By Budd Bailey
All coaches usually find something to complain something about after a game, no matter how one-sided the outcome was. And the Bandits’ John Tavares has proven himself to be a very good coach.
Even so, even he couldn’t come up with any complaints about the Bandits’ 13-6 win over the Rochester Knighthawks before 19,070 satisfied customers at the KeyBank Center Saturday night. In fact, it was a banner performance on a banner-raising night.
“That was a great night, celebrating last year’s championship,” he said. “They did a great job today for 60 minutes. From Matt (Vinc), the defense, the offense – everyone was on all cylinders. It was a complete game.”
The evening started with a special ceremony in which the reward for last season’s championship was raised to the proverbial rafters. Titles aren’t exactly common in Buffalo, especially when two of them come in consecutive years, but now the Bandits have six of those pieces of important laundry hanging from above.
“I was trying to concentrate on the game, but you have to focus on that moment right there,” Dhane Smith said. “I really didn’t take it all in, to be honest. It flew by. I was nervous all day. I usually don’t get nervous until the playoffs, but this game felt like it was the finals.”
“It’s one of those games when you’re a little uncomfortable during the day,” Vinc said. “You want to get that part of it over with. It means so much to everyone, but we’re here to play a game. It’s one of those things when you’ll look back and be very proud of that moment.”
The only problem with such a ceremony is that it can be something of a distraction for the title-defending team, especially at the start. Rochester probably saw an imaginary bull’s-eye on the Bandits’ backs. If the Knighthawks could get the early lead, it could change the course of the game.
Not to worry. Smith opened the scoring for Buffalo only 22 seconds into the game, and Josh Byrne made it 2-0 about six minutes later. Meanwhile, the Bandits’ defense was letter-perfect in the first 15 minutes, blanking Rochester. Vinc set the tone by stopping all 10 shots.
“All three games (this season) we’ve been playing well, and playing better as a team,” Tavares said. “We’ve allowed seven, seven and six goals defensively.”
Then in the second quarter, Buffalo piled up four goals in less than two minutes to make it a 6-0 lead. Since 2017-18, the Bandits were 25-1 when they had a six-goal lead at any point in the game. Make that 26-1 now. Rochester had a little flurry in the second quarter to cut the lead to 6-3, but the Bandits simply took charge the rest of the way. No one was going to spoil their night.
The list of heroes for Buffalo was led by goalie Vinc, who was busy rewriting the record book. He finished with 62 saves, breaking his own team record of 60 set in 2022 (Daniel Sams also had 60 in a 2008 game against Chicago). What’s more, he had a save percentage of .912 on the night. That’s the second-best number for a Bandit in a game since records began in 2005. Vinc now has the top three figures in Buffalo history, with only a .932 night against Rochester in 2019 topping this one.
Not bad for a 42-year-old.
“Matt is in phenomenal shape, and he can play for as long as he wants in this game,” Tavares said. “It seems like he is 25 and at the peak of his career.”
The goalie doesn’t do all of the work in such a performance. It’s probably no coincidence that the Bandits’ defense has been on a great roll since Paul Dawson came aboard in a trade earlier in 2024. Dawson had five blocked shots on Saturday night, matching the total of the rest of the team combined.
“Ultimately he’s a calming presence in the locker room and on the floor,” Vinc said. “For me, it’s that familiarity and comfort level – trust. I don’t even react to some of the shots because I know he’s going to block it. Our team does a good job blocking shots. It’s something we preach.”
On offense, the combination of Josh Byrne and Dhane Smith continues to be difficult to stop. Byrne finished with two goals and nine assists, while Smith finished with eight (2+6) points. The two prettiest goals of the game, though, might have belonged to Tehoka Nanticoke. On one, he took a pass right in front of the net in traffic, put on about four fakes, and finally found room to slip the ball in the net.
Here’s how well the Bandits have been playing: After taking part in 180 minutes of competition, they have trailed for exactly six minutes and 12 seconds. That’s ridiculously good.
“Lacrosse is like hockey in that it’s easier to play when you are leading,” Tavares said. “When you have the lead, you’re frustrating the other team and forcing them out of their gameplan. Then we go on longer runs. That seems to be happening right. Right now defensively we’re covering everyone like a blanket. When they get shots, they hit bodies, and when they don’t, Matt is sitting there and making a great save. It’s tough playing against our defense.”
More good news for the team: The Bandits have allowed a total of 20 goals in three games this season. That ties a team record for fewest goals in a three-game stretch in history, dating back to 1992.
The win doesn’t mean that the team should be scheduling another ceremony for next December. But the Bandits did want to avoid a slow start that was troublesome last season. Buffalo lost two of its first three and six of its first 11 before winning 11 of its last 12 down the stretch and through the playoffs.
“It’s important to get off to a good start,” Smith said. “Last year, we didn’t. But this team is so good. You can’t take anything for granted. I think bringing in the same group to training camp meant we didn’t miss a beat.”
Now it’s a matter of managing yet another bye week. The New Year will bring a third week of rest out of six so far in the young season. It’s not as if anyone needs time off at the moment, and everyone no doubt wouldn’t mind playing more games when everything is going so well. But the schedule is the schedule, so the Bandits will deal with it and move along.
Toronto comes to town on January 10, as the four-game homestand continues.
(Follow Budd on X.com via @WDX2BB)
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