MATT VOLZ
Sports Editor
Well, that was interesting, to say the least.
Let’s start with the good: the Buffalo Bandits defeated the San Diego Seals in their National Lacrosse League (NLL) quarterfinal playoff game on Saturday, April 26.
Buffalo is advancing to the league semifinals for the fifth straight season, a sign of how dominant they’ve been in recent years.
Not to mention, the Bandits took the win in front of a raucous KeyBank Center crowd, and they’ll be right back at home to start their semifinal series.
Now, let’s transition to the weirdness of this game.
In a defensive battle, the Bandits beat the Seals by a final score of 5-4.
Yes, you read that correctly.
A playoff lacrosse game between two teams with solid offenses ended with a total of just nine goals scored.
According to NLL insider Graeme Perrow, this was the single lowest-scoring 60-minute game in the near 40-year history of the league.
The Bandits broke the record for the fewest goals scored by a winning team in NLL history.
They also became just the fourth team to ever win a game while being shut out for an entire half, and the first to do so in a playoff game.
But at this point in the season, a win is a win and that’s all that matters.
Banditland was packed for the game, as Buffalo fans eagerly hoped to watch their team begin a run to a third straight championship.
On the railings in each section, lights were installed that flashed orange and purple before and during the game, adding to the electric playoff atmosphere.
As expected in the playoffs, the game got physical early.
In the Bandits’ end of the floor, players got together while scrambling with a loose ball, and fans erupted as transition player Nick Weiss flattened one of the San Diego forwards.
One of the fans behind me compared the hit to former Sabres defenseman Brian Campbell’s hit on Philadelphia Flyers forward R.J. Umberger in the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
That check has become iconic in Buffalo sports lore, and perhaps the only elements better than the hit itself were Rick Jeanneret’s iconic call and the swell of noise from the fans that made it sound like the roof was about to be blown off.
While it wasn’t as loud at KeyBank Center on Saturday, the check brought many fans to their feet, and it symbolized Buffalo’s toughness throughout the season.
The Bandits opened the scoring, as Ian MacKay collected a loose ball and sliced through the San Diego defense to beat Seals goalie Christopher Origlieri.
All season, MacKay’s scoring touch has been a pleasant surprise. On a team with stars like Josh Byrne and Dhane Smith and other excellent contributors such as Chase Fraser, Kyle Buchanan, Tehoka Nanticoke and Chris Cloutier, it’s been MacKay who the Bandits have counted on in key moments this year.
The transition player scored 37 goals in the regular season, good for second on the team behind only Byrne.
He smashed his previous career high of 19 goals, which he set in 2023.
His goal was crucial, as it was the only one scored by either team in the first quarter.
Matt Vinc stood tall in net, keeping the San Diego offense at bay.
With each Vinc save, public address announcer Chris Swenson called out to the crowd, “What’s he got?”
The fans emphatically responded by simultaneously yelling, “Nothing!”
It’s one of the many call-and-response moments during every Bandits home game that keeps the crowd energized.
However, Vinc wouldn’t be able to completely deny the Seals.
Early in the second quarter, Seals transition player Zach Currier beat Vinc with a shot that went over the goalie’s right shoulder.
The team wasn’t done just yet, either.
On their very next possession, forward Wesley Berg received a pass in the middle of Buffalo’s defense and fired a shot past Vinc, giving the Seals their first lead of the night.
San Diego had scored two goals in just 38 seconds and taken the lead in enemy territory.
They wouldn’t score again for the rest of the first half.
With a touch under nine minutes left in the half, Smith sidestepped a defender and buried a shot behind Origlieri, tying the game.
Parodying the alternate captain’s first name, Banditland joined together to bark like dogs, saluting “the Great Dhane.”
They had now tied the game, but couldn’t get anything else past Origlieri for the next few possessions.
It was fitting that their next goal came immediately after the San Diego goalie made a save.
A shot by Byrne was stopped by Origlieri, but MacKay had positioned himself right outside the crease, and he put the rebound into the back of the net to give the Bandits the lead back.
Now playing with the lead, Buffalo used the speed of their transition players to set up offensive rushes.
Outside of MacKay, the Bandits have gotten scoring from several other transition players, including Assistant Captain Nick Weiss and Captain Steve Priolo.
This time, it was Weiss who found the net.
After stopping a San Diego chance, Vinc aired out a long pass to Weiss breaking down the left side of the floor, and the veteran slipped by one defender before beating Origlieri over his left side.
As I’ve said before, Weiss’s choice of “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks for his goal song is second to none.
I think I nearly lost my voice while singing along.
The Bandits held a 4-2 lead in the dying seconds of the half, looking to add one more goal.
Smith found Buchanan behind the net, who dove to the crease and snuck the ball by Origlieri right as time expired.
The goal was, of course, reviewed, and the overhead camera angle showed the ball crossing the line with 0.1 seconds on the clock.
Heading into halftime with a 5-2 lead, Buffalo was energized and ready to come out firing in the second half.
As I mentioned earlier, though, the offense would fire nothing but blanks across the final 30 minutes.
Another oddity of this game was the fact that there were no penalties through the entire first half.
That would change, and the Bandits found themselves shorthanded by two players at one point.
It didn’t last long, though, as the Seals took a penalty of their own and no scoring came from any trips to the penalty box.
Vinc continued to stand tall in net for the majority of the quarter, but a defensive lapse in front of him allowed the Seals to pull within two.
Tre Leclaire entered the offensive end and ran right around Bandits transition player Ron John, setting him up all alone in front of Vinc to cash in.
Leclaire’s goal was the only goal of the entire third quarter, however, and Buffalo led 5-3 with 15 minutes to play.
In the fourth quarter, Vinc’s masterclass in net continued, and the Bandits extended several possessions with second or third opportunities on the other end.
Unfortunately for Buffalo, Origlieri also continued to stymie the offense, turning away every shot he faced.
With 6:19 to go, Nanticoke received a nasty cross check to the back of the head, courtesy of Graydon Bradley.
It was originally called a five-minute major penalty, but it was reduced to a two-minute minor after review, much to the chagrin of the Bandits faithful.
Buffalo couldn’t capitalize on the power play, and to make matters worse, Byrne limped off the field and didn’t return.
The Bandits still held a two-goal lead when the Seals pulled Origlieri for an extra attacker.
What followed might be the worst sequence I have ever seen as a lacrosse fan.
Dylan Robinson picked up the ball and ran down towards the open net, firing a shot that missed wide.
When one of the Seals defenders picked up the loose ball, Robinson delivered a brutal cross check to the head that everyone in the building knew was a five-minute major.
There was less than a minute left, but still.
Never in my life have I seen a player miss a wide open net and then take an obvious penalty.
Despite being shorthanded, the Bandits held down the fort.
Ironically, the Seals also beat the buzzer, as Currier scored with just one second left.
Ultimately though, it didn’t matter. The final horn sounded, and the Bandits were on to the semifinal.
It certainly wasn’t pretty, but they got the job done, and that’s all that matters.
Next up are the Vancouver Warriors in a best-of-three series, with Game 1 at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, May 2 at KeyBank Center.
It’s unclear how serious Byrne’s injury is, but Buffalo is surely going to need to find some offense if they want a shot at getting back to the finals.
MATT’S HIGH FIVES
During every Bandits game, when the team scores, my family and I all send each other high fives over text.
It’s a way to keep in touch and all enjoy the game together, no matter where we are.
So, I thought it could be fun to share some high fives with my top five performers from each game.
This week’s high fives go to:
Matt Vinc: The ageless wonder faced 52 shots on goal and only allowed four to get past him. He stood on his head in this one.
Ian MacKay: His two goals were the difference, and he was the only Bandit to score more than one.
Christopher Origlieri: He kept the Bandits at bay for much of this game. Holding the league’s top offense to only five goals? What a performance, even with the loss.
Thomas Whitty: Another unsung hero, Whitty was rock solid in transition and on defense in this one. He had a noticeable impact on the game.
Banditland: There is truly no playoff atmosphere in the NLL that comes remotely close to Banditland. The energy was through the roof all night long, and that should continue throughout the playoffs.