The Colorado Mammoth are set to take on the Minnesota Swarm this Saturday February 1, 2014 at The Pepsi Center in downtown Denver. The Mammoth just came off a spectacular win last Saturday against their Western Conference rivals the Calgary Roughnecks in OT by the score of 14-13. The Mammoth are coming off their most exciting game of the 2014 season and an on-the-road win in Calgary where the Mammoth finally broke their four-game losing streak and have now split the 30 regular-season head-to-head match-ups against the Riggers. They are fourth in the NLL West Division with a record of 2-5. They have 76 goals for and 98 goals against.
In last Saturday’s game Mammoth forward Adam Jones #16 was on fire. He scored seven goals, a new single-game career high compared to his previous five goals and tied his career high in point totals with eight. It took him only 14 shots to score seven goals, and his shooting percentage of .235 was by far his best in any season. Currently Jones is still leading the league in four categories: 37 points, 23 goals, 70 SOG and 12 FTO. He also has four PPG, 14 assists and 32 loose balls.
Three other Colorado players also placed in the top 15 in the NLL.com league leader categories. John Grant Jr. #24, forward is currently in second place with 14 goals, 18 assists, three PPG, 69 SOG, and 19 loose balls. Drew Westervelt #26, forward is returning from the short-term hold out list and is sitting in 12th place with 13 goals, 12 assists, 44 SOG, and 11 loose balls. And, to finish out the top 15, there’s Sean Pollock #17, forward 15th on the list with 11 goals, 10 assists, three PPG, 37 SOG, and 15 loose balls.
Colorado has four players in the top 15 according to NLL.com. All the Mammoth players in league leading categories are forwards, extremely strong shooters, and have an extreme knowledge of the game. To add additional pressure to the Swarm’s defense, not one Minnesota player is ranked offensively within the top 20. If the Swarm defense can’t figure out how to stop the Mammoth and keep them out of scoring position, I do believe multiple goals will be scored in favor of the Colorado Mammoth!
The Minnesota Swarm currently sit in fifth place in the NLL Eastern Conference with a record of 1-3 with 30 goals for, 41 goals against. They just came off a bye-week from their previous loss on January 18, 2014 against the Philadelphia Wings by the score of 15-8.
During their recent loss, the Wings held the top five Minnesota scorers, team captain Andrew Suitor #20, transition; Logan Schuss #18, forward and assistant captain Callum Crawford #98 forward to only two goals each. While Jordan MacIntosh #24, transition and Kiel Matisz #46, transition only scored one goal apiece. Suitor and Crawford currently lead the Swarm in points both with 12; Schuss leads the Swarm with a SOG percentage of 79; and Suitor with a SOG percentage of 74.
In the face-off positions, you have Bob Snider #41, Mammoth defenseman who sits atop the league leaders in FOW with 105 (58.1 percent), one goal, two assists, 77 loose balls, and 10 FTO. Whereas Jordan MacIntosh #24, transition for the Swarm has only 43 FOW (51.2 percent), three goals, nine assists, 36 loose balls, and 2 FTO. Although the FOW percentages are close, Snider is still stronger in the face-off position, excels in loose balls, and should win the majority of draws during the game.
The Mammoth have also brought back Casey Powell #2, forward after he missed the first seven games of the season due to undisclosed personal reasons. Powell, the 2010 NLL MVP scored nine goals, and had 23 assists in just six regular-season games for the Mammoth a year ago. He led the Mammoth with six points (3 G, 3 A) in the Western Division Semifinal in 2013. The Mammoth are definitely thrilled to have Powell back in the line-up, he is extremely excited to be back and ready to hit the floor to help the team win games.
In goal, for the Mammoth you have Dillon Ward #45 who has shown that he’s got what it takes to be a starting goaltender in the NLL. He anticipates where the shots are coming from before they leave the stick, he has quick hands, covers the net well, stays low and plays high. He is third in saves with 168 according to the NLL.com league leaders. The rookie has played in all seven Mammoth games, with his first full game against the Riggers coming away with the OT win and thereby giving him wins in both of the Mammoth’s only victories. He has 247 SOG, 188 saves, 59 GA, 12.05 GAA, and a .761 save percentage.
The Swarm goaltenders are Tyler Carlson #30 who is currently ranked third in Goals Against Average (GAA) with 8.60 according NLL.com, has two losses on the season, 88 SOG, 62 saves, 26 GA, 10.68 GAA, and a .705 save percentage; and Zach Higgins #31 who has one win and one loss, 73 SOG, 58 saves, 15 GA, 9.95 GAA, and a .795 save percentage. At this time, the Swarm starting goaltender position for Saturday’s game against the Mammoth hasn’t been determined, but both net-minders rank close in save percentages to Ward who is likely to be starting in goal this weekend after coming off a strong complete game last weekend. With the momentum coming off last weekend’s victory, I see Ward coming away with another win.
The Mammoth may have finally figured out what they need to do to win games. Their defense was extremely strong against the Riggers, transitioning was on the mark, they were coming up with rebounds and loose balls, and finding a way to score goals quickly and often. They played a full 60 minutes of strong lacrosse last weekend and with the return of Powell and Westervelt, the spectacular athleticism and scoring by Jones, Grant Jr., and Pollock, if they can combine that with another strong defensive showing, I see another high scoring game by Colorado, and the Mammoth walking away with their third victory of the 2014 season.
