The Buffalo Bandits made eight selections in the 2026 NLL Draft on Thursday.
Buffalo selected transition player Dante Bowen with the sixth-overall pick. Bowen spent last season playing short-stick defensive midfield at Syracuse University and played box lacrosse for the MSL’s Brampton Excelsiors.
Dante Bowen makes every possession a battle 💪
Watch the first round of the 2026 NLL Entry Draft presented by Capelli Sport at 6 p.m. ET on Facebook and YouTube pic.twitter.com/hngSOzH5bG
— NLL (@NLL) September 23, 2026
The Bandits’ draft class includes several players with local ties. Third-round pick Obrigh Tallchief played collegiately at D’Youville and is an Irving native, as is fourth-round pick Raymond Cortes II. Fifth-round pick Micah Hanson played at Canisius College and sixth-round selection Kyle Gonsoriek is a Jr. Bandits product.
Tallchief and Gonsoriek also won a National Collegiate Box Series championship as teammates with the Buffaloes, a Bandits-sponsored team.
With the final pick of the draft, Buffalo selected former Jr. Bandits player Nikhil Lowe. The team signed Lowe to an honorary pre-Draft contract earlier this month, days before he passed away following a battle with germ cell cancer.
With our final pick in the 2026 NLL Entry Draft, we are proud to select Niky Lowe.
Niky is forever in our hearts and will forever be a member of our Bandits family. 🤍 https://t.co/a4kVwVxMuS pic.twitter.com/egfuCW3XUZ
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) September 25, 2026
Buffalo’s full 2026 draft class is as follows:
Round 1, Pick 6 – Dante Bowen, T
Round 2, Pick 21 – Owen Rice, F
Round 3, Pick 41 – Obrigh Tallchief, D
Round 4, Pick 48 – Raymond Cortes, D
Round 5, Pick 57 – Micah Hanson, T
Round 6, Pick 64 – Kyle Gonsiorek, D
Round 6, Pick 65 – Nate Ruff, D
Round 6, Pick 67 – Nikhil Lowe, G