It’s the Thunderbirds title to lose
Halifax had a major spotlight on them this week, but for all the wrong reasons. TMZ, Barstool, CBC, and everyone in between picked up the story about Tyson Bell getting into an altercation with fans, with further news coming that Denver police have become involved. It’s the kind of publicity no organization wants, and that can easily become a major distraction during the week. But the Birds played as mentally tough a game as you might see given the circumstances. They ran into a hot goalie early, as Doug Jamieson piled up saves early on even as the Birds got decent looks. Halifax trailed 5-0 after the first, and were down 9-3. They wont he game 13-9. From about the midway point of the third quarter until the end of the game, the Birds shut out Albany. Drew Hutchison came on in relief and didn’t surrender a goal. Dawson Theede was grinding out 1v2 loose ball wins to get extra possessions. Jake Withers went 15/26 against the dangerous Joe Nardella facing off. All that outside noise, and yet Halifax rallied in front a huge home crowd, with a backup goalie on in relief, didn’t get discouraged by a slow start, and rallied to get a huge win at home. That’s championship toughness. And, as icing on the cake, Maki Jenner made history as the first women to do color analysis for an NLL broadcast for the game.
A whole lot of fans got some NLL tickets in their stocking
Crowds this weekend were outstanding across the league. Toronto and Ottawa, in chapter two of the Battle of Ontario, sold out their venue with over 5,000 fans. Is that a massive number? No, but I’m of the opinion that selling out venues is good, because it means the sport is ready for larger venues in that area. Buffalo packed Banditland to a capacity 19,070 fans. Over 10,000 fans were on hand for the already discussed Halifax Thunderbirds game against Albany. And over 13,000 fans, including a sold out lower bowl, attended the game in Calgary against Vancouver. On Sunday, the Loud House was once again packed for a game against Georgia, with nearly 10,000 on hand for a tough loss but great game. Attendance the first few weeks has had some ups and downs, the holiday weekend crowd was excellent.
There are records left that Matt Vinc doesn’t own?
The Bandits raised a banner for their 2nd straight championship, and then scored a goal 20 seconds into the game. You got a feeling immediately it could be a rough knight for Rochester. Bandits got out to a 6-0 start, cruised to a 13-6 win. Dhane Smith and Josh Byrne combined for 19 points, highlight goals abounded, and yet the guy who stole the show was, yet again, the Bandits 42 year old goaltender, Matt Vinc. The official game sheet credits Vinc with an absurd 62 saves, a new Bandits franchise record. My first thought was, he didn’t already hold that record? Vinc has five rings. In a 12 year span, he won Goalie of the Year eight times. It was stunning to see Vinc set another record, because I just sort of assumed he owned them all at this point. And then I got the info from Graeme Perrow, Vinc broke his own record. And of the top 15 single game save totals for the Bandits since 2005, eight were done by Vinc. I know this is overreactions, but I have no way to overreact to Matt Vinc anymore.
Georgia. Buffalo. Championship Collision Course
Four teams entered the weekend without a loss. Saskatchewan and Calgary took their first losses of the year on Saturday, both of them losing at home. The Rush lost in OT because they can’t seem to play a regulation game. They finally flew too close to the sun as Holden Cattoni spoiled the game for the Rush fans. Calgary was 2-0 before they hosted Vancouver, and the Warriors continue to be the friskiest team in the NLL. The Warriors never trailed, their young but stout defense handled the Dickson/Dobbie duo and held them to 9 combined points. The two teams that emerged unscathed are Georgia and Buffalo. The last time Georgia got out to this good a start, they won the championship. The last two years that Buffalo has just played lacrosse, they won the championship. Georgia’s wins are impressive. Road wins against San Diego and Colorado, home wins against San Diego and Toronto. Not cupcakes. This week they get to head back home to host Rochester. The smallest margin of victory for Buffalo through three games is a seven goal beating of Rochester in Banditland. They blew out Rochester on the road and Ottawa on the road by even wider margins. They have a bye then host Toronto in Banditland.
2023-24 Albany FireWolves, Fluke
Albany made a trip to the Finals last year, but they’re off to a bad start. After losing to winless Halifax this weekend, they sit at 1-3, their lone victory is over the winless Toronto Rock. The formula hasn’t really changed. Alex Simmons is leading the team in scoring, the offense is productive, and Doug Jamieson has been great in net. But they’ve now been on the wrong end of two OT games, and choked a lead away in Halifax. These are things that title contenders don’t do. They can’t do. Albany started on fire a year ago and charged in the playoffs, but they ended the regular season losing five of their last six games. That looks like the form that’s carried over so far. This weekend they host Vegas, and that needs to be a get right game before the fraud calls get too loud.
Comentários