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BUF at SD - Sat. 10pm ET on ESPNews Schedule

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WK
1
Fri, Dec 2
FINAL
Philadelphia
8
Halifax
18
Sat, Dec 3
FINAL
Vancouver
8
Toronto
19
Sat, Dec 3
FINAL
San Diego
15
New York
14
Sat, Dec 3
FINAL
Albany
11
Buffalo
10
Sat, Dec 3
FINAL
Rochester
16
Georgia
11
Sat, Dec 3
FINAL
Colorado
6
Saskatchewan
18
WK
2
Fri, Dec 9
FINAL
Las Vegas
11
Panther City
13
Fri, Dec 9
FINAL/OT
Saskatchewan
12
San Diego
13
Sat, Dec 10
FINAL
Toronto
7
Rochester
11
Sat, Dec 10
FINAL
Vancouver
9
Calgary
11
WK
3
Fri, Dec 16
FINAL
Calgary
14
Vancouver
5
Fri, Dec 16
FINAL
Panther City
9
Las Vegas
3
Sat, Dec 17
FINAL
Buffalo
11
Toronto
8
Sat, Dec 17
FINAL
Rochester
14
Albany
13
Sat, Dec 17
FINAL
Philadelphia
13
Georgia
12
Sat, Dec 17
FINAL
Halifax
20
New York
11
Sat, Dec 17
FINAL
Colorado
12
Panther City
9
WK
5
Fri, Dec 30
FINAL
Halifax
13
Buffalo
18
Fri, Dec 30
FINAL
San Diego
17
Calgary
14
Sat, Dec 31
FINAL
Panther City
9
Saskatchewan
11
WK
6
Fri, Jan 6
FINAL
Philadelphia
14
Las Vegas
9
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Panther City
9
Rochester
17
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Halifax
14
Albany
11
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Buffalo
18
Georgia
9
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Toronto
15
New York
7
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Calgary
8
Colorado
9
Sat, Jan 7
FINAL
Vancouver
11
San Diego
16
WK
7
Fri, Jan 13
FINAL/OT
Albany
11
Halifax
10
Fri, Jan 13
FINAL/OT
Saskatchewan
10
Colorado
11
Sat, Jan 14
FINAL
Halifax
8
Toronto
17
Sat, Jan 14
FINAL
Panther City
12
Philadelphia
10
Sat, Jan 14
FINAL
Georgia
9
Buffalo
11
Sat, Jan 14
FINAL
San Diego
10
Calgary
14
Sat, Jan 14
FINAL
Las Vegas
16
Vancouver
19
Sun, Jan 15
FINAL
Rochester
11
New York
8
WK
8
Fri, Jan 20
FINAL
Buffalo
12
Rochester
15
Fri, Jan 20
FINAL
Vancouver
14
Las Vegas
15
Sat, Jan 21
FINAL
Toronto
14
Philadelphia
5
Sat, Jan 21
FINAL
New York
16
Albany
10
WK
9
Fri, Jan 27
FINAL
Rochester
7
Halifax
17
Fri, Jan 27
FINAL
Buffalo
13
Philadelphia
9
Sat, Jan 28
FINAL
Buffalo
16
New York
10
Sat, Jan 28
FINAL
Las Vegas
10
Saskatchewan
15
Sat, Jan 28
FINAL/OT
Toronto
11
Calgary
10
Sat, Jan 28
FINAL
San Diego
13
Colorado
9
Sat, Jan 28
FINAL
Panther City
20
Vancouver
7
WK
10
Fri, Feb 3
FINAL
Georgia
10
Colorado
13
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL/OT
Calgary
12
Halifax
11
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
New York
14
Toronto
22
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
Albany
5
Philadelphia
13
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
Rochester
10
Buffalo
13
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
Panther City
10
San Diego
12
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
Saskatchewan
14
Vancouver
8
Sat, Feb 4
FINAL
Colorado
8
Las Vegas
13
WK
11
Fri, Feb 10
FINAL
Toronto
11
Georgia
10
Fri, Feb 10
FINAL
Saskatchewan
6
Calgary
13
Sat, Feb 11
FINAL
Halifax
14
Rochester
16
Sat, Feb 11
FINAL
Albany
12
New York
14
Sat, Feb 11
FINAL
Vancouver
13
Panther City
14
Sat, Feb 11
FINAL
Colorado
9
Calgary
13
WK
12
Fri, Feb 17
FINAL
Calgary
14
Vancouver
9
Fri, Feb 17
FINAL
Saskatchewan
16
San Diego
11
Sat, Feb 18
FINAL
Georgia
7
Toronto
16
Sat, Feb 18
FINAL
Las Vegas
12
Albany
10
Sat, Feb 18
FINAL/OT
Philadelphia
12
Buffalo
13
Sat, Feb 18
FINAL
Colorado
7
Panther City
13
Sun, Feb 19
FINAL
New York
12
Halifax
13
WK
13
Fri, Feb 24
FINAL
Panther City
12
Colorado
14
Fri, Feb 24
FINAL
Calgary
9
Las Vegas
11
Sat, Feb 25
FINAL/OT
New York
10
Rochester
11
Sat, Feb 25
FINAL
Albany
4
Georgia
20
Sat, Feb 25
FINAL
Vancouver
16
Saskatchewan
12
WK
14
Fri, Mar 3
FINAL
Buffalo
10
Halifax
9
Sat, Mar 4
FINAL
New York
12
Philadelphia
19
Sat, Mar 4
FINAL
Las Vegas
12
San Diego
15
Sat, Mar 4
FINAL
Rochester
8
Toronto
9
Sat, Mar 4
FINAL/OT
Georgia
9
Albany
8
Sat, Mar 4
FINAL
Saskatchewan
10
Panther City
16
Mon, Mar 6
FINAL
Toronto
10
Philadelphia
11
WK
15
Fri, Mar 10
FINAL/OT
Halifax
9
Buffalo
10
Fri, Mar 10
FINAL
Calgary
16
Colorado
10
Sat, Mar 11
FINAL
Albany
6
Toronto
12
Sat, Mar 11
FINAL
Philadelphia
10
New York
13
Sat, Mar 11
FINAL
San Diego
12
Saskatchewan
11
Sat, Mar 11
FINAL
Vancouver
14
Las Vegas
5
Sun, Mar 12
FINAL
Rochester
19
Georgia
18
WK
16
Fri, Mar 17
FINAL
Saskatchewan
6
Calgary
11
Fri, Mar 17
FINAL
San Diego
16
Vancouver
9
Sat, Mar 18
FINAL
Georgia
13
Philadelphia
12
Sat, Mar 18
FINAL
Toronto
12
Halifax
14
Sat, Mar 18
FINAL
Albany
10
New York
13
Sat, Mar 18
FINAL
Colorado
13
Buffalo
8
Sat, Mar 18
FINAL
Las Vegas
8
Panther City
11
Sun, Mar 19
FINAL/OT
Philadelphia
9
Rochester
8
WK
17
Fri, Mar 24
20:30:00
San Diego
Panther City
Sat, Mar 25
19:00:00
Toronto
Albany
Sat, Mar 25
19:00:00
Halifax
Philadelphia
Sat, Mar 25
19:30:00
Georgia
New York
Sat, Mar 25
21:30:00
Calgary
Saskatchewan
Sat, Mar 25
22:00:00
Buffalo
San Diego
Sat, Mar 25
22:00:00
Colorado
Vancouver
Sat, Mar 25
22:30:00
Rochester
Las Vegas
WK
18
Fri, Mar 31
19:00:00
New York
Georgia
Fri, Mar 31
21:00:00
Las Vegas
Colorado
Fri, Mar 31
22:00:00
Calgary
San Diego
Sat, Apr 1
19:00:00
Buffalo
Toronto
Sat, Apr 1
20:00:00
Albany
Panther City
Sat, Apr 1
21:30:00
Vancouver
Saskatchewan
Sun, Apr 2
13:00:00
Georgia
Halifax
Sun, Apr 2
18:00:00
Rochester
Philadelphia
WK
19
Sat, Apr 8
19:00:00
Albany
Rochester
Sat, Apr 8
19:00:00
Saskatchewan
Georgia
Sat, Apr 8
21:00:00
Panther City
Calgary
Sat, Apr 8
21:00:00
Vancouver
Colorado
Sat, Apr 8
22:30:00
San Diego
Las Vegas
WK
20
Fri, Apr 14
21:00:00
Las Vegas
Calgary
Fri, Apr 14
21:00:00
San Diego
Colorado
Sat, Apr 15
19:00:00
Philadelphia
Toronto
Sat, Apr 15
19:00:00
Georgia
Albany
Sat, Apr 15
19:30:00
New York
Buffalo
Sat, Apr 15
21:30:00
Halifax
Saskatchewan
Sat, Apr 15
22:00:00
Panther City
Vancouver
WK
21
Fri, Apr 21
20:30:00
Calgary
Panther City
Sat, Apr 22
18:00:00
New York
Halifax
Sat, Apr 22
19:00:00
Georgia
Rochester
Sat, Apr 22
20:00:00
Toronto
Buffalo
Sat, Apr 22
21:30:00
Colorado
Saskatchewan
Sat, Apr 22
22:00:00
Las Vegas
San Diego
Sun, Apr 23
15:00:00
Philadelphia
Albany
WK
22
Sat, Apr 29
19:00:00
Philadelphia
Rochester
Sat, Apr 29
19:00:00
Buffalo
Albany
Sat, Apr 29
19:00:00
Halifax
Georgia
Sat, Apr 29
22:00:00
Colorado
San Diego
Sat, Apr 29
22:00:00
New York
Vancouver
Sat, Apr 29
22:30:00
Saskatchewan
Las Vegas
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The Seals and Mammoth Connection

Previewing Game 3 of the West Conference Finals

The San Diego Seals started from the bottom and now they’re here, a winner-take-all Game 3 of the West Conference Finals and a chance to advance to the NLL championship for the first time in franchise history.

Looming large in front of the Seals, an expansion team that joined the league for the 2018-19 season, is the Colorado Mammoth, who travel to San Diego for the decider at Pechanga Arena on Saturday night (10pm ET/ESPN+ and TSN2).

Saturday’s West winner will face the top-ranked East champion Bandits in the NLL Finals, starting June 4 in Buffalo.

The Mammoth, meanwhile, a team that relocated from Washington D.C. to Denver for the 2002-03 season, are looking to book their first trip to the championship since 2006, when Colorado captured its one and only NLL title as the Mammoth.

There’s a direct connection between the Seals and Mammoth, something perhaps only San Diego president Steve Govett can speak to and savor: Govett is the man who brought both the Mammoth to Colorado and the Seals to southern California, and pro box lacrosse to two non-traditional markets.

“It’s certainly interesting for me,” says Govett, who was president, GM and governor of the Mammoth from 2002 to 2017 before subsequently spearheading the Seals expansion. “You know, it’s a bit of a throwback for me, sentimental of course, nostalgic.

“We both have a job to do, we’re both trying to get to the finals. But here we are, on the precipice of one of these teams going to the NLL championship.”

Twenty years ago, way back in 2002, Govett was in his second season as GM of the Washington Power, who were winning on the floor with lacrosse legend Gary Gait but failing off the floor with a lack of local fan interest and low attendance.

But Govett had a dream and he embarked on a crusade across North America, ultimately brokering a deal with Denver-based Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, owner at the time of the NBA’s Nuggets, the NHL’s Avalanche and Pepsi Center, now known as Ball Arena.

The Power, Govett and Gait relocated to Denver and the Mammoth were born, quickly emerging as a winner on and off the floor.

“We always had aspirations that this sport could be successful anywhere,” says Govett, who played for the Philadelphia Wings between 1994-98, winning three titles in five seasons, and was GM there from 1999-2000 before the Washington experiment. “But we didn’t think we’d sell the building out.”

Colorado finished first in its division during the inaugural 2002-03 season and had an average per-game home attendance of 16,488. In 2003-04 the Mammoth finished first again and even more fans showed up in Denver with an average of 17,618, best in the NLL that season.

“Colorado was essentially a bolt-on operation, all the infrastructure with Kroenke was in place and well-established, from marketing to ticket sales to sponsorships,” Govett says.

The Mammoth’s big success culminated in the 2006 championship. On that cup-winning Colorado team was then-defender and now-head coach Pat Coyle.

“It was a special team, Gavin Prout, Gee Nash, [current Vancouver coach] Chris Gill, Dan Stroup, Rich Catton, Coyle, Gary Gait in his first year as coach,” says Govett, before switching back to comment on 2022.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Pat Coyle and for the players I drafted, acquired and signed as free agents, starting with Dillon Ward [the Goaltender of the Year in 2017] and Joey Cupido [Transition Player of the Year in 2015 and 2018], Hope, McLaughlin and Wardle, that core group.”

But while he might look back fondly at his professional success and personal relationships in Colorado, Govett is firmly living in the present in San Diego with the Seals.

“Going to San Diego, it was a totally different situation,” he says. “We didn’t start from scratch in Colorado. Here, it truly was a start-up. There are challenges to that which are different, from ordering the turf to finding the GM to building the team.”

Govett still has large lacrosse dreams, this time in San Diego.

“It’s an interesting, eclectic sports town,” says Govett. “There are not a lot of major league teams here, just the [MLB] Padres after the [NFL] Chargers left.

“We aspire to have 10,000 fans in our building, and the quality of a building like Ball Arena with state-of-the-art electronics and visuals.”

The Seals got back into the series in a must-win Game 2 after the Mammoth’s 14-12 road victory in Game 1.

With their backs against the wall last week, San Diego’s first-ever No. 1 overall draft pick, Austin Staats, and NLL veteran Dane Dobbie, signed this past summer as a free agent, led the Seals in an 11-10 overtime postseason thriller. Staats had five goals and Dobbie had four, including the OT game-winner on a slippery BTB shot.

“Dobbie has been nothing short of amazing on and off the floor,” Govett says. “He’s such a leader, such a gritty competitor, so much heart. After watching him [with Calgary] crush the Mammoth’s dreams for so many years, it’s pretty special now to see Staats learn from Dobbie how to be a winner.”

Govett also credits San Diego GM/coach Patrick Merrill for the putting the Seals in a position to succeed from the get-go, and perhaps this season capture the young franchise’s first championship.

“He’s the architect of the team, I’m just along for the ride,” says Govett. “He built it from scratch, from nothing. It’s a testament to his great work and leadership, I’ve just had a front-row seat.

“In our first year, we hosted a playoff game. Now, in our second full season, we’re on the brink of the NLL Finals.”

NLL