MATT VOLZ

Editor in Chief

Since the NLL began play in 1987 as the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League (EPBLL), there has never been a four-time repeat champion.

Some teams have come close, like the mid-2010s Rochester Knighthawks who won three straight titles.

Rochester won three in a row from 2012 to 2014, but were stopped just short of the 2015 NLL Finals, falling to the Toronto Rock in the Eastern Division Finals.

In the mid-1990s, the original Philadelphia Wings had a dynastic run of their own, reaching the championship game a record five straight times from 1992 to 1996.

However, they won just two of those titles, being upended by the Bandits in 1992, 1993 and 1996.

A sustained run of success lasting that long is rare, but the Bandits have the chance to make history this spring.

Buffalo is just five wins away from becoming the first team in league history to win four straight championships.

The first step of their unprecedented journey will be a tough road playoff game, as they travel to face the Georgia Swarm tonight.

The Bandits finished the regular season 11-7, but because of a rough Week 21 loss in Oshawa, they dropped to the fifth seed.

That loss was enormous for the Swarm, Colorado Mammoth and Saskatchewan Rush, all of whom lost to Buffalo in the regular season but will be at home in the first round due to 12-6 records.

As a result, Buffalo will meet a human brick wall to begin the postseason, as they’ll go toe-to-toe with Brett Dobson.

It’s no secret that Dobson has had an MVP-caliber season, and his numbers are some of the best that any goalie has ever produced.

Dobson led the league in every goaltending category, and his 7.86 goals against average (GAA) was miles ahead of any other netminder.

He also stopped nearly 85% of opposing shots throughout the season, more than three full percentage points ahead of the next best goalies.

But perhaps the most incredible stat is his goals saved against average (GSAA) metric, which is the best I’ve ever seen from any goalie.

A goalie’s GSAA is a measure of how many goals a netminder has prevented compared to the average goalie facing the same number of shots.

Some of the top goalies in the league, including Vancouver’s Christian Del Bianco and Halifax’s Warren Hill had GSAA numbers of between 15 and 20, meaning they stopped roughly one shot per game that would’ve gone in against the average goalie.

Dobson’s number puts them all to shame, as he achieved a staggering 48.1 GSAA.

That means that, on average, Dobson stopped 2.7 shots per game that probably should have gone in.

Oh, and did I mention that Dobson was better in each of these categories than Del Bianco was in his 2023 MVP season?

I don’t mean to glaze the former St. Bonaventure goalie, but if he doesn’t win league MVP, it’s a travesty.

Having said all of that, Buffalo’s gameplan for beating him is simple, but it’s not easy — pour a ton of shots on net.

The Halifax Thunderbirds just did that to Christian Del Bianco last night, dumping 71 shots on goal in a 10-7 upset win.

Buffalo’s offense cannot afford lengthy goal droughts tonight, and offense must start with the star forwards.

In order to win this game, Dhane Smith and Josh Byrne need to have huge nights.

If each of them comes away with six or seven points tonight, it may be a great night in Western New York.

Both stars need to have strong games, but they also can’t do it alone.

Joe Resetarits is one player I’ll be keeping a close eye on tonight. Since he came back to the Bandits from Philadelphia, he has yet to have an offensive eruption.

He seems to be finding his groove, though, as he’s recorded hat tricks in two of Buffalo’s last three games.

If Resetarits can come through for his hometown team, it’ll be enormous for a Bandits offense that may struggle to score against Dobson.

Defensively, the Bandits should be mostly okay against a Georgia offense that was right around league average this season.

Shayne Jackson and Lyle Thompson both had down years by their standards, and there aren’t any other big stars to help them out.

The Bandits also boast a defense of seasoned veterans that led the league in blocked shots this season, not allowing too many shots to get through to their 43-year-old goalie.

Matt Vinc has continued to keep Father Time waiting this season, and he’s looking to enhance a legacy that already heralds him as the best goalie to ever play the game.

He’ll turn 44 in June, so it’s not out of the question that this may be his last shot.

Even at age 43, Vinc has been stellar over the second half of the season.

He’s recorded in-game save percentages of 80% or higher in all but two games since Valentine’s Day, and he’ll look to get back on track after a rough game in Oshawa last week.

Overall, Dobson will be tough, but Buffalo is a more talented team with deeper playoff experience.

It’ll be a low-scoring game, but I think the Bandits get the win and move on to Round 2.

Matt’s pick: Buffalo 8, Georgia 7

Fans in the Buffalo market can catch tonight’s game on the CW23 or listen live on WWKB 1520 AM.

The game will also be viewable on ESPN+.

Faceoff for tonight’s game is set for 7:30 p.m.

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Stats for this story were provided by nllstats.com, a league-wide database run by NLL writer Graeme Perrow.

Check out his commentary on nllchatter.com as well as his updates on X (@GraemePerrow).