The Buffalo Bandits return to KeyBank Center for Friday Night Lights and Y2K Night when they face off against the Ottawa Black Bears at 7:30 p.m.
The Bandits (3-2) will be honoring an accomplished member of the Western New York lacrosse community as Gary Sundown – a 25-year coach at Akron High School and founder of the Tonawanda Braves program – will be named the John Faller Memorial Award winner during the game.
The Bandits are looking to bounce back following an inconsistent offensive showing in their 12-9 defeat against the Rochester Knighthawks on Jan. 10. The Bandits went scoreless in the third quarter with a goalless drought of over 20 minutes and had a season-high 33 turnovers.
Playing a cleaner game against a high-octane Ottawa offense is a key piece of emphasis for head coach John Tavares, who said the mental and physical miscues were detrimental in the loss to Rochester.
“I thought it wasn’t the chemistry, it was the focus,” Tavares said. “I just didn’t think that we were on point. We’re just dropping balls, throwing balls away, not catching the balls, just unforced turnovers. When your team is doing that, the message is, ‘Just go back to basics, keep it simple, do what you do best, and don’t try to overthink the situation.’ Obviously, don’t try to create something that’s not there. I think on several occasions in Rochester, there was just way too many unforced errors.”
After playing Rochester, who is one of the highest producing offenses in the league, the Bandits have another tough test against Ottawa which leads the NLL in goals with 76.
Ottawa often mirrors Rochester’s style where shooting from the outside is a fabric of their offensive scheme. The Black Bears pace the NLL with 344 shots on goal and have the league’s leading point producer in Jeff Teat, who has 44 points.
The Bandits gave up seven of the first 10 goals in the first half against Rochester and trailed by more than one goal for the first time all season. They’ll have to replicate their second-half defensive performance from last Saturday, when they held Rochester to one goal in the third quarter.
The Bandits will also be tasked with slowing down the Ottawa offense and in doing so, they’ll have to continue blocking shots which they do best in the NLL with 42 as a team.
Defenseman Paul Dawson is tied for the league lead in blocked shots with 11 while Thomas Whitty and Mitch de Snoo – who didn’t play against Rochester and remains on injured reserve – both have seven.
Tavares said the concept of stepping in front of shots has evolved over the last decade and he noted that it wasn’t a commonality during his playing days. Now, it’s become an expectation.
“Those guys must have a few screws loose to stand there and get in the way,” Tavares said. “Paul Dawson used to be a goalie so he’s used to taking a lot of shots. It seems like the norm now is a lot of guys blocking shots and I’ve been there, I’ve stood in front of a shot.
That shot’s coming, nine of 10 times I’m probably closing my eyes and trying to move out of the way and hope it doesn’t hit me. It takes a lot of courage for these guys do that. We’re fortunate in Buffalo that we have a handful of guys that it’s like second nature to them to just get in the way and not even flinch.”
How to watch
TV (Buffalo broadcast market): CW23
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: WWKB 1520 (7 p.m. pregame)
Mike McCannell acquired by the Bandits
The Bandits announced on Monday they acquired transition player Mike McCannell from the Philadelphia Wings for a 2028 third-round pick in the NLL Entry Draft.
McCannell was a 2021 first-round (fifth overall) selection by the San Diego Seals and debuted in 2023, when he had a career-high 10 points in 17 games.
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound transition player enhances the Bandits’ depth with the injuries to de Snoo, Zack Belter, Coltrane Tyson and Ryan Benesch. The latter two were listed as questionable on the NLL injury report last game against Rochester.
McCannell tallied at least 55 loose-ball recoveries over the last three seasons per NLLstats.com and Tavares said the latest addition could thrive in his new role.
“He’s a good left defenseman. … He just hasn’t been utilized,” Tavares said. “He was a first-round pick, and I hear he played in Orangeville, so a lot of guys that play in Orangeville are well coached. He’s a gritty defense man with good stick skills.”
Dylan Robinson “continues to get better and more confident”
With the injuries to de Snoo and Belter and amid the consistent play of players like Dawson, Nick Weiss and Steve Priolo, defenseman Dylan Robinson has thrived in his elevated role.
Robinson posted a single game career-high 10 loose-ball recoveries on Jan. 3 against the Las Vegas Desert Dogs and followed it up with another dominant showing, recording nine loose balls against Rochester.
The 19 loose-ball recoveries over the last two games are Robinson’s most in such a span. Robinson has 30 loose balls in five games with just two turnovers and Tavares said the fourth-year defenseman has cultivated a crucial role on the back end.
“When he came in as his rookie, we were thinking he was going to play three or four games, and once he got in, it was hard to take him back out,” Tavares said. “He played the majority of the games his rookie year. He just continues to get better and more confident. He’s starting to be a little bit more vocal out there as well. He’s a pretty quiet player, but when he’s out there, he’s definitely noticeable. He does a great job on defense and he does a phenomenal job on loose balls, both from the defensive end and on the face off.”
Scouting the Black Bears
Ottawa has won two of its last three games with 16-goal efforts in wins over Philadelphia and the Oshawa FireWolves. They fell to 3-3 with a 13-11 loss to Halifax on Jan. 9.
The Black Bears boast some of the top offensive talents in the NLL, including Teat’s league-leading 30 assists. Rob Hellyer is tied for third in the league in points with 37 and matches Teat with 14 goals.
Ottawa has stellar secondary scoring from Reilly O’Connor (11+22), who is ninth in the league in points, and Larson Sundown – the son of Gary Sundown, who’ll be receiving the John Faller Memorial Award.
Ottawa has outscored opponents 33-19 in the fourth quarters of games this season but has given up the most goals in the league, meaning they are comfortable playing a shootout style game. Tavares talked about the challenges of playing a team with a dynamic offense and one that’s comfortable shooting from anywhere on the floor.
“Step out further and get in their shooting lanes and get on their hands,” Tavares said on the defensive approach for Ottawa. “Don’t let them have all that time and space from the outside and force them to do things that they don’t want to do. If a player doesn’t particularly want to get to the net, force them to get to the net. The main concern on their team is they have one of the best players in Jeff Teat. How he plays is what leads to their team success. If he’s doing well, they’re probably doing well.”