The Buffalo Bandits Down Colorado Mammoth

The Buffalo Bandits took down the Colorado Mammoth by a score of 15-10 to shake off the two game losing streak. This team looked a bit more like the Bandits from the beginning of the year with a full team win, including Josh Byrne (2g, 8a) and Dhane Smith (2g, 5a) having big nights. The Mammoth have been a tough out for the Bandits in recent years, even with a crippled offense. This was a big win and one that clinched an opening round home playoff game.  

Kyle Buchanan (3g, 1a) and Clay Scanlan (2g, 0a) might be my new favorite dynamic duo on the Bandits. When Chris Cloutier is healthy, I imagine he will go right back into the lineup. However, for the time being you have two smaller forwards, one righty and one lefty, with similar names, similar numbers (81 and 91), who arguably work harder than anyone else on the Bandits. To see their ability to get loose balls, set lanes, find holes in the defense and score, it is fun to watch. Buchanan has been doing this for the entire season. As for Scanlan, this was the most confident I have seen him in a Bandits uniform. He has not played poorly when given the opportunity. However, he often set lanes and passed the ball to other offensive players instead of attacking the net. His two goals in this game were highlight reel material. It is great to see the confidence in himself growing as the season moves along. Dhane and Josh seemed to be playing a little bit looser in this game and having a bit more fun than we’ve seen in recent games. Their stats speak for themselves when they play this way, especially against a goaltender of the year candidate in Dillon Ward.  

What Ian MacKay is doing this season cannot be overstated. I discussed it a bit last article and yet Ian continues to amaze me. Two years ago, with the offense dealing with a slew of injuries including injuries to Byrne and Cloutier, MacKay was asked to step up and play more of an offensive role. In that season, he was able to score a career-high 19 goals. This season, as he plays an even bigger role on offense, while still playing a bit out the back door, he has already scored 33 goals. It’s one thing to score a few more goals, it’s another to have a chance to double your career high. To give a better picture of the season MacKay is having let’s look at some comparisons. MacKay is currently tied for 13th in the league in goals scored with players such as Ryan Lee and Alex Simmons, while being ahead of Will Malcom, Zach Manns and Mitch Jones. That is some impressive company to be in for a transition player turned forward. I know he used to play midfield in college so he can do it, but making it happen at this level is a different story. 

I was honestly not thrilled with how the defense played. If it wasn’t for Matt Vinc coming up with multiple big saves in the first half, Colorado easily could have been ahead at halftime. The Bandit's defense has been a bit of a revolving door since the trade deadline. The additions of Ron John (healthy scratch in this game) and Kiel Matisz have been great. However, Justin Martin, Dylan Robinson and Cam Wyers have been injured at times this season. Zach Belter and rookie Taylor Dooley have been in and out of the lineup as healthy scratches. With all these lineup changes throughout the last few weeks it has made it harder on the defense to have the flawless communication and chemistry we are used to seeing from them. I am not worried about the defense, but I saw slow switches and miscommunication too many times throughout the game. Hopefully over the next couple of weeks we can see some lineup consistency and this unit can find chemistry headed into playoffs.  In the second half, after the Mammoth tied it 6-6, the defense and offense took over going on a 7-1 run. In that time, the Bandits allowed only one goal in 12 minutes and 13 seconds. That is a bit more of what we like to see from this dynamic defense. Kiel Matisz had himself a good game finishing with 2 assists and 10 loose balls. It’s nice to see from the veteran trade acquisition. Vinc played more like we saw at the beginning of the season making multiple incredible big saves. The first goal of the game by Dhane was a direct result of a big save by Vinc. As I said earlier, I fully believe Vinc was the main reason the Bandits were leading heading into the second half. I can’t leave this section without mentioning his goalie goal. It may not have mattered much to the final score, but a goalie goal is always a good time. Vinc has one other goal in his career and that came back in 2008 for the New York Titans.  

The penalty kill was the best I have seen all season. In all seriousness, being charged with zero penalties throughout an entire game is incredible for the Bandits. I thought the referees did a nice job giving teams a change of possession call instead of a penalty when things got a bit physical. On the other side, the power play looked good. They only went 1-for-3, but they had good chances on each opportunity. As much as I have not been a fan of the power play, I have been less of a fan of the power play defense. It is quickly becoming a habit for the Bandits to allow good shorthanded chances or goals. That simply cannot happen on a championship caliber team. Teams will find a way to occasionally get a shorthanded chance, but it is becoming too regular against Buffalo.  

The Bandits have positioned themselves in a great spot to clinch the first seed and home field advantage throughout playoffs. That would be great to see. What was better to see was this Bandits team look a bit more dominant like we saw earlier in the season. The big question I have, will the Bandits continue to coast a bit as they wrap-up the season, or will they start to ramp up once again as we get closer and closer to playoffs. Only time will tell, but hopefully they finish their last home game of the regular season with a win. They are 1-3 in their last four home games, while being 5-1 in their last six away games. Get a win, get out healthy, and gear up for playoffs.  

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.          

Dillon Ward 

Inside – 8 

Mid-Range - 5 

Outside – 1 

Transition - 2 

*1 goal was on the penalty kill      

*1 empty net goal 

Matt Vinc           

Inside – 3 

Mid-Range - 5 

Outside – 2 

Transition - 1 

*0 of the goals were on the penalty kill        

Goal 1 – A good pick gives Lee enough space to have an open shot, but from a tough angle and a bit far out, seems like one Vinc should be able to save (V) 

Goal 2 – Priolo leaves his man to help double a player that fell over, leaving his man open for a great shot (D) 

Goal 3 – Nice give and go passing and a wicked finish by Lee, but too much confusion on the Bandits switching players (D) 

Goal 4 – Gillies simply bull rushes through Whitty and beats Vinc inside (D) 

Goal 5 – An outside shot by Robinson rolls in as it rolled off Vinc’s back leg after the initial save, unlucky 

Goal 6 – Impressive bounce shot by Lee that start low and finishes upper 90, weird slow looking goal 

Goal 7 – A hard pick set on Priolo allows Malcolm to get free inside and score, Belter could not pick him up in time 

Goal 8 – Well place jumped shot by Kelly, another slower switch by Buffalo 

Goal 9 – Great dunk goal from Malcolm 

Goal 10 – Great across field pass by Lee to Malcolm who rips a perfect shot 

1/10 on Vinc      

3/10 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 – 1/3 on the PP, 1 missed penalty shot    

Mammoth – 0/0 on the PP         

Shockingly no calls against Buffalo. 

I thought the referees did a nice job allowing the players to play, while calling aggressive hits a change of possession, instead of a penalty. Despite this being a rivalry game, Buffalo played about as calm as I have seen them in recent memory, making it easier on the refs.