @ Halifax Thunderbirds (8-5) – Friday March 21, 6:00 pm

With the Knighthawks and Rush on a bye this weekend, it’s the Black Bears who will also be playing two games this weekend, and they will be two gut check games with 8-5 opponents. Quite the test to prove whether or not they have what it takes to be a playoff team. The Thunderbirds won the first matchup in Ottawa 14-9 exactly a month ago, which started Ottawa’s current 3 game losing streak.

Colorado Mammoth (8-5) @ Ottawa Black Bears (5-7) – Sunday March 23, 3:00 pm

A second straight weekend with a 3:00 game sees the Black Bears host the Mammoth who continue to push through adversity this season up front to put themselves in the driver’s seat towards a return to the playoffs. The Mammoth beat the Riptide 18-10 in last season’s lone matchup. They will play in Ottawa for the second time ever, with the first being against the Rebel back on January 11, 2003.

Philadelphia Wings (5-8) @ Toronto Rock (4-9) – Saturday March 22, 7:00 pm

After heading to Toronto this weekend and hosting Ottawa next weekend, the Wings will finish their season with a home-and-home with the Swarm before traveling to Vancouver to face the Warriors. If they were to snap there losing streak, this is the week to do it, but the Rock certainly won’t go down without a fight as they are looking for their first home win since January. Toronto won last season’s lone matchup 11-7.

San Diego Seals (7-6) @ Calgary Roughnecks (7-7) – Saturday March 22, 9:00 pm

There will be plenty of storylines at the Saddledome on Saturday night, as the Seals and Roughnecks will face off for the first time since the Zach Currier for Curtis Dickson blockbuster trade over the summer. The current snapshot of the standings looks favorable for both teams to end their seasons in the top 8, but that becomes more difficult with a loss this weekend. It starts a 4 game road trip for the Seals, while Calgary has the Rush staring them down after a bye week next weekend. The Seals swept last season’s series with a 12-9 win at home and a 7-6 win on the road.

Georgia Swarm (7-6) @ Vancouver Warriors (6-7) – Saturday March 22, 10:00 pm

After the home team won each of last season’s matchups, the Swarm head to Vancouver to take on the Warriors in what is going to probably be the most consequential matchup of the weekend in terms of playoff roadmaps. Vancouver’s schedule lightens up in April, but they have a trip to Buffalo next weekend that increases the pressure to get a win this weekend and not fall to 6-8, while the Swarm also have the Bandits in their remaining slate of games as well as the Thunderbirds and a home-and-home with the Wings who will also be in desperation mode in the final weeks.

If nothing else, push towards 9 wins and ask questions later is the motto before the calendar turns to April in two weekends.

Photo Credit: National Lacrosse League