The Buffalo Bandits continue their road trip this weekend as they take on the Philadelphia Wings for a Saturday matinee at Wells Fargo Center. Faceoff is set for 1:00 p.m. on CW23 and ESPN+ while radio coverage can be found on WWKB 1520.
The Bandits (7-7) are looking to get back over .500 and stay in the playoff race after a 12-11 overtime loss to Panther City last week. Tehoka Nanticoke took the lead for the Bandits with 54 seconds left in regulation, but Panther City tied it in the closing seconds and tallied the game winner in overtime.
“I think you try to learn from it all,” forward Josh Byrne said. “We made some pretty big mistakes throughout the game that ultimately cost us the game and we have to learn from those mistakes. … We’ve got a group that can go on a run here. We just have to make sure we remember them, learn from them, and not do them again going forward.”
The matchup between the Bandits and the Wings (5-9) marks the first and only meeting between the two teams this season, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t familiarity between the groups.
Paul Dawson is heading into his third game as a member of the Bandits and can provide some extra insight on many of the Wings forwards with over a decade of experience in the league.
“Playing in the league for so long and playing with and against these guys, they’re some of the best players in the league for a reason,” Dawson said. “It helps you game plan and gives you at least an idea of what they’re trying to do out there on the floor. It definitely gives you – I wouldn’t say an advantage – but maybe some comfortability about it.”
Buffalo defeated Philadelphia twice last season after posting a 13-9 win over the Wings in Philadelphia on Jan. 27, 2023, and a 13-12 overtime victory in Buffalo on Feb. 18, 2023.
“We’re very similar teams and there’s a lot of ex-Buffalo players on their team, so I think both teams are trying to prove why they’re better than the other,” Byrne said. “I think that creates physicality and raises the level of compete and I think at the end of the day makes for a great lacrosse game.”
Here’s more before the game.
A veteran perspective
Going down the back stretch of a season, teams often look to the calming presence of a veteran. That was what the Bandits brought in at the trade deadline with Dawson. A guy who has been in these fighting situations before and knows how to stay cool under pressure.
Dawson looks to continue to have an impact as the Bandits make their playoff push.
“You’ve got to look at the process and not the result, which is tough to do, obviously,” Dawson said. “Every team wants to get wins and wants them as soon as possible, but we’ve got to make sure we’re sticking to what works for us and trusting that process is going to give us the result we desire.”
Dawson’s understanding of the process was a key reason players like Smith told him to speak up right when he got to Buffalo. Those types of interactions have been key to making Dawson an immediate presence in the Bandits locker room.
“The guys have been good, and the organization has been awesome to me, welcomed me with open arms,” he said. “I think the sentiment in the room is we know how good we are, obviously the season hasn’t gone how the past couple seasons have gone for us but also I think that helps build some character and build a little bit of resolve when things don’t come easy.”
On offense
Forward Brandon Robinson was activated from injured reserve last Friday ahead of the Bandits’ game against Panther City, giving the Bandits another lefthanded option on offense this weekend in Philadelphia.
“B-Rob is a special talent,” Byrne said. “Very rarely in this league do you get the combination of size and the soft mitts, as I would like to say. He’s very smart, he’s unselfish. He does all the dirty work and won’t complain about it ever, actually enjoys it, which is a great quality to have.”
Along with scoring from offensive play, the Bandits are always looking to score in transition. They started a fourth-quarter run against Panther City with a transition goal from Adam Bomberry, who also returned from IR last Friday.
Dawson knows how important good transition play can be to getting an offense going.
“It creates momentum, and it makes the offense’s job a little easier and gives them a boost,” Dawson said. “Most teams that win the transition game have a pretty high percentage of winning the game.”
Scouting the Wings
The Wings are coming off a 16-12 loss to the Saskatchewan Rush on Thursday, which dropped them to nine losses on the season, falling further behind in the race for a playoff spot. Philadelphia currently sits in 12th place in the standings with four games remaining.
The Wings are led in scoring by Mitch Jones, who has 89 points (26+63) in 14 games, and Joe Resetarits, who leads the team in goals with 28 and is second in points with 76.
The Philadelphia defense is backstopped by former Bandit Zach Higgins. He’s averaged 40.5 saves per game this season.