Week 19: Top Things to Know

The Saskatchewan Rush, tied for the top seed, kick off the NLL weekend on NLL Friday Night on TSN against the Calgary Roughnecks. The race for the fourth seed will intensify this weekend, with four teams trailing Rochester by just half a game.

Battle of the Prairies  

NLL Friday Night on TSN will feature the Calgary Roughnecks and Saskatchewan Rush, who are tied with Buffalo for the top seed, is set for 9:00 pm ET. After a 6-4 start, Calgary has dropped four of its last five games and now sits one game back from the final playoff spot. The Roughnecks have thrived away from home, holding a 5-2 road record compared to 2-6 at home.

The Del Bianco Effect

Since acquiring Christian Del Bianco from Calgary on March 10, Vancouver has gone 3-0, a major turnaround after a 2-6 stretch in their previous eight games. The Warriors’ offense has surged, averaging 13.7 goals per game over their last three contests compared to just 10.2 in their first 15. Meanwhile, Albany has won three straight games after a 3-9 start, keeping their playoff hopes alive and sitting two games back from the final spot.

Seals’ Scoring Surge

NLL Saturday Showcase features The Halifax Thunderbirds host the San Diego Seals in their final regular-season home game on Saturday at 6:00 pm ET. Halifax holds third place, just one game ahead of teams tied for fifth through eighth. The Seals have been red-hot on offense, scoring 10+ goals in seven straight games with a 5-2 record during this run, after doing so just once in their previous five contests.

Nifty Fifty

The Knighthawks are on a five-game winning streak, led by 40-goal scorers Ryan Smith (43) and Connor Fields (41). Ottawa, with two straight wins, is just one game out of a playoff spot but has yet to win three in a row this season. Jeff Teat (43 goals) is looking to claim the league’s goal-scoring title for the third straight year and his chance to join two Hall of Famers as the only players in NLL history to record three 50-goal seasons.

Great Dhane

The Buffalo Bandits (11-4) visit the Colorado Mammoth (8-7) on Saturday at 9 pm ET. Buffalo, tied for the number one seed, is 6-1 on the road but has gone 4-4 in their last 8 games, with three losses by just one goal. Dhane Smith, averaging 7.4 points per game, is on pace for 133 points this season and holds the NLL record for points in a season with 137. He has four of the eight 130-point seasons in league history.

Bianco on Box Out

This week’s episode of NLL Box Out with Maki and Coop, welcomes Christian Del Bianco.

NLL TOP PLAYS

The race is on for playoff spots! Check out all the Top Plays from Week 18!

POWER RANKINGS: WEEK 19

Will the Bandits or Rush take the top spot in Cooper Perkins’ latest Power Rankings? Find out here.