PK’s NLL Power Rankings - Week 19
1. San Diego Seals – 11-4 (Last Week: #1)
Holding steady at the top spot for the 3rd straight week are your Seals. Sitting at 11-4 on the year having already clinched a playoff spot. Sen Diego with a win this week over Panther City on Friday or a loss by Georgia and Halifax will seal up a 1st round home playoff game. Chris Origlieri sits in 2nd with a 9.55 GAA behind just Nick Rose and is tied for 1st in SV at 80%. The issue going into playoffs for this team is the goal scoring which is crazy to me considering they have 2 players inside the top 8. In their last 3 games, the team has averaged 9.67 Goals. Since February 10th they have averaged 10.29 goals. This has to get improved prior to playoffs and that involves getting Curtis Dickson back healthy for the playoff run. If they can’t get this fixed, thy might be looking at another first round exit.
2. Toronto Rock – 12-3 (Last Week: #2)
Sitting in 2nd in our rankings and 1st in the standings are the Toronto Rock coming in off their bye week. If it weren’t for the Bandits, this team would be sitting 12-1. Having already locked up a first round home game, the Rock can lock up a top 2 seed with a win over Albany on Saturday and can lock up the #1 seed with a win and a San Diego Loss. I sat down trying to figure out how much Tom Schreiber has added to this offense since he joined back into it. The first 5 games of the year which Schreiber missed the team averaged 12.2 a game. In the 10 games with him in the lineup they have averaged 12.2. Nothing really more to add to that stat. Just thought it was interesting. As long as this team doesn’t face the Bandits in the first 2 rounds of the playoffs, they are earmarked for a finals appearance imo.
3. Halifax Thunderbirds – 9-7 (Last Week: #3)
After a back and forth 1st half that saw both teams tied at 6. Halifax used a 5 goal 3rd to stomp down the Knighthawks 12-9 on Saturday night. It was a game that the Birds top players on offense led the way. Ryan Benesch (2/5/7) Clarke Petterson (2/4/6), Cody Jamieson (3/3/6), Dawson Theede (3/3/6) and Austin Shanks (0/4/4), showed why they are one of the top offenses in the league. Colton Armstrong and Tyson Bell were locking it down on the back end combining for 13 LB, and 4 CTO. Warren Hill was electric vs one of the top scoring units making 45/54 saves in the win. Halifax travels to Vancouver Friday with a chance to clinch a playoff spot before heading into a bye week. With a win on Friday and a Calgary loss in one of their weekend games vs the Rush, Halifax will be in the playoffs.
4. Buffalo Bandits – 8-7 (Last Week: #5)
Back into the top 4 for Buffalo after their 18-12 win in Philly Saturday afternoon. Coming off their OT loss in Texas last week, Buffalo was able to get out early leading 5-1 with 4:10 to go in the 1st. Philly would come back to tie the game at 9 with 5:34 to go in the 3rd. But as we saw Buffalo do all night, any runs Philly tried to go on Buffalo stopped shortly with a goal of their own. The Bandits scored 9 of the final 12 including a stretch of 6 in 7:39. Everyone got in on the action on offense with 10 of the runners scoring a goal. But it was your 2 league leading scorers who were out in front. Dhane Smith (5/7/12) with his most goals since this matchup took place last February and Josh Byrne (3/7/10), who took back control of the scoring title from Jeff Teat. Matt Vinc was great again in this one making 51/63 saves in the victory. The only negative I saw in this one was the defense. They seemed very unorganized and lost at times which I thought they had gotten much better at leading up to this game. They head into the Loud House Friday night with a chance to pull closer to that playoff spot.
5. Georgia Swarm – 9-7 (Last Week: #4)
Georgia comes into week 19 with a chance to clinch a playoff spot with a win and a loss by Rochester. Winners of 3 of their last 4, Georgia plays Vegas on Saturday night where 2 of the lower scoring teams in the league square off. In the Swarms last 2 games they are averaging 8.5 goals. And this is reflected having no players in the top 15 in the league in scoring while also playing the most games. On the plus side, they are 6th in the league in goals against at 11.07. Brett Dobson is sitting in 8th at 11.35 GAA and 77 Sv%. This team is still fighting for that first round home matchup and has the H2H on Halifax and Buffalo for it.
6. Albany Firewolves – 10-5 (Last Week: #6)
After starting the season 6-0 and 10-2, the Wolves have lost the last 3 matchups but have clinched a playoff spot due to Rochester’s loss Saturday night. But I believe the team has higher hopes then just a playoff appearance. They are looking for that home field advantage. Sitting 10-5 they are in the driver’s seat for it having the H2H tie breaker over Georgia, Halifax and Buffalo. The issue is the road is one of the more difficult the final 3 games of the year. They get Toronto, PC and NY all of who are currently in a playoff spot. Because of the play of Doug Jamieson they can hang with anyone. But averaging 10.33 in their last 3 losses is not a recipe for success. If they can play near their season average of 11.73 GF, this team should be able to lock up a top 4 seed.
7. Panther City Lacrosse Club – 7-7 (Last Week: #7)
After their upset of Buffalo last week in OT, Panther City is sitting 7-7 on the year with 4 games to play including 2 this weekend vs the Seals and the Wings. They may be sitting in that 7th spot right now but there are plenty of teams nipping at their heals trying to steal it. So every single win is important. And that means scoring goals. And it’s not a lot. They are 5-1 when scoring 11 or more goals on the year and 2-6 when scoring 10 or fewer. To me that show they are getting enough help on the back end that they could be a top team in the league preparing for playoffs if they just got their scoring touch going. But this has been a talking point since prior to the season and why I haven’t full bought into this team yet. They can help or hurt their chances this weekend with playoffs riding on some outcomes.
8. Calgary Roughnecks – 6-8 (Last Week: #9)
After their season saving OT win vs Albany in week 17, Calgary comes into week 19 with an even more important weekend. A Home and Home matchup vs the Rush who are sitting with the exact same record as the Roughnecks. The problems with this team remain what they have been since prior to the season kicking off. Goals. They are 3rd in the league in Goals allowed but 10th in GF at 11.36.Jesse King is sitting at 16th in the league, but your next two are Tyler Pace at 27th and Tanner Cook at 51st. In 8 of their 14 games they have scored below their season average. Their Transition game and goaltending are some of the best in the league and can be what keeps them in most games. But until they get that consistent scoring up top, I can’t view this team any more than what they currently are.
9. New York Riptide – 7-8 (Last Week: #10)
Can this team do what they haven’t done in their teams franchise history ahead of their move to Ottawa next season? they control their own playoff destiny. Coming off their 14-11 win vs the Rush in week 17, the Riptide needed to use their bye week to regroup prior to their 3 game stretch to end the season. That involves improving off the league worst 13.79 GAA on the year. While on the flip side Jeff Teat is 3 points off the current point leader pace of Josh Byrne with both Connor Kearnan, Reilly O’Connor, Larson Sundown, and Kiel Matisz inside the top 51. They have the fire power to compete with anyone in the league if they get the help on the back end. It’s a massive Saturday night game vs Rochester. With a win, they stay ahead of all the 6 win teams. But a loss sends Rochester and possible Calgary and the Rush even with you, with 2 weeks to go.
10. Vancouver Warriors – 6-9 (Last Week: #11)
The streak is now at 3 and the Warriors have won 4 of the last 5 games vaulting them up to 10th in the rankings this week. The Warriors used a 7 goal 2nd which saw a 6 goal run in 8:31 to get them to their 12-9 victory over Vegas Saturday night. Keegan Bal led the way once again for the team going 4/5/9 and entered the top 10 in scoring. Adam Charalambides went 3/3/6. And Kevin Crowley had a solid 1/4/5 night. In net Aden Walsh went 45/54 as the team continues to rally around him on their winning stretch of games. With 3 games remaining vs Halifax, New York, and San Diego, the odds to make the layoffs are slim having to jump 4 teams and hold no tie breakers atm. But they are showing the decision to keep the team together was the correct one as they look like a brand new team.
11. Rochester Knighthawks – 6-8 (Last Week: #8)
The pattern lives on another week for the Knighthawks after their 12-9 loss on Saturday night at home. What pattern you ask? Win 3. Lose 6. Win 3. Lose 6? They are at 2 straight losses now. A back and forth first half saw the score 6-6. Halifax would score 5/6 in the 3rd and 6/9 in the 2nd half to take the win. Connor Fields (2/2/4), Ryan Smith (2/3/5), and Ryan Lanchbury (1/3/4) were not good enough in yet another poor 2nd half performance. Riley Hutchcraft went 24/33 while Doug Buchan was 7/10 in net. The once high flying offense has now scored under 10 in back to back games with a combined 5 second half goals. That is not going to get you any wins in this league. The biggest thing they have working for them are who they have wins over. They hold the H2H advantage over Calgary, Saskatchewan, Vancouver and Panther City. All the teams fighting for those last 2 playoff spots. If they are able to win Saturday vs NY, their playoff chances will jump way up. But a loss will put them into a massive hole.
12. Saskatchewan Rush – 6-8 (Last Week: #13)
After last weekend which saw the team drop both of their games, this matchup Thursday night was a must win for the team if they wanted to keep their playoff hopes above water. They got the job done v Philly in their makeup game 16-12. Jumping out to a 4-1 lead after 1 and 8-3 at half, the Rush continued their consistent ways in this one scoring 4 in each quarter having never trailed, leading from the 11:34 mark in the first. Robert Church (3/5/8), Ryan Keenan (2/5/7), and Zach Manns (3/2/5) continue to be the trio leading the offense for the group. Franck Scigliano went 35/47 in net to secure the win. While Mike Messenger had a 1/2/3 night with 11LBs. the team is sitting a half a game back of NY for the last playoff spot with Calgary, Rochester and Vancouver right on their back. But it’s their home and home matchup with the roughnecks this week that can make or break their season. If either team gets the sweep they are sitting in great shape and likely sent the other home early.
13. Colorado Mammoth – 5-9 (Last Week: #12)
Sliding down 1 spot are your Mammoth into lucky #13 this week. It has been a season to forget for Colorado after their back to back finals appearances. Their win vs Rochester 2 weeks ago put their elimination on ice but got very little help in the playoff race with Vancouver and Saskatchewan winning. With a loss this week vs Buffalo and a NY win, Colorado will be officially eliminated from the playoffs. They just have not been able to replace Ryan Lee this season and are 14th in the league in scoring. 6 times this year they have scored in the single digits and that just is not good enough in this league. They can play the role of spoiler this week though by taking down their rivals in the Bandits and knocking them back to .500 on the year.
14. Philadelphia Wings – 5-10 (Last Week: #14)
That is how you end you season in 8 days if you are a Wings fan. Coming off their 21-12 loss vs Vancouver, Philly came into this week of games needing to take both games vs the Rush and Bandits if they wanted to keep their fading playoff hopes alive. Those went up in flames taking Ls in both. They trailed in all but 3:26 vs the Rush going down 8-3 at half. Mitch Jones (2/5/7) and Holden Cattoni (3/4/7) were your go guys on the offense with Blaze Riorden handing out 5 helpers. The team got the secondary scoring with Ben McIntosh and Sam LeClair netting 5 combined, but they were unable to get the saves they needed in this one with both goalies struggling. Zach Higgins going 25/36 and Deacon Knott 11/16. Flash forward to Saturday afternoon and just seeing the score you’d think it was a repeat performance. Philly did go down early again 5-1, they battled back to tie it at 9all with 5:34 left in the 3rd. But Buffalo would score 54 seconds later as they give up 9 of the last 12 goals of the game. Cattoni (4/4/8), Jones (2/5/7) and Joe Resetarits (3/5/8) led the way on offense. But the secondary scorers came up short in this one. Zach Higgins played incredible in this one making 48/64 saves but just got peppered with shots all night long. A loss this week to Panther City and a Win by NY will eliminate Philly form any slim hope of their playoff dreams.
15. Las Vegas Desert Dogs – 4-11 (Last Week: #15)
Holding down the last spot is once again the Dogs as they lose their 5th straight. A 2nd quarter to forget for the Desert Dogs as they give up 7 including a 6 go run. Zack Greer and Connor Kirst combined for 6 of the teams 9 goals in the defeat. Jack Hannah went 1/14 in shooting and Rob Hellyer was held scoreless as they get swept in the season series. Landon Kells was 39/51 in net in the losing effort. Vegas has 3 games remaining in their season to try and match last year’s win total of 5. They will travel to Georgia on Saturday.