Josh Byrne scored 4:01 into overtime to lift the Buffalo Bandits to a 10-9 victory over the Georgia Swarm in their single-elimination quarterfinal game at KeyBank Center on Saturday.
The Swarm held a 9-8 lead with 6:34 remaining in the game but Kyle Buchanan put away a rebound in front of the net to tie the score with 5:55 to go.
The Bandits nearly scored the go-ahead goal on three separate occasions in the remaining minutes of the game, beginning with a shot from Byrne that appeared to cross the goal line with just over five minutes remaining. Coach John Tavares threw the challenge flag to review the shot but did not use his challenge in time. Byrne almost scored again with less than a minute left as his shot deflected off the post before Buffalo forced a 30-second clock violation by Georgia and called a timeout with 5.5 seconds remaining. Dhane Smith nearly scored the game winner but the time on the clock expired before the ball crossed the goal line.
“I think this is why this is the best sport that there is,” Byrne said following the emotional win. “I don’t know how many sports you get that kind of action. …It’s an unreal game with tons of highs and lows and you got to just stay composed and keep fighting.”
The Bandits, who have won seven of their last eight games, advanced to the NLL Semifinals with the win and will face the Toronto Rock in a best-of-three series, which kicks off Friday, May 3 at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, Ontario.
Tickets for Game 2 in Buffalo are on sale now.
On to the next! ➡️ pic.twitter.com/mczPIRrGSH
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) April 28, 2024
Byrne led the Bandits with five goals and one assist for six points while Smith recorded six assists. Tehoka Nanticoke, Kyle Buchanan, Ian MacKay, Nick Weiss, and Chris Cloutier also scored for Buffalo. Goaltender Matt Vinc stopped 46 of 55 shots, limiting the Swarm to just four goals in the second half.
Lyle Thompson (2+3) and Andrew Kew (3+2) each posted four-point performances for Georgia. Brendan Bomberry tallied a hat trick and added an assist. Brett Dobson made 49 saves in the opposing net.
“Maybe a little too close for our comfort, but credit to them, they held us to a really tight game and both goalies played unbelievable,” MacKay said. “Those are the real fun ones.”
Bomberry opened the scoring 26 seconds into the game before MacKay scored in transition just over three minutes later to put the Bandits on the board. The Swarm answered back on the next possession with a goal from Kew in front of the crease to give Georgia a 2-1 lead at the end of the opening quarter.
The Bandits tied the score 4:38 into the second frame after MacKay and Nick Weiss raced down the field on a 2-on-1 as Weiss faked the pass and beat Dobson to make it 2-2, but Thompson answered less than a minute later to give Georgia its lead back again. Josh Byrne tallied a hat trick in the second, including a goal with 4:11 remaining in the quarter to give the Bandits their first lead of the night and a power-play goal with 53 seconds left to put the Bandits up 5-4. Bomberry closed out the scoring in the first half with a late goal to tie the score at 5-5 at halftime.
Buffalo scored three straight goals in the third to take an 8-5 lead with 7:17 left in the quarter but the Swarm responded with a four-goal run to retake the lead.
Buchanan’s game-tying goal in the final quarter marked his second point of the night before Byrne tallied his overtime winner.
“You’ve got to give a lot of credit to Georgia,” Tavares said. “Down 8-5, come back, score the next four goals to go up 9-8. We stick with it and tie it and, obviously, won in overtime for an exciting finish.”
Here’s more from the win.
1. Following the game, Byrne credited Cloutier with doing the work that led to the game-winning goal.
“Clooch with a huge caused turnover to stop them from breaking up the floor, and then sets a massive pick,” Byrne said. “You know, he does all the work and I just get to shoot it around the guy. Thankful for Clooch because I don’t think he gets enough credit.”
JOSH BYRNE CALLED GAME‼️#LetsGoBandits | @Joshbyrne94 pic.twitter.com/jukcXByqbK
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) April 28, 2024
2. Smith’s six assists boosted his career playoff assist total to 104. He needs just three more assists in the playoffs to pass Dan Dawson for second all-time in career playoff assists.
3. The Bandits will visit the Rock for Game 1 of the NLL Semifinals on Friday before returning home to Banditland on Sunday.
The full series schedule is as follows:
Game 1 at Toronto – Friday, May 3 at 7:30 p.m.
Game 2 at KeyBank Center – Sunday, May 5 at 5:30 p.m. (previously scheduled for 5 p.m.)
*Game 3 at Toronto – Saturday, May 11 at 7 p.m.
*if necessary