The Buffalo Bandits will look to rebound this week, after putting in a less than stellar performance against Toronto last week where they lost 13-11. Minnesota has been on a hot streak of late, beating New England in a comeback effort 19-13, and the week prior defeating Edmonton 14-10.
The Bandits last weekend, seemed to hit the struggles I saw them hit in the pre-season. They’d play a great first half, either winning or keeping it a very close game (one goal differential, or tie), then they come out of the locker room for the second half, and they start out flat, and that’s exactly what happened. They had a great first half leading 7-5, then they just seemed to lose all momentum and couldn’t put a ball in the net for nearly 12 minutes, and giving the opposing team a lot of powerplay opportunities in which they capitalized on. I have a feeling the Bandits will suffer a similar fate in this one if they aren’t leading by a lot by the end of the second quarter.
The Bandits will be without captain John Tavares this week, after the veteran suffered a calf injury in the game in Toronto, and was placed on the Injured Reserve. This gives a player like Jerome Thompson the opportunity to step up big time. Usually Thompson (a lefty) is on a rotation with fellow lefty Chad Culp, but since Tavares is out, I expect both Thompson and Culp to be dressed in this game. It is also particularly interesting because Jerome’s younger brother Miles is playing for Minnesota. Jerome is very much used as a role player, to cut through the middle, cause a havoc for opposing defensemen, set picks, and screens, and he does a very good job at this; opening up space for guys like Ryan Benesch and Mark Steenhuis to bury goals. However, Thompson proved in the game against Vancouver that if he sees a scoring opportunity (and he has the Lacrosse IQ to effectively do this) he takes it and can bury them in the back of the net, using a quick and accurate wrist shot.
What can you say about Minnesota? They seemed to have surprised a lot of people so far, after many analysts predicted they would struggle. Their success so far can be highly attributed to rookie phenom Miles Thompson who has racked up eight goals and six assists so far. Miles I think will have a spectacular game in this one, as he seems to just be able to score from impossible angles, and when a defensemen thinks he has him down or covered, he’ll pull off an amazing behind the back shot, or shooting and scoring when he’s on the ground, it’s just a spectacle to watch. Add in the veteran presence and chemistry that Callum Crawford brings to the table, this is a very winnable game for the Swarm.
Another Swarm player who I think will have a good game is Shayne Jackson. Jackson is coming off a stellar performance last week where he netted four goals against the Blackwolves. Jackson definitely completes the Swarm offensive unit. A lot of teams have “the guy” who is their go to guy on offense to get some goals. Minnesota though seems to have a great complement of great offensive players, and Jackson is really the icing on the cake to that. This is particularly effective because its harder for opposing defensemen to shutdown the teams’ goal scorer, when the team has so many guys that have the ability to step up and be “the guy” on any given night.
With all that said, I think the Bandits struggles from last week will repeat this week. They’ll feed off the energy of the crowd, and put forth a tremendous first half performance, but in the end will collapse in the third, forcing them to attempt a huge comeback. I can see the game going both ways, however Buffalo will definitely have to mount a comeback in the fourth to win the game. I say that whichever team wins, will only win by one goal.
