What a game!
Well, Stanley, what a way to start the Bandits playoffs with a thrilling 10-9 overtime victory last Saturday night against Georgia.
With excellent defense and goaltending on both sides of the floor, transition goals, lead changes, a three-goal run by the Bandits, a classic claw-back four-goal run by the Swarm, and…
…disallowed goals, power plays, and a classic “walk-off” goal by Josh Byrne to end it after four minutes of sudden death time; the more reasons to type this sport is the most exciting.
“Clouts had a huge turnover at center, and then he was telling me where to go,” said Byrne, recounting the set-up of the game-winner. “Give all the credit to Cloutier for all the dirty work and for setting a pick. Cloutier, Buchanan, Nanticoke, and Fraser did a lot of the dirty work all night. I appreciate those guys so much.”
Recounting the stir of emotion at the closing seconds of regulation time, tied at nine, when Dhane Smith fired a blistering low shot past Georgia netminder Brett Dobson, but after a frame-by-frame review, time had already run out.
“There was so much action going on. It was an unreal game with tons of highs and lows. You want to fight even harder and have a positive attitude with a next-play mentality,” said Byrne.
Game Winner
Rewatching Byrne’s game-winner, I noticed a sense of calm and confidence among not only Byrne but also Cloutier, Buchanan, Fraser, and Smith formatting the play.
It was as if Bob Sheppard, the late great public address announcer of the New York Yankees, were saying, “Number twenty-two Josh Byrne. Byrne.”
You just had a feeling when Byrne made that deke and then set himself up top with that swing, and in a matter of milliseconds, it was in.
What a shot by Byrne, my heavens! And five goals on the night by the league’s top scorer during the regular season.
Just stay at it
“We stuck with the game plan, and we’ve done a great job of being successful in the playoffs,” said Bandits head coach John Tavares.
“I think the guys have done a great job all year, and now we are finding ways to win again, and that’s what matters.”
What matters most now is continuing the solid defensive play, excellent goaltending by Matt Vinc, and the spread of offensive firepower the Bandits possess, which vaulted them to the most explosive in the league during the regular season.
“The scoreboard resets at 0-0, but there is some comfort and confidence that goes a long way,” said defenseman Paul Dawson. “Us playing the way we are supposed to be playing brings a little bit of confidence and helps.”
The Best Rivalry in the NLL
And now, the semifinal matchup, again, against the Toronto Rock, which starts at 7:30 pm Friday inside the First Ontario Centre in Hamilton.
Game two will be back at KeyBank Center on Sunday with a 5 pm start.
Regardless of the Bandits’ success over the seasons and playoffs, the Rock is the number-one team in the NLL.
“You can change the standings all you want. The rivalry between us and Toronto continues. Two great teams are going head-to-head. It will be a battle, and I’m sure it will get even crazier,” said Byrne.
Two of the Rock’s three regular-season losses came from the Bandits. But those victories during the season and past playoffs mean nothing—just extra ink in the record books.
Buffalo Bandits vs Georgia Swarm quarterfinal playoff game, April 27, 2024 at KeyBank Center.
And they have been thinking about this series since the last one, where they lost two games to none in the previous playoff series.
“They are always fun with the best rivalry in lacrosse,” said Ian MacKay, who netted a beauty of transition goal, assisted on Nick Weiss’s goal, had seven loose balls, and fired six shots on goal Saturday night.
“We’ve had a good run (against Toronto), but they are on top of the league this year and are a really talented team top to bottom. Nick Rose had the best year he’s ever had in all categories. It’s going to be a tough task.”
Broadcast
The game on Friday night will be televised on CW23, TSN, ESPN+, and TSN+ at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday’s game will be carried on ESPNU, TSN, ESPN+, and TSN+. Broadcast time is 5:30 p.m.
Radio coverage for the series will be on WGR Sports Radio 550 AM and audacy.com. The pregame show on Friday will start at 7 p.m., and Sunday’s pregame show will start at 5:00 p.m.
Steve Bermel will join me in the booth, and Dave Buchanan will be on the playing field with updates and notes.