In terms of a lacrosse game, game one of the conference finals between the Buffalo Bandits and Toronto Rock was an instant classic. But for the Bandits and the city of Buffalo, it was far more. Tragedy struck the city of Buffalo Saturday afternoon, as a heinous, senseless mass shooting at a local grocery store left 10 people dead. The attack was racially driven, and that hits home to the…
The Buffalo Bandits’ “drive for five” was underway at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York Saturday night. The visiting Albany FireWolves were looking to spoil that party and advance in this year’s playoffs. Albany had a tough task, as Buffalo finished as the league’s top team, and had the support of 12,535 of the Banditland faithful. These two teams met twice this year, with Buffalo winning both. If you’re a…
For years, there’s been an immovable object that has stood in the way of the Colorado Mammoth. That object was the Calgary Roughnecks and on Friday night the Mammoth finally smashed through and defeated their longtime playoff foe with a convincing 16-12 victory. The Mammoth played a textbook road game highlighted by two four-goal runs in the second half to secure their berth in the West Conference Finals. Connor Robinson…
“There’s nothing more exciting than one game, win or go home. It’s basically a game seven,” said Toronto Rock head coach Matt Sawyer following Toronto’s 14-13 overtime win over the Halifax Thunderbirds. Under normal circumstances, that’s a true statement. On Friday night, it was an understatement. Halifax fought back from a 9-3 halftime deficit to tie the Rock at 13 midway through the fourth quarter. Outside of the final media…
The Halifax Thunderbirds have one more shot against the Toronto Rock this season. They played Toronto three times during the regular season, more than any other team, and won the season series two games to one. They will face their rivals one final time in the quarter-finals on Friday night in Hamilton, Ont. Game time is 7:30 and it’s the Game of the Week on TSN. “When you’re playing a…
Despite the Calgary Roughnecks and the Colorado Mammoth having already clinching their spots in the 2022 NLL Postseason, there was still the matter of home field advantage to settle. If you thought either team was satisfied to coast into the playoffs, then it took only six seconds for you to change your mind. Colorado’s Zed Williams absolutely wall-papered Ethan Ticehurst off the opening faceoff with an illegal body check and…
Following the Rochester Knighthawks’ season ending 13-10 loss to the playoff bound Halifax Thunderbirds, Paul Dawson called it a “microcosm of our season.” The description was not only unexpected (and awesome!) but perfect. Dawson said, “We’re there, we’re winning, we’re tied and then we just let it fall away from us.” Head coach Mike Hasen echoed the statement, saying, “We just stalled… They kept coming, they kept pushing.” Ryan Smith…
Blaze Riorden saved the Philadelphia Wings on Saturday night, but not as a goaltender, of course – this isn’t field lacrosse. Riorden’s game winning goal in overtime allowed the Wings to fly over the Georgia Swarm to clinch the final NLL playoff spot. The Wings will cross over to the West Division to face the San Diego Seals this Saturday, May 7th at 10 p.m. There are so many things…
The Saskatchewan Rush beat the Panther City Lacrosse Club 13-9 on Saturday night to wrap up their seasons. With the win, the Rush finish with an 8-10 record, in fourth place in the West Division; PCLC ends the season at 7-11, in fifth place. The season has to be considered a huge disappointment for the Rush, a team that hasn’t missed the playoffs in more than a decade. A team…
The rivalry continues. Going into the game Saturday night, Toronto and Buffalo were tied at one game apiece for the season, they are the top two teams in the NLL, and both teams already locked in their spots for the playoffs with no chance of moving up or down in the standings. But wait, there’s more! Both teams are coming off a bye week, both teams are 8-2 over their…