Game Day Playoff Preview - Warriors at Bandits
May 2, 2025 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Vancouver Warriors News Release
MATCHUP INFO
- Tonight marks the second meeting between the Warriors and Bandits this season: Mar. 29 (road, 13-12 W).
- The Warriors have an 8-18 all-time record against Buffalo, including an 4-8 record on the road.
- This is the first playoff matchup between the Warriors and Bandits.
QUICK NUMBERS
- Christian Del Bianco stopped 48 of 58 shots last week against Rochester and improved to 7-0 with an 82.1 save percentage since joining Vancouver.
- Keegan Bal recorded his second-highest single-game point total of the season last week against Rochester (5-6-11).
- Ryan Dilks and Jeff Cornwall each had two caused turnovers in last week's win over Rochester.
- The Warriors allowed 9.6 goals/game during the regular season, the best mark in the NLL.
PLAYER TO WATCH - VANCOUVER
Keegan Bal
- Coming off of an 11-point performance in his playoff debut last week against Rochester, Bal will look to continue his strong play into the Warriors' first-ever Semifinals appearance. Bal had 10 points (4-6-10) when these two teams met on March 29, a 13-12 victory for Vancouver.
PLAYER TO WATCH - BUFFALO
Dhane Smith
- The Kitchener, ON native led the way for the Bandits last week against San Diego, recording three points (1-2-3) in a tight 5-4 win. Smith and teammate Josh Byrne co-led the NLL in points during the regular season with 134, and recorded 34 points (7-27-34) in five playoff games last season en-route to a second consecutive NLL Championship.
WARRIORS AT BANDITS
Vancouver Buffalo
15.0 GF/Game 5.0
10.0 GA/Game 4.0
47.0 Shots/Game 44.0
8.0 PIM/Game 13.0
WHERE TO WATCH
- TSN 5
- TSN+
- NLL+
- ESPN+
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
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