Buffalo Bandits Escape
If you listened to our latest podcast episode this past Monday, you heard me mention a lovely analogy about escape rooms. If you missed the episode, not only should you go listen to it, but here is the analogy. The Buffalo Bandits, and for that matter the Bills and the Sabres, all played games that took 60 minutes to complete this past weekend. They started hot, finding the early and easy clues to escaping with a victory. Next, they were stumped and struggled as time wound down. In the end, they pulled together as a team to escape with a win.
The Georgia Swarm came to Buffalo after losing to the Bandits 9-18 the previous Saturday. No one gave them a chance to win this game. Yet, twice in the third quarter, Georgia was winning 7-6 and 8-7. The Swarm gave Buffalo a serious run for their money, but how and why? Those are the questions.
The first and arguably biggest key to allowing Georgia to hang around was penalties. The Swarm finished the game going 4-for-6 on man advantage opportunities. If those goals are removed, the game looks very different. The initial reaction from fans is to blame the refs in games like this. The Bandits were only awarded two power play opportunities, one of them coming when the Bandits were already on the penalty kill resulting in one minute of even strength. I will go over my opinion on every call the refs made in this game in the referee corner section, however, the Bandits simply need to find a way to stay out of the box. I am all for the physical play but Steve Priolo tackling a player with only a few seconds left on the shot clock is an unnecessary penalty. If the Bandits were playing a stronger team, penalties like that can be the difference between escaping with a win or getting locked in with a loss.
Josh Byrne had another incredible game. He currently leads the NLL with 37 points including 20 goals. However, I thought the Bandits offense leaned too much on Josh in this game. Byrne finished the game with 6 goals, more than half of the total offense from the Bandits. The Bandits were averaging a little over 14 goals a game going into this weekend. The Georgia defense and goaltending stepped up a lot compared to last game, forcing the offense to take long shots from the outside too often. The Bandits seemed to abandon the pick and roll that worked so well for them the week before. Kyle Buchanan’s second goal of the game, a critical 10th goal for the Bandits, came on an expertly crafted pick and roll between Buchanan and Dhane Smith that allowed Kyle to get one on one against the goalie in tight. I would be surprised if the Bandits did not focus on this style of offense a little more in the future.
Matt Vinc once again went unnoticed in the best of ways. Often times when a goalie is going unnoticed, it is a good thing. If a goalie’s name is being called often in a game or being brought up, it is usually on the back of a negative performance. Vinc calmly finished the game with 47 saves allowing only 5 even strength goals. Lyle Thompson had 4 goals as the Bandits and Vinc did not have an answer for one of the game’s smoothest goal scorers. Outside of that, the Bandits did a great job as a team forcing Georgia into tough shooting situations that made it easier on Vinc to make the big saves.
It was great to see players step up for their teammates when called upon. Brad McCulley had an arranged fight with Georgia’s Wiedemann. I love seeing players after a big physical fight give each other a sportsmanship tap on the back. I’m not sure why, but for some reason that makes the fight even better. Two players doing what they need to do to spark their teams and understanding the sacrifice that takes. At the end of the game, I was not able to see exactly what happened to Byrne but seeing almost the entire team going after Bryan Cole is something you love to see.
The biggest aspect of this game was the fact that the Bandits got the win. It was not as easy as last weekend’s 18-9 victory. That is one of the best and worst things about this league. No matter how much a team might seem like an underdog, they have a chance to win. The Georgia Swarm gave the Bandits one heck of an escape room to get out of. The Bandits were able to come together as time was running out to escape with a victory.
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.
The Bandits gave up 4 goals on 6 man advantage opportunities. How many of them were true penalties and were any missed against Georgia? Let us find out together.
First Quarter –
Steve Priolo – Holding – Priolo tackled the player with the ball, turns out you can’t do that. – Correct call
Josh Byrne – Tripping – I thought this was a weak call. Byrne’s stick barely hits the player’s shoe. – Questionable call
Ian MacKay – Dead Ball Foul – I think MacKay thought Bomberry threw a punch at O’Connor when it was actually just a celebratory fist pump. MacKay hit Bomberry after the play. – Correct call
Second Quarter –
Ian MacKay – Holding Stick – MacKay grabbed Bomberry’s stick, it was an easy call. Right before that play he also grabbed Thompson’s stick but he let go and that call was not made. – Correct call
Ethan O’Connor – Holding – O’Connor grabbed Lynchburry’s jersey and tried pulling him into the crease. It was a smart play at the end of the half, it just happened to get caught. – Correct call
Third Quarter –
Unsportsmanlike Conduct – Dalton Sulver served this penalty but it came from the bench. It is not ever really explained what happened so it’s hard to argue for or against this call
Josh Byrne – Cross Checking – Byrne absolutely went for a cross check on this play. However, Thompson deserved a cross checking penalty as well that was not called. The play should have been coincidental minors, no power play for Georgia – Correct Call on Byrne/Missed on Thompson
Fourth Quarter –
Nothing
In my opinion, 5 of the 6 calls were correct with one missed call against Georgia. I think Georgia should have only had 4 man advantage opportunities. Either way, the Bandits need to be better at staying out of the box.