The National Lacrosse League gets back into the swing with three matchups on Friday and Saturday followed by a full slate of games next weekend.
Here are 10 things to know about the NLL for Week 5:
- The Saskatchewan Rush will host a New Year’s Eve Party at SakTel Centre beginning at 6:30 p.m. MT in advance of the club’s 8 p.m. start vs. Panther City. The James Barker Band will continue to play through 12:30 a.m. in an evening that will also feature a live countdown and indoor fireworks. NYE, NLL Style!
- San Diego (2-0) and Calgary (2-0) meet on Friday in a matchup of early-season unbeatens atop the West. Conveniently, it’s the NLL Game of the Week on TSN, starting at 9 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. MT at WestJet Field at Scotiabank Saddledome. U.S. fans can tune into the game on ESPN+.
- One of the other undefeated teams, Halifax (2-0) battles last year’s finalists the Buffalo Bandits (1-1) on Friday (7:30 p.m., Keybank Center). At 3-0, Rochester is the only other unbeaten, and will host Panther City on Jan. 7 in its next action.
- All three home teams this weekend have defended their own turf well the past three regular seasons, but the Buffalo Bandits have made KeyBank Arena, the toughest place to play for visitors. The past three years Buffalo is 18-6 during the regular season at home, while the Rush are 15-8 and the Roughnecks just 12-11.
- Buffalo Bandits teammates Dhane Smith (Kitchener, Ont,) and Josh Byrne (New Westminster, B.C.) debuted their new show entitled, appropriately enough, “The Dhane and Josh Show” on the Bandits’ YouTube channel, last week, talking all things Buffalo sports. Former Sabres wing Patrick Kaleta joined the show as the first guest.
- More than 100 colleges are represented on NLL rosters, including more than 75 U.S. schools. A quick breakdown of Conferences and divisions:
- The BIG EAST (six) has the most schools with at least one player, followed by the ACC, America East and CAA with five, and A-10, ASun, Big10 and Patriot League with four each.
- The CAA’s 20 players are the most from any conference, followed by the ACC (19) and BIG EAST (18)
- Among NCAA Division II conferences, Conference Carolinas and the Great Midwest have three schools each represented. Carolinas (14 players, 10 from Limestone) has the most players, followed by the Liberty League with 11 (10 from RIT). Six players from six different Division III schools appear on rosters and four from two junior colleges.
- In NLL Team community service news, the San Diego Seals have partnered with ocean cleanup company 4ocean to sponsor the cleanup of 50,000 pounds of trash from the world's oceans, rivers, and coastlines throughout the 2022-23 season. Staff members launched the partnership with a trash cleanup along Mission Beach in San Diego. The team will donate $1 for every ticket sold to a Seals home game to the cause.
Some milestones players may reach this week include:
- Buffalo forward Kyle Buchanan (Nepean, Ont.) needs seven goals to reach 200
- Calgary forward Brett Hickey (Windsor, Ont.) needs two goals to reach 200
- Calgary forward Tyler Pace (Coquitlam, B.C.) needs three assists to reach 100
- Halifax defenseman David Brock (Burlington, Ont.) needs three points to reach 100
- Halifax forward Austin Shanks (Courtise, Ont.) needs three goals to reach 100
- Halifax forward Eric Fannell (St. Catharines, Ont.) needs three points to reach 100
- San Diego forward Wesley Berg (Coquitlam, B.C.) needs seven loose ball recoveries to reach 400
- San Diego forward Curtis Dickson (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) needs six assists to reach 400
- San Diego defenseman Jesse Gamble (Rockwood, Ont.) needs five games played to reach 100
- San Diego defenseman/transition player Brodie Merrill (Orangeville, Ont.) needs one game played to pass Brandon Miller for seventh place on the all-time list with 262.
- Saskatchewan defenseman Matt Beers (Coquitlam, B.C.) needs six assists to reach 100
- Saskatchewan forward Josh Currier (Peterborough, Ont.) needs two goals to reach 100
- Saskatchewan defenseman Ryan Dilks (Edmonton, Alb.) needs five points to reach 100
- Saskatchewan forward Matthew Dinsdale (Coquitlam, B.C.) needs three goals to reach 100
