We’ve finally arrived! The National Lacrosse League 2014 season kicks off this Saturday, December 28th with three games, two commencing at 7:30pm, and a third at 9pm.
All three games will be streamed for a small payment of $free, so no excuses for missing the action! The Lacrosse Network will partner with YouTube.com/NLL to broadcast the games from Buffalo, NY, Colorado, and Rochester, NY.
Here are your official ILWT predictions from me:
1) Philadelphia Wings at Buffalo Bandits (7:30pmEST)
The Wings put in their work at training camp. They created a well-balanced team position-wise with 4 transition players, 8 forwards and 6 defenders. This is a similar approach that they tried last season; this year the inactive list is twice as long, and includes names like Rabil, Crotty, Hajek, Schiller and Miller (I wanted to end with a rhyme).
Buffalo will enter the season looking to make a statement. New coach Troy Cordingley has been hard at work reconstructing the Bandits into a team that he feels resembles the Hall of Fame personalities and abilities. Players are ready for a change and eager to try out new strategies. The Wings are a good team for a first try at new tactics because they did not change up many things. A new system (Buf) against a consistent program (Phi) will sure be a showcase.
Prediction: Bandits 17 Wings 13
2) Minnesota Swarm at Rochester Knighthawks (7:30pmEST)
Minnesota is full of youthful talent this season, consisting of mostly rookies and sophomore players. “Callum Crawford is going to play a real crucial role in the success for the Swarm. Most of the Swarm are rookie players, but he’s been in the league for 8 years, so a lot of the younger players are going to look up to him for advice and such, so he brings that veteran presence to the Swarm which is usually lacking.” –Ryan Zunner, Writer for Big Z Lacrosse/Broadcaster for Buffalo Thunder
The Knighthawks will defend a two-peat Championship reputation with their all-acclaimed goaltender Matt Vinc. He is a dominating force in the cage, taking more shots than the average goalie and blocking even more than the average cage-man (Caveman, get it? hahaha). Besides, the nickname for Rochester is “The Rock,” so I think they’re pretty solid…
Prediction: Knighthawks 14 Swarm 5
3) Edmonton Rush at Colorado Mammoth (9pmEST / 7pmMST)
This will be the closest game of the weekend. I expect back-and-forth goal exchanges for the majority of playing time. Edmonton will look to Mark Mathews for a leadership role as he hopes to build off a phenomenal rookie season performance. His high intensity play will force a ton of pressure on the Mammoth defense and goaltender.
In response to that, Colorado also has a goalie similar to Rochester’s Vinc who takes more shots that normal. Yet, his saves percentage is ridiculously high at .758 for taking extra shots. The Mammoth also have a strong offense going into this 2014 season.
Prediction: Rush 20 Mammoth 18
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