The Buffalo Bandits shut down the Saskatchewan Rush 15–6 in Game 3 to complete a historic three-peat as National Lacrosse League champions.
The Bandits became only the second team in league history to three-peat. The only other team to do so was the 2012–2014 Rochester Knighthawks. Remarkably, Matt Vinc backstopped both three-peats in goal, further cementing his future Hall of Fame career.
This victory also marks the Bandits’ seventh championship as a franchise, surpassing the original Philadelphia Wings and the Toronto Rock for the most all-time.
Ian MacKay was named Finals MVP after recording 16 goals and eight assists in six playoff games.
Game 3 was truly a tale of two halves. The Bandits and Rush traded blows early. Even when Buffalo went on a five-goal run to take a four-goal lead, the Rush battled back to pull within one.
But then the second half happened. Saskatchewan’s offense went cold, its defense faltered against Buffalo’s relentless attack, and Frank Scigliano struggled with bounce shots around his feet throughout the game.
Buffalo scored eight straight goals in the second half, while Saskatchewan was held scoreless for the final two quarters.
The lone bright spot for the Rush was Jake Naso, who continued his dominance at the faceoff dot, winning 16 of 25 draws.
Bandits and Rush Go Blow-for-Blow
Saskatchewan opened the scoring just 24 seconds into the game when Zach Manns found Austin Shanks, who dove from behind the net to give the Rush an early lead.
Buffalo tied it at 3:06 when Josh Byrne muscled through Mike Messenger and got to the front of the net to make it 1–1.
On the goal, Byrne was called for goaltender interference, but on the ensuing power play, Shanks capitalized just 16 seconds in to restore the Rush lead.
Dhane Smith responded at 3:52 with a long shot that beat Scigliano, tying the game once again.
With offsetting penalties leading to 4-on-4 play, Manns scored on a swim move at 6:48 to keep the Rush ahead.
Chris Cloutier, fresh off the injured list, beat Bobby Kidd III to the front of the net and scored with 3:36 left in the first quarter to tie it 3–3. It was the first of five straight Bandits goals. The Rush challenged the goal, but replay showed Cloutier stayed out of the crease.
Bandits Begin to Pull Away
Buffalo’s potent offense kept rolling in the second quarter. Byrne scored off a quick-stick pass from Kyle Buchanan just 1:30 in.
MacKay followed with a transition goal at 2:38. Byrne added another, this time a bouncing shot—one of many in the game—just 18 seconds later. Buchanan capped the run at 4:14 with yet another low bouncer that beat Scigliano, giving the Bandits a 7–3 lead. Saskatchewan then substituted Thomas Kiazyk in goal to give Scigliano a breather.
But the Rush didn’t quit. Robert Church beat Vinc at 4:27 for his first goal of the Finals. Scigliano returned to the net shortly after.
Ryan Keenan then made a smart off-ball cut and scored at 7:47 to cut the deficit to two. Church added another on a 3-on-2 transition play at 4:18, making it 7–6 at the half.
Bandits Dominate the Second Half
The second half was all Buffalo. Saskatchewan’s lack of playoff experience began to show, with defensive lapses, shaky goaltending, and a rushed offense that forced poor shots.
Chase Fraser doe not score normal goals. He opened the half with a highlight-reel, one-handed behind-the-back goal just 1:34 into the third.
Byrne then snuck another bouncer past Scigliano at 2:27, followed by Dhane Smith’s shot through two defenders at 8:32 to put Buffalo up by four.
Cloutier went low-to-high with 4:25 left in the third to make it 11–6. Then, Smith added another low bouncer at 3:31, and Cloutier followed suit with yet another bouncer at 2:05, giving Buffalo a commanding 13–6 lead heading into the fourth as they were one quarter away from the three-peat.
Bandits Make History With Three-Peat
The fourth quarter was mostly Buffalo playing with its food, while Saskatchewan continued to force shots and struggled to generate any offense.
Buchanan scored on a high-to-low shot with 5:12 left. Nick Weiss broke in alone and was stopped, but Cam Wyers buried the rebound to seal the Bandits’ dominant 15–6 win and secure the three-peat.
Top Scorers
Buffalo Bandits
- Josh Byrne: 4 goals, 5 assists
- Dhane Smith: 3 goals, 5 assists
- Chris Cloutier: 3 goals, 1 assist
- Kyle Buchanan: 2 goals, 2 assists
Saskatchewan Rush
- Robert Church: 2 goals, 4 assists
- Zach Manns: 1 goal, 1 assist
- Ryan Keenan: 1 goal, 1 assist
- Matt Hossack: 2 assists
- Austin Shanks: 2 goals
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