A fist full of firsts occurred this past Saturday.
Goaltender Devlin Shanahan made his first NLL start; defenseman Zack Belter, one of the Bandits’ three first-round choices in 2022 (with Dylan Robinson and Cam Wyers), made his NLL debut; Frank Brown returned to the lineup for the first time since the 2022 playoffs, and…
For the first time since 2006, goaltender Matt Vinc missed a game due to an upper body injury. Also, newly acquired utility player Cory Highfield played his first game as a Bandit.
Game Cliffs Notes, Part I
Despite playing with a 2-0 lead and confidence throughout, the Bandits again fell prey to a second-half spell as if the late Jimi Hendrix had cast his song, “Voodoo Chile” on the team, submersing them in the blues.
Penalties didn’t help, but that’s another story. And the FireWolves’ four-goal run stung as the club dropped to 5-5 on the season. Oh, and scoring two goals after the buzzer.
Enough of the dreary diary I write.
The Best
Positively, the best part of the evening was the first career start for goaltender Devlin Shanahan.
“I was confident with him going in, and I thought he did a great job,” said Bandits head coach John Tavares. “There were a lot of great shooters on that team, and I thought he was stellar.”
With three regular season and three playoff appearances since 2020 totaling fifty-two minutes of career action, the 25-year old from Mississauga turned in a 46-save solid performance, including 28 in the first half.
“Shanny has been a backup a long time now and deserved his shot. I was happy to see him in there, and he played well enough for us to win,” said Bandit Kyle Buchanan.
“Vno is the best ever, and we’re going to miss him, but maybe we rely on him too much. It’s nice to see the guys step up and see Shanny have a good game.”
I thought he was excellent in front of a young and skilled group of FireWolves forwards who attempted 89 shots toward the Buffalo net. And to face such talent, a Buffalo defender-shy many times, was honorable.
The 17,952 inside Key Bank Center and the thousands at home watching and listening were very appreciative – and rightfully so.
“It was awesome to get his chance. We could have helped getting him shots he wanted to see more, but a credit to him,” said Ian MacKay.
The kid did good.
For all the practices and patience, wheeling his oversized equipment bag from here to there, taking relentless shots in rehearsals, Shanahan sat, stood, and crouched at the end of benches season after season, waiting with anticipation as a mangenue for his leading role.
Striding out of the Bandits dressing room door with 17 of his teammates, single file, in cadence behind him, Shanahan’s first step out onto the turf as the starting goaltender will be a moment he will never forget – and one to cherish for the rest of his life.
“Naturally, it’s in the back of your mind, and we wanted to get the win for Shanny, being his first start. But it doesn’t matter who’s in; Vno is the greatest of all time, or a rookie is stepping in. We need to start elevating our play,” said MacKay.
His father, Brian, a former NLL player and long-time broadcaster, must have been beside himself. I remember the first time Devlin was the backup in Toronto at Scotiabank Arena, and his dad was doing color for the television broadcast.
He stood proud on the Bandits bench during the morning shoot around. I saw it on his face, just like the credit card commercial: “All those games when he was a kid, not only in hockey but lacrosse – very expensive. Watching your son be the backup goaltender in a National Lacrosse League game? Priceless.”
Zack Attack
Zack Belter, homegrown from Wheatfield and former player for Randy Mearns’ St. Bonaventure Bonnies, made his NLL debut on the left side of the Bandit’s defense.
“I thought Zack did a great job. He’s a big, strong guy, and I liked what he has to bring to the table,” said Tavares.
The 6’5” 225-pounder soaked a huge shot – took one for the team – and two caused turnovers while pulling relief shifts.
“Zack Belter, a local guy, who has been putting in the work, coming back from an injury in the summer, just put his head down and got going,” said MacKay.
Frank
Great to see the smile on Frank Brown’s face back into a Bandits uniform for the first time since the 2022 playoffs. The sixth-year pro had to sit out the entire 2022-23 campaign and the first nine of this season with an injury.
“It’s nice to have Frank Brown back,” commented Tavares. “He’s a cross-checker and good on loose balls. I thought he did a good job.”
Cory’s Debut
Cory Highfield, a former member of the Rochester Knighthawks, brings more size at 6’2” and a left-handed shot that will help while Brandon Robinson remains out with an injury. It will take time to evaluate his play after one game and gauge how he acclimates to the Bandits offensive tactics.
About the Game – Part II
“I thought we were attacking by committee. I thought we got opportunities, but we didn’t bury them. We took too many penalties, and the defense was on the floor too much,” said Tavares in his postgame presser.
A great quote by Tavares extracted out of the penalties called on the Bandits: “I didn’t know we were twice as rough as they we’re…Were we that rough?”
Yes, penalties have been a problem in this four-game rinse-and-repeat cycle of opponent surges. But two goals were called back because there was no time left, which doesn’t help.
“We have to start scoring before the buzzer goes off. If those two went before, it could have been a different game,” noted MacKay.
Is there logic and timing?
I am not one for cliches, but it is time to go back to the basics. As Kyle Buchanan said, the club needs to focus on the small things and break the game into mini-games with both ends of the ball. Loose balls, playing tough in the corners, transitioning, and playing consistently.
“We’re playing hesitant and on our heels. Cudos to Mickey and the other guys on faceoffs, but we’re losing the loose ball battles. We need to be more aggressive, investing in our offense and keeping those runs going,” noted Buchanan.
“We are getting chances, but we must buckle down on those. I think we will do well if we can win the transition battle in games. In the years past, it’s something we really relied on,” said MacKay
March to May?
I appreciate the NLL’s marketing strategy with the “March to May” campaign, which is already throwing kindling on the playoff races with the new unified standings. But right now, for the Bandits, it’s one game at a time, and let’s get through March.
“With the unified schedule, every game matters a lot more than it has in the past. All we can do is go in and do our job and try and win a lacrosse game – whatever happens, happens,” quipped Tavares.
Next try: on the road against Vancouver
Broadcast Information
The Bandits face the Warriors Friday night inside Rogers Arena. The game will be covered on the radio at 1520 AM The Bet, audacy.com, ESPN+, and TSN+. It is also one of TSN’s Games of the Week as the nightcap. Broadcast time for television is 10 p.m. Eastern.
The radio pregame show will start at 9:30 p.m. It will feature interviews with Warriors coach and general manager Curt Malawsky and player Keegan Bal. From the Bandits, GM and defensive coordinator Steve Dietrich and Dhane Smith will update the Bandits camp.
If you want to follow the TV game with radio audio, freeze your TV at the faceoff, wait for the radio to catch up, and unfreeze when you hear the faceoff call on the radio.
Radio, audio and TV coverage should stay even throughout. Still, you can always freeze the TV, allowing the radio to catch up.