Albany Defeats Buffalo in Season Opener
The Buffalo Bandits hosted the Albany FireWolves to open the 2022 – 2023 NLL season. Sadly, it did not go as planned. The Bandits lost a close game 10-11 despite a late game comeback. The Bandits struggled through most of the game with some lackluster play from all sides of the ball.
The Bandits never looked quite right in this game and it started with a few late scratches of Brad McCulley, Steve Priolo and Dalton Sulver. Missing those players is not an excuse to lose to an inferior team but it certainly didn’t help. The FireWolves were without their top 5 scorers from last season and were able to put on a performance just good enough to get the win. Plain and simple the Bandits should have played better.
On the offensive side of the game, the attack never looked as threatening as it did on paper. Dhane Smith (0g, 5a) and Josh Byrne (2g, 4a) did not look quite as dynamic as we have seen in the past. Both players were kept to the outside for most of the game being forced to take long distance shots. There were a few times each player was able to get inside but it was few and far between. Chris Cloutier (2g, 3a) and Tehoka Nanticoke (3g, 0a) played well in their secondary rolls. Nanticoke seemed to be the star of the offense with his 3-goal night, all coming in a bully type fashion just willing the goals to go in. Brandon Robinson (0g, 0a) in his first game for the Bandits played an okay supporting roll on the offense. I think he will be a player that does a lot of the dirty work for this offense. The sooner they can find some chemistry and learn to work to play off each other the better. Kyle Buchanan (2g, 2a) once again played his roll very well. The effort he puts into every game is hard to match as he continues going hard after every loose ball and being a truly effective piece of this offense.
There was not much to say about the defense and goalie Matt Vinc. Vinc did not play as well of a game as he should have. He let a few soft goals in that you know he wants back. He is the type of player that usually comes back stronger after a weak performance. The defense played decent as a unit. The size of Carter McKenzie was noticeable on the field. He did get beat in a one on one situation that led to a goal but I think he is a great addition to the team. The rest of the defense looked typical. Ian MacKay and Nick Weiss were both beat in one on one situations as well but ended playing a solid game. MacKay was playing more offensively than we have seen in the past. It could be a strategy moving forward or was a tactic used for this game while missing some offensive weapons. Rookie Dylan Robinson in his first NLL action had some positive moments especially in the transition game. He was not often left out on offense but there was a difference in speed when he went from defense to offense compared to some other players. For better or worse, the rest of the defense went virtually unnoticeable. Kellen LeClair had a few good plays and Matt Spanger continues to be a physical force on the field.
The bad news for the Bandits is that they start the season 0-1. The good news is that they have a week off to think about what happened before playing again the following weekend. The Bandits will return to action on December 17 to play against Toronto at the First Ontario Center. It may only be the second game of the season, but this game will already have a lot riding on it. The Bandits need to quickly turn things around and get back on top of the East. Toronto, coming off a hot 19-8 victory over Vancouver, is looking to keep things rolling. Maybe the tough division rivalry matchup is just what the Bandits need to get back on track.
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. Before I get into this segment, I have to give an unpopular opinion. In very close games, such as a 10-11 loss, it can appear as if the refs made a big difference and cost the team the game. In most cases, maybe not all, but in most cases, it comes down to the players simply playing better and not putting themselves in a situation to be down by 1 or 2 late in a game. This isn’t always possible against very tough teams where every call the ref makes can have a big impact on the game, but most times the refs do not decide the game, the players do.
For this game, two situations immediately come to mind. The first one being the goaltender interference on Tehoka Nanticoke towards the end of the game that eventually played a part in his ejection.
The play – Tehoka has the ball in his stick, burns his defender, jumps through the crease, scores a goal and then crashes into the goalie.
The call – Nanticoke was called for goaltender interference resulting in a major penalty.
The rule –
Rule 69: CONTACT WHILE SHOOTING ON NET CONTACT ON GOALIE INITIATED BY ATTACKER If an attacking player in the act of diving, or jumping into the crease, physically initiates contact with the goalie and the ball enters the goal, the goal will be disallowed and an appropriate penalty to the attacker will be assessed. Incidental contact by an attacker in the act of shooting on a goaltender with his body or stick which in no way affects the ability of the goaltender to attempt to make a save or play the ball shall not be penalized.
69.1 MINOR PENALTY - The referee, at his discretion, may assess a minor penalty, based on the severity of the infraction to a player guilty of making illegal contact on a goalie.
69.2 MAJOR PENALTY - The referee, at his discretion, may assess a major penalty, based on the severity of the infraction to a player guilty of making illegal contact on a goalie.
69.7 TIME AND DISTANCE BETWEEN SHOT AND CONTACT ON GOALIE INITIATED BY ATTACKER - If, in the referees’ judgment, the goaltender has time and distance after the shot is taken by a shooter who releases the ball legally and then travels into the crease and contacts the goalie, the goal shall be awarded if the ball is in the goal long before contact is made. The referee shall take into consideration the pathway of the shooter, for example, whether it is a dive shot from the side of the crease or a shooter running from the top of the crease towards the goalie and the level of impending contact in each. A penalty to the attacker shall be assessed if the contact is deemed avoidable by the referee.
69.9 AVOIDABLE CONTACT BY ATTACKER ON GOALIE - A penalty shall be assessed to a player of the attacking side who, having been interfered with, fails to avoid making contact with the goalie. Unavoidable contact by the attacker will not be penalized.
The Breakdown – there is a lot to unpack there. In my opinion, the contact made by Nanticoke could have warranted a simple 2-minute minor penalty for goaltender interference with the goal standing. However, the refs had already called a similar play earlier in the game in favor of the Bandits against the FireWolves that also resulted in a 5-minte major for goaltender interference. This is why I believe in this particular instance, because a similar call had already been made in the game, the refs made the correct call. Shame on the Bandits for not capitalizing on their 5-minute power play earlier in the game and failing to score a single goal.
The next situation on our list occurred at the end of the game.
The play - The Bandits desperately needed one last chance on attack with about 30 seconds left in the game while a FireWolves player seemingly was laying on the ball with the Bandits players unable to get him off of it (from the view I had from my seats, and judging by Vinc’s reaction).
The call – play on, no call
The rule –
Rule 52: BALL OUT OF SIGHT Should a scramble take place or a player accidentally fall on the ball which becomes out of sight of the referee, the official shall immediately blow his whistle and stop the play. The ball is awarded to the team who wasn’t on the ball. If a player is withholding the ball, by lying on it, placing their foot on it or holding the ball and his stick to his body or in any other fashion to withhold the ball as deemed at the discretion of the official, the non-offending team shall receive possession. If a goalie is in his crease and falls on the ball, the ball will be awarded to the goalie.
58.7 LYING ON BALL OR TRAPPING BALL - A player may not lie on the loose ball, trap it with his stick longer than necessary for him to gain possession and pick it up in one continuous motion, or withhold the ball from play in any manner.
58.8 WITHOLDING THE BALL FROM PLAY - A player in possession of the ball who holds his stick against any part of his body is withholding the ball from play. The glove hand, including the thumb, cannot grasp the head of the stick as outlined in Rule 58.6.
The Breakdown – I am happy that I took the time to look this one up. I feel like this type of play happens all the time. A Bandits player is up against the boards on top of the ball and all of a sudden the other team is awarded possession and I am left confused. Now I understand why. However, in this instance, unless the referee was magically able to see the ball under the pile of bodies in that scrum I believe the ball should have been awarded to the Bandits as the FireWolves player appeared to be stuck on top of the ball.
Around the league –
Philadelphia Wings 8 Halifax Thunderbirds 18 – Thunderbirds looked scary against the not so great Wings
Vancouver Warriors 8 Toronto Rock 19 – Toronto also looks scary, I don’t like it
San Diego Seals 15 New York Riptide 14 – highflying game from two fun teams
Rochester Knighthawks 16 Georgia Swarm 11 – Does Rochester have a chance at being decent this year?
Colorado Mammoth 6 Saskatchewan Rush 18 – Fire everyone from Colorado, am I right Bandits fans?