The lacrosse world is on the edge of their seats, as the Saskatchewan Rush once again find themselves on the road to KeyBank Center for the third game of the NLL Championship Series. The Rush forced Game 3 with an incredible, down-to-the-wire 10-11 home victory against the reigning champs, the Buffalo Bandits.
On the home bench, the Saskatchewan offensive line swung out with an early lead with a quick, unassisted goal from postseason transition star Jake Boudreau. Boudreau’s first blood was quickly followed up by forward Austin Shanks from the top corner, who put up his second straight eight-point game in the Finals, and is now leading the League in postseason goals and points (16 goals, 30 total points in the playoffs).
The Rush’s defense left it all out on the turf on Sunday as well, with Frank Scigliano holding down the fort with 40 saves against the Buffalo offense, several of which came uninterrupted in the second half. But he wasn’t alone in the proverbial shelling, as nearly every neon-green defender on the floor put their bodies on the line to keep shots out of the net, with Saskatchewan defender Holden Garlent throwing himself in front of what would have been the game-tying shot in the final milliseconds of the contest.
Final seconds. Season on the line.
Holden Garlent sacrifices the body to force Game 3! 💥 pic.twitter.com/xoQoruTlbB
— NLL (@NLL) May 21, 2025
Though they made the trip home from their second outing against Saskatchewan without their expected outcome, the Bandits’ consistent, not to mention flashy shooting certainly made them the weekend’s standouts. The upstate superstars’ biggest names opened up the scoring for the visiting team, with Dhane Smith and Ian MacKay being the first to get the out-of-place Bandits fans out of their seats.
While Smith and MacKay found themselves quarterbacking or finishing four of the five flashy Buffalo goals scored in the second quarter, Chase Fraser opened up the second half with the shot seen round the world. His irreplicable one-handed BTB goal forced color commentator Teddy Jenner to begin considering an early retirement, “I’m not calling anymore games because Chase Fraser just broke my mind… [Fraser’s] a sicko!”
Mind-blowing 🤯 @The_Fraze95 | @NLLBandits pic.twitter.com/7bzAgDGyhm
— NLL (@NLL) May 21, 2025
But amidst all the highlights and retirement party planning, the stakes have never been higher and the anticipation never more unbearable. As of May 22nd, the Bandits have officially sold out the KeyBank Center for Game 3. To thank Banditland and lacrosse fans in attendance, Buffalo has lined the seats of the arena with game day merch; Bandits-orange rally towels with “whatever it takes” printed across them for fans to more effectively hoot and holler when the goal horn blares.
The team has also received numerous ‘go-get-’em’s from fellow local professional teams in support of the Buffalo sports history in the making. Buffalo Bills running back Re’Mahn Davis and d-tackle DeWayne Carter took over the Bills’ social media on Friday to wish the Bandits good luck, and announce their own gameday attendance and hunger for a three-peat. “Big dubs, I’m turnt,” Carter said as he and Davis ate a dub to close out their well-wishes.
We’ll see you in Banditland, @Ray_Davis07 & @Dewaynecarter0! 🗣️#LetsGoBandits | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/qZM7z1ImoY
— Buffalo Bandits (@NLLBandits) May 23, 2025
Back on the visitors’ bench for Game 3, the Saskatchewan Rush have been engaging in their usual brand of tongue-in-cheek social media postings, but there’s a clear consistency to their virtual trash talking this time around. Rather than the usual string of impeccably curated memes and musings, the Rush have taken a different approach to strike fear in the hearts of Banditland.
Saskatchewan took to X earlier in the week with a clip from their last outing to the NLL Finals, specifically, Game 3 against the original Rochester Knighthawks. The Rush took Game 3 and the 2018 NLL Cup in a 15-10 home win over Rochester, and chose to remind the League with a clip of captain Ryan Keenan, then in his sophomore season with the Rush Nation, scoring goal number 13 to push a three-goal lead. The Rush want to make it clear that they’ve been there before, just as many times as the Bandits, and know how to operate in the spotlight of Game 3.
Adding to their online intensity, Rush Nation has made it clear they have no intention of letting the Bandits walk in and out with a trophy, posting an eerie clip of forward Zach Manns speaking directly to the camera, and in turn, his upstate rivals, to let them know Rush Nation is on their way. “Shooters shoot, they say,” he said. “Like Jimmy [Quinlan] says, ‘you got to shoot to get hot and shoot to stay hot.’”
Job’s not done. pic.twitter.com/sTxTsoCCxP
— Saskatchewan Rush (@SaskRushLAX) May 23, 2025
Game 3 of the NLL Finals, where legends are made and stories are cut short. Will Buffalo rewrite League, lacrosse and sports history all from the comfort of their home arena? Or will the Rush step in to begin their own dynasty run?
