NLL Power Rankings: Calgary Closes Gap at Top of West Conference

Calgary, welcome back to the West championship chase in the National Lacrosse League. Impressive wins over a pair of contenders helped the Riggers push into a tie in the win column with the top-seeded San Diego Seals.

Meanwhile out East, wins for Toronto and Rochester created a three-way tie atop the standings.

1. SAN DIEGO SEALS (6-1)

The West race got a bit tighter while the Seals had the weekend off. San Diego returns Friday when it hosts Saskatchewan. Last week: 1

2. TORONTO ROCK (7-2)

Rock owner Jamie Dawick was certainly smiling as his son, Josh, scored the first two goals of his NLL career in Toronto’s 11-10 win over Georgia. Swarm goalie Craig Wende helped slow down the Toronto offense after they went up 7-2, but Matt Sawyer’s squad stayed composed. The Rock, winners of six straight, also got five points from Tom Schreiber and three from reigning Defensive Player of the Year Mitch de Snoo. Last week: 2

3. BUFFALO BANDITS (7-2)

The Bandits had the weekend off and return Saturday when they host Philadelphia. Last week: 3

4. ROCHESTER KNIGHTHAWKS (7-2)

The K-Hawks accomplished another first in the best year yet for the relaunched franchise, besting Halifax for the first time 16-14. Connor Fields was instrumental again, scoring four times and dishing out four assists, and Holden Cattoni notched seven points in a game Rochester led by seven in the late stages of the fourth quarter. With their help, the group snapped its two-game skid. Last week: 4

5. CALGARY ROUGHNECKS (6-3)

Christian del Bianco allowed a combined five first-half goals to Saskatchewan and Colorado to backstop his team to a 13-6 win against the Rush and a 13-9 win against the Mammoth. On Friday, Calgary scored five straight to open the second half and never let Saskatchewan get closer than three goals the rest of the way. A day later, the Riggers stormed out to an 11-2 advantage at the halftime break. Last week: 6

6. SASKATCHEWAN RUSH (4-3)

The Rush ran out of gas in the second half, getting outscored by Calgary 10-3 in the final two quarters. Mark Matthews and Robert Church, the team’s top two scorers, were held to their worst stat lines of the season with three points each. Last week: 5

7. PANTHER CITY LACROSSE CLUB (5-4)

Callum Crawford had his best game of the year — and nearly matched his goal total from three games with the Riptide — with five tallies in Panther City’s 14-13 win against Vancouver. Jonathan Donville had his third straight outing of seven points or more, this time recording eight, while defender Josh Medeiros contributed with four points. Last week: 10

8. COLORADO MAMMOTH (4-4)

Colorado couldn’t find the back of the net for the first 17 minutes against Calgary, quickly finding itself in a 6-0 hole. Things didn’t get easier, with a nine-goal halftime deficit making a better second half for naught. The Mammoth also lost a major piece this week, placing two-time Transition Player of the Year Joey Cupido on season-ending injured reserve. Last week: 7

9. PHILADELPHIA WINGS (3-4)

The Wings had the weekend off and return Saturday when they travel to Buffalo. Last week: 9

10. HALIFAX THUNDERBIRDS (4-5)

Five goals in the final 4:02 helped Halifax create a more respectable final score after Rochester all but buried the T-Birds with a three-goal run in the middle stages of the fourth quarter. Ryan Benesch tied the game at 5 with 6:14 left in the second, but the tide turned when Thunderbirds’ faceoff specialist Jake Withers was ejected from the game for goalie interference. Last week: 8

11. NEW YORK RIPTIDE (2-6)

Jeff Teat put together his second seven-goal performance of the season — pushing his total in the last four games to 22 — in the Riptide’s 14-12 win against the FireWolves. His final two goals came at a critical point, after Albany’s Connor Kelly cut New York’s lead to 12-11with 3:23 remaining. Teat responded with back-to-back tallies, helping his group endure one final score from Ethan Walker. New York has won two of its last four after starting 0-4. Last week: 13

12. ALBANY FIREWOLVES (2-5)

First-year FireWolves Kieran McArdle and Connor Kelly remained impressive, totaling seven and six points, respectively, in the Riptide loss. Albany clawed out of an 11-3 hole thanks to a seven-goal run capped by Kelly’s tally to cut the deficit to one. Now on a three-game skid, upcoming games against Las Vegas and Georgia provide an opportunity to get right. Last week: 11

13. LAS VEGAS DESERT DOGS (2-5)

The Desert Dogs had the weekend off and return Saturday for the franchise’s first game at Albany. Last week: 12

14. GEORGIA SWARM (0-6)

The Swarm remain the final winless team in the NLL despite staying within a goal of one of the circuit’s top teams. Adam Wiedemann and Andrew Kew scored the game’s final two goals, but Georgia was unable to equalize in the last 2:50 of the fourth. At what point does Georgia start selling veterans to the highest bidder — and could Lyle Thompson be available? Last week: 14

15. VANCOUVER WARRIORS (1-8)

The Warriors scored six straight to start the second quarter against Panther City but immediately squandered a three-goal lead with an ensuing PCLC four-goal run. Vancouver’s last lead came at 10-9 late in the third quarter despite getting within a goal twice in the fourth. Keegan Bal led the way with six points. Last week: 15