Bob Chavez

Friday January 24th, 2020

The Buffalo Bandits are on the road for a big game against the Colorado Mammoth on Saturday. (Photo: Bill Wippert)

Week 9 of the National Lacrosse League is another three-day weekend that includes five games.

There are no matchups of undefeated teams, but there remains plenty of intrigue. Can New York carry the momentum of its first win into Friday’s game at Philadelphia? Then bring it back home for Saturday’s game against San Diego, another team eager for win No. 2?

In Colorado, the Mammoth host a Buffalo team that’s been playing like the contender we expected to see and in Calgary, we have a Roughnecks team that would love nothing more than to end its skid with a win to hand Halifax its first loss of the season.

The weekend wraps up on Sunday afternoon with a Georgia team that has lost three straight after opening the season 2-0. And considering the expectations that Georgia brought into this season, the Swarm will be fired up to face off against the undefeated Black Wolves.

Here’s our preview for the Week 9 matchups.

Friday

When: 7 p.m. (EST)

Quick take: New York played Philly tough earlier this month as the Wings needed a 3-goal run to pull away from a 12-12 tie down the stretch for a 15-12 win.

Riptide: New York is last in the league on the penalty kill at 44%, allowing a league-high 15 goals on 27 chances … The Riptide have allowed a league-high 24 goals in the first quarter and have a 14.2 goals-against average, highest in the league … F Dan Lomas leads the team with 10 goals and F Tyler Digby leads the team with 22 points.

Wings: Philadelphia is just an OT loss away from being 5-1 … Still, the Wings are 4-2 for the first time since 2012 and a win on Friday against New York will give the Wings their best start to a season since the 2008 team started 6-0 … The Wings are 4-0 when scoring the game’s first goal … G Zach Higgins is climbing the charts among NLL leaders with a goals-against of 8.77 and a save percentage of .824, putting him among the top five in both categories … T Trevor Baptiste continues to dominate on faceoffs (105 of 144) but also continues to show is growth as a shooter, scoring his sixth goal of the season in a classic transition setting after scoring 0 goals last season. Baptiste’s 6 goals are the most among NLL defenders and transition players ... The Wings are averaging a league-best 89 loose balls per game.

Bottom line: The Wings need to keep their focus and avoid what could be the stereotypical “trap” games with upcoming games against Georgia, Buffalo, New England and Saskatchewan.

Saturday

When: 7:30 p.m. (EST)

Quick take: San Diego was 4-2 last season after 6 games.

Seals: The Seals have scored 26 goals in three home games and 26 goals in three road games. But they’ve allowed 41 goals at home and just 31 on the road … The defense did well in last week’s loss, holding Halifax to a season-low 8 goals … The Seals have scored a league-best 4 shorthanded goals … San Diego’s 8.7 goals-for per game is lowest in the league … The Seals are the only team in the league to not score the first goal in a game … The Seals have scored just 7 goals in the first quarter, lowest in the league, even though they’ve taken 79 shots, second-most for any team in the league

Riptide: New York is scoring 9.0 goals per game, second-lowest average in the NLL … The Riptide have lost a league-high three games by 6 goals or more … New York has had the lead after one quarter in just one of its six games … Of the 9 power-play goals New York has scored this season, only 3 have been scored at home … The Riptide have 162 faceoff wins as a team, highest in the league … The Riptide have allowed 24 goals in the first quarters, most in the NLL.

Bottom line: The Seals have the fewest first-quarter goals in the league and the Riptide have allowed the most in the first quarter, so the start of this game could have a lot to say about the outcome. Buffalo (3-1) at Colorado (4-3)

When: 9:30 p.m. (EST)

Quick take: A strong Buffalo offense takes on a strong Colorado defense. Buckle up.

Bandits: Buffalo has not allowed a short-handed goal this season … The Bandits have struggled on the penalty kill, allowing 10 goals on 21 opportunities to rank 10th in the league at 52.4% … Buffalo’s 12.2 goals per game ranks No. 2 in the NLL … The Bandits are allowing a league-high 57 shots per game … F Chase Fraser has been quite the offensive boost with 6 goals in two games … After scoring 19 goals in 15 games last season, F Chris Cloutier already has 9 in four games this season and is on pace to score 40 … G Matt Vinc ranks 10th in the league with an 11.33 GAA and his .808 save percentage is seventh.

Mammoth: Colorado is 1-2 since a 3-1 start to the season … F Ryan Lee is second in the league in scoring with 31 points on 10 goals and 21 assists … The Mammoth are 0-2 when scoring the game’s first goal … Colorado has scored a league-high 68 goals but has played two more games than every other team. The average of 9.7 goals for ranks eighth in the league … The 8.7 goals against ranks third in the league … G Dillon Ward is a big reason for that. He leads the league with 308 saves and ranks second in both save percentage (.837) and GAA (8.43).

Bottom line: Buffalo is 6-1 all time in games at Colorado and that loss came in the last trip to Colorado in 2018. Halifax (5-0) at Calgary (2-3)

When: 9:30 p.m. (EST)

Quick take: The Thunderbirds are averaging 12.2 goals a game but have zero players among the top 10 scoring leaders.

Thunderbirds: Halifax leads the NLL with a goals-against average of 8.0 … Eight different players have scored 5 or more goals for the Thunderbirds … F Stephen Keogh has a team-best 10 goals on 21% shooting (10-for-47) … It’s nearly all or nothing for Halifax when it comes to penalty kills. The Thunderbirds are a league-best 4-for-16 (75%) at home on the kill, but are at a league-worst 20% (4 goals allowed on 5 chances) on the road … G Warren Hill leads the league with an .843 save percentage and a goals-against average of 8.0.

Roughnecks: Calgary is 0-2 at home … All three Calgary losses are by 1 goal … Calgary’s two wins are against teams with a combined record of 3-9 while the three losses are against teams with a combined record of 9-10 … The Riggers have scored just 6 power-play goals, tied for second-fewest in the league, on 24 chances … Calgary is allowing 56.4 shots per game, third-most in the NLL, but G Christian Del Bianco ranks fourth in the league with a .833 save percentage … T Zach Currier is averaging 11.2 loose balls per game.

Bottom line: The Roughnecks have lost two straight and would love to end that skid by knocking off an unbeaten team.

Sunday

When: 1 p.m. (EST)

Quick take: Urgency is growing for the Swarm, who have lost 3 straight.

Swarm: Georgia held its first two opponents to a combined 10 goals (5.0 per game) in its 2-0 start. In three straight losses, Swarm opponents are averaging 14 goals a game … The Swarm’s power play comes in at a league-best 60.9% (14-for-23) but have scored just 5 power-play goals on the road … F Randy Staats leads the NLL with 26 assists in five games, an average of 5.2 per game … F Shayne Jackson is tied for the league lead with 15 goals and has scored 3 goals in each of the first five games.

Black Wolves: F Callum Crawford has been the first star in three of his team’s four games this season, tops in the NLL. He has a team-leading 30 points on 14 goals and 16 assists … The Black Wolves are just percentage points behind Georgia for the league’s top power play at 60% (9-for-15) … The Black Wolves have yet to allow a shorthanded goal this season … G Doug Jamieson is third in the league with an .834 save percentage and a GAA of 8.51. His four victories are two shy of his career-best six for a single season, which he set last year.

Bottom line: The Swarm are 7-3 vs. the Black Wolves in the last three seasons but just 2-3 at New England.