If there were any doubts as to who the best team in the NLL is, John Tavares and the Buffalo Bandits just gave you the answer:
“Yeah, we’re still the best team in the league,” Tavares said.
The Bandits silenced the skeptics on Saturday night, beating the Saskatchewan Rush 15-6 in Game 3 of the NLL Finals to clinch their third consecutive NLL Cup. They accomplished the feat in decisive fashion, scoring eight unanswered goals and playing nearly 35 minutes of shutout defense in the second half.
Ian MacKay took home NLL Finals MVP honors after recording 24 points in the playoffs (16+8). Josh Byrne and Dhane Smith had nine and eight points, respectively, in Game 3 while Matt Vinc made 42 saves to win his sixth NLL championship, having now been a part of both three-peats in league history (he previously won three titles with Rochester from 2012 to 2014).
“Obviously the end goal every year is to win a championship,” MacKay said. “To do it for the third time in a row now is pretty unheard of. Obviously, there’s only been one other team to do it. So, to cement ourselves in history with that and to be able to do that is an unbelievable feeling.”
The Bandits had three goals for this season – make the playoffs, get home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and win a championship – check, check and check.
The goal wasn’t to win a third consecutive championship, just win a championship – singular.
That’s how they finished on top this year, by keeping a short-term view on the season, keeping their focus on the next game at hand. Even during the seven-game win streak to open the year and the 4-4 tumble to the end of the season, they didn’t look ahead to the playoffs.
“It’s easy for the guys to be complacent. We’ve been to the championship five years in a row now,” Tavares said. “We had it handed to us the first two years. I think that was a learning lesson for the next three. I’m impressed how our team, how the players on the team continuously put their bodies on the line after having so much success.”
Behind the team for all three championships and setting the tone for each game was an army of fans in Banditland, who set an attendance record during the regular season and sold out the 19,070-seat building on Saturday. Although they couldn’t set picks on the field, they were banging on the glass and making sure that whoever walked into KeyBank Center knew it was going to be the toughest 60 minutes of lacrosse they’ve ever played.
Even when the Bandits came so close to lifting the NLL Cup but fell short, the fans were there picking their team up. After losing Game 3 in 2022 at home to the Colorado Mammoth, the team’s second NLL Finals loss in a row, Byrne remembers sitting on the turf as the fans came to life for one final time that season.
‘Let’s Go Bandits’ chants rained down from the sold-out crowd. Now, Banditland has been paid back for their patience and support with back-to-back-to-back championships.
“I think the fans are a big part of our success,” Tavares said. “I think we’re very fortunate to have the support we have here in Buffalo. Whenever we play at home, I think it’s a huge advantage for us. Players, regardless of the championship game, regardless of what game it is, it’s hard not to get up and play your best for these fans.”
The Bandits have been an anomaly in the league. They’ve achieved sustained success by making five consecutive NLL Finals and winning three straight championships, but their success comes from another anomaly in the NLL – keeping a consistent core.
The Bandits have 11 players on their current roster from their first of five straight championship appearances in 2019, continuity that’s often unseen in professional sports. This continuity bred chemistry and unselfishness, qualities that have helped the Bandits be on top season after season, echoed by the Finals MVP who just capped off a career-best campaign.
“To put your ego aside like that and to be selfless like that, I think that just goes to show what kind of team we are,” MacKay said. “It’s obviously a nice accolade (to win Finals MVP), but to win three in a row is even better.”
Amid swinging orange rally towels and a raucous Banditland crowd, the game got off to a quick start with Saskatchewan scoring 24 seconds in. However, it became clear that neither team was going to give way to the other, going goal for goal with each other.
Following Saskatchewan’s quick goal, Byrne scored a goal of his own before the Rush answered 17 seconds later, prompting Smith to join the action and bring the game back to a tie, zipping a shot from the KeyBank Center logo past Frank Scigliano.
Buffalo and Saskatchewan both scored again before the end of the quarter to bring it to three goals apiece heading into the second quarter.
The Great Dhane doing great things! 🙌#LetsGoBandits | @NLL pic.twitter.com/WfacCx1Izh
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) May 24, 2025
After being quelled by the back-and-forth nature of the first quarter, Byrne burnt up the crowd, igniting a run when he bounced a shot past Scigliano to give the Bandits their first lead of the game. A minute later, MacKay and Dylan Robinson played give-and-go on the fast break, resulting in MacKay going airborne over the crease to score. Not long after, Byrne scored his third goal of the game, doubling his playoff goal total and doubling Buffalo’s goal total, going from three to six in a matter of 1:26.
Watch Mickey GO! 💨#LetsGoBandits | @NLL pic.twitter.com/bghPJxRRlI
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) May 24, 2025
Buchanan made it four consecutive goals to put Buffalo up 7-3, capping off the run before Saskatchewan slowly made their way back, scoring three goals before halftime to give the Bandits a 7-6 lead at the break.
“I didn’t know when I could breathe easy because we had a 7-3 lead in the second quarter, and they fought their way back to make it 7-6 going into halftime,” Tavares said. “We tried to stay positive at half and, like Dhane said, just commit and invest and do the little things offensively.”
In typical Chase Fraser fashion, he scored another highlight goal, going behind the back as he toed the edge of the crease. From there, the Bandits piled on.
“I mean, he’s such a talented player,” MacKay said. “You watch him in practice and shootaround and he’s throwing these crazy shots and you’re like, ‘Oh, man, do we really want to do that right now?’ But he finds a way to put it in every time and it’s impressive.”
CHASE FRASER CAN’T BE STOPPED! 🤯#LetsGoBandits | @NLL pic.twitter.com/YqDMn8fazW
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) May 24, 2025
Five more unanswered goals across the rest of the third quarter gave the Bandits a 13-6 lead and quieted the Rush, as Saskatchewan was unable to find any answer. Matt Vinc made 13 saves and shut out Saskatchewan in the quarter, not giving the Rush any chance to rebuild momentum.
“Defense was stellar, (Vinc) was great when he had to be, and the guys got rolling,” Tavares said. “Chase scores a nice one, they feed off of it, and it was nice to win a game where we didn’t have to rely on any 6-on-5 or getting penalties late in the game.”
The six-goal offensive output and shutdown defense resulted in Banditland becoming more and more rowdy with each big play, rising from their seats as the third quarter finished, turning the blue seats of the KeyBank Center into a wave of orange.
On the defensive end, Vinc and the defense sucked all life from Saskatchewan, holding them scoreless for the entire fourth quarter and the final 34:18 of the game thanks to Vinc and 10 blocked shots from the five guys in front of him.
Buchanan and Cam Wyers capped off the third consecutive championship, increasing the Bandits’ win differential by two, making it 15-6.
“It’s hard to be good for so long. I’m just happy we got this three-peat,” Tavares said. “We didn’t talk about the three-peat all year long, but it’s nice to finally say we did that.”
2025 NLL CUP CHAMPIONS! 🏆#LetsGoBandits | @NLL pic.twitter.com/pB7Z8OY9Fx
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) May 24, 2025