The Buffalo Bandits began their new season with a 15-11 victory over the Georgia Swarm at KeyBank Center, highlighted by strong defensive play in the second half. The team celebrated the occasion by raising a third consecutive championship banner.
Dhane Smith led the Bandits with four goals and eight points, while Josh Byrne contributed six points. The game was closely contested in the first half, with Buffalo trailing 9-8 early in the third quarter after allowing eight goals before halftime.
A key turning point came as the Bandits allowed only three goals in the second half. From the 14:15 mark of the third quarter to 14:22 of the fourth, Georgia failed to score for over 14 minutes. Head coach John Tavares attributed this improvement to defensive adjustments and increased pressure. “Defensively, we’re a lot more stingy down there,” Tavares said. “Didn’t give them as many step-down shots that they had in the first half. [Shayne] Jackson was shooting the ball very well, and he did get one in the second half, but I thought we came out with a little pressure. We made a few adjustments and they seemed to work today.”
Tavares also noted that transition defense became a focus after conceding four transition goals in the first half. The Bandits responded by creating eight turnovers and recovering 42 loose balls during the final two quarters.
Goaltender Matt Vinc played an important role, making 32 saves overall—11 of which came in the fourth quarter—as Buffalo dressed eight defensive players instead of their usual nine.
Smith explained that better offensive possessions helped maintain defensive consistency after halftime. “One thing we struggled with in the first half was scoring a goal or scoring two goals, and then that next shift they would score,” Smith said. “We wanted to focus on that next shift mentality.”
Thirteen different players scored at least one point for Buffalo; nine had multi-point games. Both Ryan Benesch and Mitch de Snoo scored in their returns to Buffalo—Benesch netted his goal on nine shots while de Snoo added an assist along with 10 loose ball recoveries, three blocked shots, and two turnovers created.
Smith spoke highly of Benesch: “He’s a player I idolized being from the same hometown of Kitchener, Ontario,” Smith said, adding he expects more goals from Benesch going forward.
Tavares praised de Snoo’s contribution since joining from Philadelphia via trade: “He’s definitely welcome addition,” Tavares said about de Snoo. “I thought he was all over the floor…great on loose balls, great on defense and I thought he scored a very important, big goal for us in transition as well.”
Tehoka Nanticoke reached his 100th career NLL goal during this match and finished with two goals and an assist along with four loose ball recoveries. His performance could become even more significant following offseason departures from other key attackers.
“He’s such an unreal talent,” Byrne said regarding Nanticoke’s skill set. “We talk about soft hands; he’s at the top of the list.”
Connor Farrell excelled at faceoffs by winning 26 out of 31 draws—including surpassing 400 career wins—which makes him only the second player in franchise history to reach that milestone.
Buffalo will host Halifax on December 13 for their next home game.
