The Panther City Lacrosse Club (PCLC) hosted the Calgary Roughnecks this weekend in the inaugural matchup between the two clubs. The Calgary squad, fresh off a one-goal home floor loss Friday night, made the trip to Fort Worth, Texas for the Sunday night showcase. The PCLC has had a tough start to their season, chalking up only one win with seven losses to start their first season. Calgary brought home the two points and the “W” in this inaugural matchup, holding on for a 13-2 win.
Before tonight’s game the PCLC offence had been led statistically by Will Malcom with 26 points (9G/17A). Patrick Dodds was right behind Malcolm with 25 points (8G/17A), with Mike Triolo contributing 24 points (8G/16A) and Phil Caputo with 18 points (14G/4A).
The Panther City Lacrosse Club’s offence came out flying with a quick three in the back of the Roughnecks’ net in the first three minutes of the first quarter. Calgary quickly responded with a 6-0 offensive run, which led them into the second quarter with a multiple-goal lead. Panther City immediately responded with a five-goal run, battling hard, looking for their second win of the season. Calgary’s Tyler Burton ended the first half with a long bomb into the empty net for an 8-7 Roughnecks lead.
Calgary and Panther City alternated goals in the third and fourth quarters in a hard effort game between both clubs. Calgary came out on top holding onto the two points with a tight score of 13-12. PCLC continued to show the NLL they can compete and will be a hard-working team in every contest. Their current 1-8 record does not directly reflect what this new club is capable of.
The Calgary offence was led on the score sheet by Tyler Pace with eight points (3G/5A) and Jesse King with another seven-point night (1G/7A). Calgary had 11 different players that tallied points on the scoresheet.
Panther City’s offensive threats continued their strong play, with Malcom and Dodds each tallying a goal and five assists. Newly signed Cam Milligan led the way with a hat trick and a pair of assists.
One Calgary player brought the term “vacuum” to a whole new level. Zach Currier was a loose ball machine in the game, scooping up a total count of 21 loose balls. This number is significant because it automatically gave the Roughnecks 21 additional possessions and chances to score.
Next, Panther City hosts the Vancouver Warriors on February 26, 2022 and the Calgary Roughnecks enter their bye week and won’t suit up until Friday March 4, 2022.
