MATT VOLZ
Editor in Chief
The Buffalo Bandits are champions of the National Lacrosse League.
Stop me if you’ve heard that sentence before.
For the third straight year and the seventh time in team history, the Bandits raised the championship trophy.
This time, the Saskatchewan Rush fell victim to Buffalo in a best-of-three series that went the distance.
Buffalo took the first game of the series, rallying from multiple deficits to earn a 12-10 victory.
When the series shifted to Saskatchewan, however, the Bandits weren’t so lucky.
After battling back from an early deficit, Chase Fraser’s desperation shot was blocked by Rush defenseman Holden Garlent to preserve an 11-10 Rush win.
That set up a winner-take-all Game 3 in Buffalo on Saturday, May 24.
In their five consecutive finals appearances, the Bandits have been no stranger to hosting Game 3s.
Their finals matchups in 2022 and 2023, which both saw the Bandits face the Colorado Mammoth, made it to Game 3 in Banditland.
The two teams split the titles, with Colorado lifting the cup in 2022 and Buffalo getting revenge in 2023.
Like each of those series, Buffalo had the chance to close it out on the road in Game 2 but couldn’t seal the deal.
Once again, it all came down to one game in Buffalo.
Most Bandits fans wouldn’t miss this opportunity for anything, whether they were in attendance or watching from home.
For me, life intervened.
Saturday just happened to be the day of my cousin’s wedding, so family obligations took priority over the game.
It would be a lie to say that I wasn’t watching on my phone during the reception, though.
The game was another sellout, with all 19,070 tickets sold.
The first two games of the series saw Saskatchewan score on their opening possession, and that trend continued with an Austin Shanks goal 24 seconds in.
Games 1 and 2 also saw the Rush jump out to a 2-0 lead, but that didn’t happen this time thanks to a Josh Byrne goal where he crashed into the crease, dove and scored.
Because Byrne collided with Rush goalie Frank Scigliano after the ball went in, he was given a minor penalty for goaltender interference.
The goal stood, but Buffalo was shorthanded, something they struggled with at times during the season.
On the power play, a long shot by Shanks completely froze Matt Vinc to give the Rush a 2-1 lead.
Dhane Smith answered right back for the Bandits, tying the game on the next possession.
With eight minutes remaining in the quarter, another Bandit took a trip to the penalty box as captain Steve Priolo and Rush defenseman Adam Jay were each given minor penalties for roughing.
Zach Manns took advantage of the 4-on-4, cruising around Cam Wyers to put Saskatchewan back in front.
Before the quarter ended, Buffalo tied it right back up as Chris Cloutier faked a shot and went airborne to score.
Entering the second quarter, the Bandits and Rush were even at 3-3.
That’s when Buffalo’s offense started rolling.
Byrne scored his second of the game, burying a shot after a feed from Kyle Buchanan.
They wouldn’t trail again for the rest of the night.
Now playing with the lead, Buffalo’s transition game sparked more offense. Wyers hit Dylan Robinson with a stretch pass, and one more pass found Ian MacKay who flew in off the bench to score.
The rampage continued with Byrne completing the hat trick just 18 seconds after MacKay’s goal.
Less than three minutes into the quarter, the Bandits now held a 6-3 lead.
A little over a minute later, the lead grew thanks to a five-hole goal from Buchanan.
If the Rush were shell shocked from Buffalo’s five-goal run, they didn’t show it, as Robert Church answered with a goal on their next possession.
Church’s goal was the first for the Rush in nearly 13 minutes of game time, but they wouldn’t have to wait as long for their next one.
Near the midway point of the quarter, Ryan Keenan raced to the middle of the defense and scored to cut the deficit to two.
Saskatchewan seemed to be playing with momentum, and after Scigliano stopped a Tehoka Nanticoke scoring chance, Church scored again to pull the Rush within one.
The Bandits still held a 7-6 lead at halftime, but things seemed to be turning in Saskatchewan’s favor.
However, that was it for the Rush.
They wouldn’t score again for the entire rest of the game.
To open the second half, Fraser continued his streak of scoring unbelievable, highlight-reel goals.
After collecting a pass from Dhane Smith, Fraser went behind the back for a no-look, one-handed goal.
The goal landed him at number one on SportsCenter Top 10, which was pretty cool.
It didn’t take long for Buffalo’s offense to bring the fans back to their feet, even if the next goal wasn’t as jaw-dropping.
However, it was Byrne’s fourth of the night, and it gave the Bandits a three-goal lead.
Entering Game 3, the defending NLL and Finals MVP had struggled to find the back of the net in the playoffs, only scoring three total goals across five games.
He had regained his scoring touch, something that spelled doom for the Rush.
The next several minutes were highlighted by defense, as Vinc continued to deny every Saskatchewan opportunity.
He had some help in front of him, as the league’s best shot-blocking unit did their part.
With six and a half minutes remaining in the quarter, Smith buried his second goal of the game, triggering another Bandits run.
In a span of less than four minutes, Cloutier scored his second of the game, which was followed by Smith’s hat-trick goal and then Cloutier’s.
At the end of the third quarter, Buffalo held a 13-6 lead.
It was time to go into defense mode.
In the final 15 minutes, Buffalo’s offense utilized every second of the shot clock that they could in an attempt to bleed the clock as much as possible.
On the defensive end, the Bandits continued to execute. Vinc kept the Rush offense at bay, and the defense stepped up to block shots and deny opportunities.
Even when Fraser went to the penalty box for a loose ball foul with just under eight minutes to play, it didn’t matter.
The penalty kill unit did its job, keeping the clamps on a frustrated Saskatchewan offense.
But a dominant defensive performance didn’t mean Buffalo was done scoring, either.
With five minutes left, Buchanan found the middle of the defense and scored to extend his team’s lead to eight.
If that wasn’t enough, Buffalo’s transition team put the finishing touches on a third straight championship.
Nick Weiss forced a turnover and ran down the floor uncontested, but his shot was stopped by Scigliano.
That’s when Wyers came flying in to bury the rebound, scoring his first ever playoff goal.
As the final seconds ticked off the clock, it became real.
The Bandits had done it again.
“One is great. Two is fine. But there’s nothing like winning three in a row,” said play-by-play announcer Teddy Jenner.
The Bandits are just the second team in NLL history to win three straight championships, joining the Rochester Knighthawks from 2012 to 2014.
Oh yeah, Vinc was their goalie for all three of those championships, too.
In the modern era of North American professional sports, only three professional athletes have had multiple “three-peats.”
Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen of the 1990s Chicago Bulls are two of them, winning three straight from 1991 to 1993 and then again from 1996 to 1998.
Vinc is now a part of that group, too.
In each of these three championships, Buffalo has had a different player named Finals MVP.
This time, it was MacKay who received the award, joining Smith in 2023 and Byrne in 2024.
2025 was a season to remember for MacKay, who shattered his career high with 37 goals and scored a team-best 16 playoff goals.
Overall, this was the seventh championship in franchise history, surpassing the Toronto Rock and original Philadelphia Wings for the most by any team.
It’s been one hell of a ride, and I want to personally thank you all for joining me.
I started RE: Lax as a class project before the season started, and this website began as another class project in March.
I am truly honored to have covered one of the most special runs of any team in sports history.
To quote Bills fans from 1993, let’s “piss ‘em off and go for four” next year.
MATT’S HIGH FIVES
During every Bandits game, when the team scores, my family and I all send each other high fives over text.
It’s a way to keep in touch and all enjoy the game together, no matter where we are.
So, I thought it could be fun to share some high fives with my top five performers from each game.
This week’s high fives go to:
Matt Vinc: Not only is he unquestionably the best goalie in NLL history, we might need to have a conversation about him being the best player in NLL history. He owns every goaltending record in the book. Let’s see if the soon-to-be 43-year-old wants to come back and do it one more time.
Ian MacKay: What a season it was for MacKay. He scored the second-most goals of any Bandit in the regular season, and he led the team in goals in the playoffs. Nobody deserved Finals MVP more.
Chris Cloutier: After missing Game 2 with an injury, Cloutier came back and scored a hat trick in a winner-take-all game. He was excellent in his return.
Josh Byrne: It’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish. Through Buffalo’s first five playoff games, Byrne’s offense was noticeably lacking. He responded with a remarkable four-goal, nine-point performance in Game 3.
The entire organization: There’s too many people to write everyone down, but they all deserve a shoutout. Winning three straight championships is an unbelievable and rare accomplishment.
Banditland: Yes, Bandits fans get a special bonus high-five. This team truly has the best fans in not only the NLL, but maybe in all of sports. There is no group of people more deserving of success than Buffalonians and Western New Yorkers.
That does it for this season of RE: Lax Recaps! Thank you all for an outstanding season, and Let’s Go Bandits!
