Buffalo Bandits Take First Series Sweep of the Year
For a third straight game the Buffalo Bandits took care of business. The Bandits defeated the Rochester Knighthawks for the second time this season, this time by a score of 13 to 6. The problem with these dominant wins is they don’t leave much to discuss in an article, but I will do my best!
I am going to start with the negatives of the offense and there are a lot of them. There are not actually a lot of negatives with a team averaging 15.6 goals per game. However, the issue I have with the Bandits offense right now is their ability to finish. The passing throughout the game looked great and set up multiple scoring opportunities. The problem is the finishing. Multiple Bandits were set up with great chances to score but they can’t seem to bury the ball. If the defense and Matt Vinc continue to allow 7 goals or less, these issues will be overlooked. If the game is close, these issues will begin to shine through. They have scored plenty of goals to ignore the ones they haven’t but at some point, they will need to clean those opportunities up. On the positive side of the ball Josh Byrne (2g, 9a) and Dhane Smith (2g, 6a) continue to lead the charge. Our BSC MVP Clay Scanlan (2g, 1a) was able to score the first and second NLL goals of his career. In just his second game with the team he looked much more comfortable. There were still a few times he looked a bit lost, but it will take time to truly fit in with an offense that has been together for so long. The most impressive aspect of the offense so far this season is how equally spread out the goals are coming. Ian MacKay leads the team with 8 goals. Outside of that 6 players have at least 5 goals, 8 players have at least two goals, and 11 players have at least one goal. It makes it very difficult on a defense when an offense does not have one or two players to key in on but has an entire roster to look out for.
The defense allowed a ridiculous 68 shots on goal. Again, a hint of sarcasm. There is only so much I can do when the team is playing this well. 68 shots are in fact a high number of shots. It led to Vinc getting a franchise and personal single game save record. It seems strange to say that is exactly what Vinc wants, but that is exactly what Vinc wants. Vinc still had to make multiple big saves throughout the game including a 2-on-1 and plenty of kick saves. That is going to happen throughout any NLL game. The key to the Bandits success on defense is forcing outside, bad angle shots and not allowing the offense to get inside. One of the two inside goals the Bandits allowed was on the power play. The other was a bit of a defensive breakdown on a bad switch, but it was not a goal directly on top of the crease which is what the defensive is trying to avoid the most. Vinc has only started the season with ridiculous numbers that should not be allowed over a three-game stretch. He is currently sitting with an 88.2 save percentage and a 6.85 goals-against average. Those types of numbers should only exist in a single game, doing it over the course of three games is simply unfair to opposing teams. During Vinc’s 5-game record breaking playoff run last season he had an 84.2 save percentage and 8.29 goals against average, somehow, he has stepped his game up even more.
The Buffalo Bandits will go on another bye week, their third of the first six weeks. On one hand, it will be nice to get Chris Cloutier an additional week of rest, as well as Vinc who could use a break after taking a big hit at the end of the game. On the other hand, this team likes playing games consistently, settling into the season, and playing games in a row. At the end of the season, they will get their wish in the worst way. At this point in the season, it is tough to have so many bye weeks. It is a testament to the team and the coaching staff that they can play every other week and remain in mid-season form. Next up, the Bandits will look to keep their rivals the Toronto Rock winless on the season, as the Rock come to Banditland.
Goaltender Breakdown
In this segment, I will breakdown how the goalies, offense and defense all performed on the goals in the game. How many were impressive goals, breakdowns in the defense or on the goalie.
Riley Hutchcraft
Inside – 7
Mid-Range - 3
Outside – 2
Transition -
*2 goals were on the penalty kill
* empty net goals
Matt Vinc
Inside – 1
Mid-Range - 2
Outside – 2
Transition -
*2 of the goals were on the penalty kill
(D-Defense, V-Vinc)
Goal 1 – Whitty may have been screening Vinc just a bit, but it was a nice shot by Connor Fields
Goal 2 – PP goal – simply a great shot by Ryan Smith
Goal 3 – Embarrassing play all around – bad defense to allow Fields to get a shot off, but he was falling. It was a strange shot that Vinc should have had. (D, V)
Goal 4 – PP goal – the defense was too focused on blocking the shot allowing Curtis Knight to be wide open on the back side for an easy goal
Goal 5 – The defense lost track of Thomas McConvey and he was able to get a nice high shot off
Goal 6 – Final minute of the game, the team let off a little, the defense had a slow change allowing an uncontested shot. It was a good shot, but Vinc likely wants to have it. (D, V)
2/6 on Vinc
2/6 on the defense
Challenges by the Bandits – None
Referee Corner
Like many of the fans out there, I find myself often questioning what the refs are doing on the field. From no goals and players being ejected, to calls that simply do not make sense. In this segment, I will attempt to use the rulebook and my best judgement to understand some hot topics from the previous game.
Bandits – 2-6 on the PP
Knighthawks – 2-5 on the PP
S. Priolo – Holding – Priolo got his stick wrapped around the head of the Knighthawk player – good call
P. Dawson – Dead Ball Foul – Dawson sent a message to Fields who dove through the crease by falling on his back late after the shot – good call
S. Priolo – Slashing - It looked like Priolo got in a bit of a tussle with the Rochester player and then in some frustration, jabbed him in the face – good call
K. Buchanan – Goalie Interference – When I saw this play live, I did not think it was a penalty. However, after watching the replay, Hutchcraft did have the ball under his stick when Buchanan went after it – good call
D. Robinson – Cross Checking – Robinson did get his stick up high on R. Smith and it was a smidge late as well – good call
C. Scanlan – Elbowing – There were two calls on this play, an elbow by Scanlan and a slashing by Llord, I thought both were weak. From the camera angle, the elbow by Scanlan looked more like a shoulder pick than an elbow but it was tough to see – bad call
5/6 – good calls
I thought the referees did a nice job calling an even game. There was only one iffy call I saw the whole game. Both teams finished with essentially the same amount of power play opportunities as the finial Bandits power play was with 30 seconds left in the game.