The No. 4 seed Vancouver Warriors take on the No. 1 seed Buffalo Bandits in a best-of-three series starting Friday night.
With the league’s top stars and championship pedigree on both sides, this semifinal clash promises to be a can’t miss matchup. The Warriors are surging with belief and depth, while the Bandits are backed by one of the most electric crowds in the NLL.
Game 1 at Banditland is set to be a battle of grit and next-level lacrosse.
Series Schedule
Game 1: Friday May 2nd at 4:30 p.m. PT – Keybank Center
Game 2: Sunday, May 4th at 6:00 p.m. PT – Rogers Arena
Game 3 (if necessary): Saturday, May 10th at 4:00 p.m. PT – Keybank Center
You can catch Friday and Sunday’s games on TSN, ESPN+, TSN+ and NLL+.
To purchase tickets for Game 2 visit here.
Quarterfinal Victories
The Warriors are riding the momentum of a seven-game win streak after defeating the Rochester Knighthawks 15-10 at Rogers Arena in the single elimination quarter final. The Warriors got out to a big lead in the first half and rode that through until the final horn.
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It was offence by committee for Vancouver against Rochester, with 10 different players finding the back of the net. Leading the way in his NLL playoff debut was Keegan Bal with 11 points (5G, 6A), earning one of the four Gatorade Canada Impact Player of the quarterfinals. Kevin Crowley added two goals and two assists, and Adam Charalambides had five assists.
Vancouver’s defence helped set the tone from the start, blocking six shots, forcing eight turnovers and going 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. Faceoff specialist Alec Stathakis went 15 for 29 from the circle and picked up three loose balls.
Although the Knighthawks outshot the Warriors, goaltender Christian Del Bianco turned aside 48 of 58 shots. Through the Warriors’ seven-game win streak, Del Bianco has been on a tear, leading all goaltenders in save percentage (.821%), goals-against average (8.94), and .86 points per game.
The Buffalo Bandits are coming off a 5-4 win over the San Diego Seals in the lowest-scoring playoff game in NLL history. Goaltender Matt Vinc turned aside 48 off 52 shots he faced for a .923% save percentage and was a Gatorade Canada Impact Player.
Vinc is making his 14th postseason appearance in 19 seasons and has five championships, posting a 17-5 playoff record with the Bandits.
Buffalo’s Ian MacKay scored twice, and Dhane Smith, Nick Weiss, and Kyle Buchanan scored singles. Buchanan scored the winning goal, before Seals’ Tre Leclaire and Zach Currier each scored a goal to bring the Seals within one.
Buffalo’s defence blocked 17 shots against the Seals, tying a season-high that they achieved against Calgary on March 15th.
The Last Meeting
In a contest where the biggest lead was three goals, the Warriors, Bandits matchup in Week 18 was a back-and-forth affair with Vancouver topping Buffalo 13-12 at Keybank Arena.
Vancouver started strong with four goals in the first quarter, but a goal from Chase Fraser tied it in the second. Bal scored to help Vancouver regain the lead before the half and through the third quarter. The battle-tested Bandits went on a four-goal run between the end of the third and beginning of the fourth to take an 11-9 lead, but the Warriors responded with a four-goal run of their own.
Bal finished the game with 10 points (4G, 6A) and the Warriors got contributions from Crowley (2G, 2A), Riley Loewen (2G, 2A), Ryan Martel (2G, 1A), and Charalambides (1G, 6A). The Warriors power play went 3-for-5.
Del Bianco made massive saves in the last 36 seconds with the Bandits on a two-man advantage to help the Warriors seal the win with 40 saves.
Bandits to Keep an Eye On
Smith and New Westminster’s Josh Byrne finished the regular season as NLL scoring leaders, both amassing 134 points – Smith (32G, 102A) and Byrne (44G, 90A). Smith and Byrne are also first and second in the NLL in assists.
Other Greater Vancouver locals on the Bandits roster include forwards Lukas Nielsen and Chase Fraser.
Nielsen is a New Westminster native and was selected seventh overall in the 2024 NLL Entry Draft after a standout season with the Junior A Salmonbellies.
Fraser, from Vancouver, was picked 13th overall in 2017. A former Junior A Delta Islander, he played in the 2016 Minto Cup and previously suited up for the Chaos LC in the PLL alongside Byrne.
Get set for a showdown between the two-time defending champion Bandits and the surging Warriors, who are looking to extend their seven-game win streak into more playoff action.
