MATT VOLZ

Editor in Chief

As the men’s and women’s NCAA tournament brackets advance to their second weekend, our “NLL Madness” bracket advances to round two.

The records have changed after last week’s results, but the seeding stays the same, with the reason being that 

We saw some upsets in round one, with the biggest being #11 Halifax taking down #6 Ottawa.

The journeys for lower seeds only get tougher from here on out, especially as the top two teams join the fold.

Can a lower seed stun the big dogs, or will we see all chalk?

Let’s find out!

#1 Saskatchewan Rush vs. #9 Las Vegas Desert Dogs

The number one seed has entered the conversation, and to put it simply, they’re loaded.

Four different players have cracked the 60-point mark, and three of them have scored 30 or more goals.

Ryan Keenan and Robert Church are both top-10 in the league in total points, and Zach Manns and Austin Shanks aren’t far behind.

They’ve got solid depth, too, as Brock Haley has recorded 14 goals and 33 points this season.

On defense, veterans Mike Messenger and Matt Hossack anchor a unit that has allowed the third fewest goals in the league.

They’re aided, of course, by veteran goalie Frank Scigliano, who’s enjoying a career season.

Scigliano is allowing just 9.32 goals per game, the best mark of his career.

His 79.6% save percentage is the best he’s ever had as a starter, too.

The Rush have been at the top of the league for nearly the entire season. They went on a nine-game win streak at one point, stretching from Dec. 20 to Feb. 22.

That’s a stretch of more than two months without a single loss.

Since then, though, they’ve hit a bit of a cold streak.

An overtime loss in Buffalo ended the win streak on Feb. 27, and they suffered another overtime loss in Rochester the next night.

They split their next two, narrowly beating San Diego on March 14 before falling in Toronto last weekend.

In that loss to Toronto, Shanks only recorded one point and Manns was held without a goal.

Church and Keenan both excelled with six points each, but Scigliano was shaky in net, allowing 12 goals.

They’re still the top team in the league, but they enter this fictitious tournament cold.

On the other side, Las Vegas is coming off an upset over San Diego in this tournament.

In real life, they’ve won back to back games, and they’re flirting with a playoff spot.

Mitch Jones and Jonathan Donville have both been very good on offense, but weak goaltending will be their downfall in this tournament.

There will be no upset in this one, and the Rush advance to the semifinal.

Prediction: Saskatchewan wins.

#4 Georgia Swarm vs. #5 Toronto Rock

This one would be fun to watch.

After all, they’ve played once already this season, a 10-9 overtime win for Georgia on Jan. 24.

Georgia doesn’t have a particularly potent offense, as star scorers Shayne Jackson and Lyle Thompson have had down years compared to where they’re usually at.

It’s pretty impressive when 61 and 57-point seasons are considered “down years,” but that’s a sign of how good the two have been throughout their careers.

Their first-round draft pick from last year, forward Nolan Byrne, is enjoying a 25-goal rookie campaign.

The unquestioned strength of the Swarm, though, is goaltending.

Brett Dobson, who played his college lacrosse at St. Bonaventure, is playing at an MVP-caliber pace.

Through 14 games, Dobson has allowed less than eight goals per game, and he’s stopped 84.3% of the shots he’s faced.

He leads all starting goalies in both of those categories by a fairly wide margin.

I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if he takes home the league’s MVP award at season’s end.

On the other side of the floor, the Rock boast a star goalie of their own.

Nick Rose is back in Toronto this year after being traded to Calgary at the deadline last year.

The 2025 season was one to forget for the Rock. They went 6-12, finishing as the second-worst team in the NLL.

Much of the team’s struggles were attributed to an early season-ending injury to top scorer Mark Matthews, who only played four games before going down.

Matthews and Rose are back this season, and they’re aided by a couple of star rookies.

By virtue of their brutal 2025 season, the Rock held both the first and third overall picks in the draft.

They used the first pick on forward C.J. Kirst, and he’s had an excellent rookie campaign.

Kirst has 30 goals and 58 points, and he leads all rookies in both categories.

Right behind him is the man who Toronto selected third overall, forward Owen Hiltz.

Hiltz has had an excellent first season of his own, with 26 goals and 51 points.

Captain Challen Rogers is also enjoying a career year, as he’s already surpassed his previous personal bests in goals, assists and points.

Toronto is going to be a tough out, but they’re meeting a brick wall in this one.

Dobson has been too good, and he’d silence the Rock offense in this hypothetical matchup.

Prediction: Georgia wins.

#3 Colorado Mammoth vs. #11 Halifax Thunderbirds

The Cinderella story of the first round is back for another matchup, but can they pull off another upset?

Clarke Petterson’s offense may make it a game, but don’t expect the underdog to pull this one off.

Randy Staats and Cody Jamieson have both been solid, but they don’t have the offense to keep up with that of Colorado.

Andrew Kew is on a warpath this season, and he leads the league in goals with 43.

Those 43 goals have come across just 11 games, by the way.

That’s a pace of nearly four goals per game.

That pace over a full season would total more than 70 goals, which has only been topped twice in the league’s history.

Kew hasn’t had to do it alone, either, as Will Malcom and Jack Hannah have put up 70 and 68 points respectively.

Their top draft pick from last year, forward Braedon Saris, has been very solid this season, too.

He leads all rookies in assists with 30, and his 44 points rank third among all first-year players.

In goal, Dillon Ward has put together another strong season.

He has stopped 80.9% of opposing shots, good for third in the league.

Warren Hill has also been good in net for Halifax, but he hasn’t been as good as Ward.

Hill might be able to limit Colorado’s offense, but the Thunderbirds don’t have as good of an offense to counter Ward’s excellence.

This is probably the easiest matchup of the quarterfinal round to predict.

Prediction: Colorado wins.

#2 Vancouver Warriors vs. #7 Buffalo Bandits

Vancouver has arrived for their first NLL Madness matchup, and they’re going up against the team that’s made for the playoffs like no other.

Again, because this is a publication dedicated to the Bandits, they don’t need much of an introduction.

Dhane Smith is doing his thing, unsurprisingly. His 94 points are the third-most in the league.

After a frustrating first half of the season, Josh Byrne seems to be finding his footing, too.

He’s recorded seven or more points in each of his last four games, all wins for Buffalo.

The team’s last loss was, ironically, against Vancouver on Feb. 20.

In that game, the Warriors outscored Buffalo 4-0 in the third quarter on the way to an 11-9 win.

Vancouver boasts the league’s top point scorer, as forward Keegan Bal has put together another spectacular year.

Through 15 games, Bal has scored 36 goals and recorded 107 points.

His 71 assists are the most of any player in the league, too.

Surprisingly, Bal doesn’t even lead his own team in goals.

That honor belongs to veteran Curtis Dickson with 38.

While Bal and Dickson have been the offensive headliners, Jesse King and Adam Charalambides have also enjoyed solid seasons.

But like many other teams in this bracket, the Warriors have strong goaltending.

Christian Del Bianco has had yet another outstanding year in his first full season as Vancouver’s starter.

The former league MVP ranks second in the league in both goals against average (GAA) and save percentage, trailing only Dobson in both categories.

Matt Vinc hasn’t been as strong in net for Buffalo, and the 43-year-old has started to show some signs of age.

The most decorated goalie in league history may be playing in his final year, and he’s seen many situations just like this (hypothetical) one.

Vinc has played more playoff games than any other player in league history, and he’s not going down without a fight.

Vancouver may have a better team on paper, but Buffalo is experienced, and they can find ways to win when it counts.

Prediction: Buffalo wins.

---

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.comas well as his updates on X (@GraemePerrow).