East Division Final

Toronto Rock at Orlando Titans

One quarter was all it took to make a world of difference in this game.

The first half was a very close back-and-forth game with Toronto having a one-goal lead at the end of the first quarter and Orlando a one-goal lead at the end of the second quarter. Kasey Beirnes started off the scoring midway into the opening quarter, putting Toronto on the board first. Pat Maddalena tied it up, notching his first goal of the night for the Titans.

The Titan defense did a good job in the first half keeping Colin Doyle scoreless and rookie phenom Stephan Leblanc to one goal in each half. Last week against the Buffalo Bandits, Leblanc scored five goals and was the game MVP.

While the first half was close, the third quarter was anything but.

The Toronto Rock opened a flood gate of goals with seven different players each notching a goal while Orlando Titan Mike McClellan scored the only Titan goal of the quarter. McClellan scored twice more in the fourth, but the damage done in the third proved to be too much for the Titans.

Titan star Casey Powell was held to one goal on eleven shots. And although the fourth quarter was close, with each team scoring four goals, the Rock never gave up their lead.

Toronto Rock 15, Orlando Titans 10
MVP: Kasey Beirnes
Attendance: 4,651

West Division Final

Edmonton Rush at Washington Stealth

The Washington Stealth came out strong in the first quarter, and it took the Edmonton Rush until the closing minutes to catch up.

Paul Rabil, Luke Wiles (x2) and Jeff Zywicki each scored for Washington. Dean Hill notched Edmonton’s only goal of the first, scoring on the power play.

Edmonton seemed to have knocked off the rust midway through the second quarter, showing they weren’t going to give up without a fight. Gavin Prout scored twice and Ryan Ward once for the Rush, but each goal was matched by the Stealth with Cam Sedgwick, Paul Rabil and Rhys Duch each scoring. The half ended with the Stealth up by three.

The third quarter proved to be very defensive with Matt Disher and Tyler Richards both making phenomenal save after save for their teams. Jeff Zywicki and Rhys Duch each got a goal past Disher for the Stealth while Ryan Powel and Scott Stewart each got a goal past Richards for the Rush.

The fourth goal was the turning point for the Edmonton Rush, though.

Jeff Zywicki scored early in the quarter for the Stealth, followed by Luke Wiles halfway through. However, Disher and the Rush defense kept the Stealth scoreless for the rest of the quarter while the Rush offense launched their own battle to stay in the game.

Ryan Ward and Dean Hill each notched goals early in the fourth, but it wasn’t until close to the end of the game that the Rush were able to bring the game within reach. Brodie Merrill scored with under four minutes left to bring the score within two. In the final minute, the Rush pulled Disher for the extra attacker, scoring twice, sending the game in to overtime.

Overtime was short-lived, however, with the Stealth winning the face off and Paul Rabil scoring an unassisted goal to send the Rush home while the Stealth prepare for the Champions Cup Final.

Edmonton Rush 11, Washington Stealth 12
MVP: Paul Rabil
Attendance: 4,242

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Edmonton Rush at Calgary Roughnecks

Although the Edmonton Rush made their first playoff appearance ever in team history, it didn’t show in their play. Veteran goalie, Matt Disher ,was a strong asset for the Rush as he made 60 saves on 67 shots whereas Mike Poulin made 23 saves on 33 shots. Disher and the Edmonton Defense shut down many of the Roughneck stars including Josh Sanderson who went 0/13 and Tracey Kelusky who went 1/11. It certainly didn’t help Calgary that while the Roughnecks went 0/4 on the power play, the Rush went 3/3.

Proving how dangerous their offense can be, the Rush had goals from six different players with Gavin Prout, Andy Secore, and Corey Small each with two, Dean Hill had three, Ryan Ward and Jim Quinlan each notched one. Dane Dobbie was the only Roughneck able to notch more than one goal and he got three.

A definite rivalry has been developing between the Edmonton Rush and the Calgary Roughnecks because of their proximity to one another, but this game definitely added fuel to the fire. Edmonton has been playing very well the second half of the season and their momentum has carried them forward to the semi-finals next week.

Edmonton Rush 11, Calgary Roughnecks 7

MVP: Matt Disher

Attendance: 10,388

Minnesota Swarm at Washington Stealth

The Minnesota Swarm showed the Washington Stealth why in the NLL, no lead is safe, despite how large it is.

The Washington Stealth went in to the second quarter with a commanding five goal lead over the Swarm and it appeared the Stealth were going to notch an easy win over the Swarm who have been struggling the past few weeks. The Swarm on the other hand weren’t going to give up without a fight. The change in both teams was so dramatic in the second quarter, it was hard to believe it was the same teams. The Stealth were kept scoreless after the first couple of minutes in the second whereas the Swarm went on a run of their own to bring the lead within two ending the half Swarm 6, Stealth 8.

The Swarm struggled on the power play, going 1/5 while the Stealth went 2/4 plus notched two shorthanded goals.

Minnesota had a revolving door with their net minders. Goalies Nick Patterson and Kevin Croswell, swapped duties four times with Patterson finishing off the game.

Rhys Duch proved why he should be the game MVP notching six goals on ten shots and five assists for the Stealth while teammate Jeff Zywicki scored five goals on ten shots.

Minnesota Swarm 10 ,Washington Stealth 14

MVP: Rhys Duch

Attendance:3,268

Buffalo Bandits at Toronto Rock

It looked like the Buffalo Bandits were going to run away with this game, especially with Mike Accursi scoring six goals nearly in a row. But whereas the Rock’s momentum continued to build until it peaked in the 4^th quarter, the Bandits seemed to peak early and just couldn’t get back into the game once they relinquished the lead.

While Mike Accursi was on fire only missing four shots, All Star Forward Mark Steenhuis only scored twice on ten shots and, future Hall of Famer, John Tavares went zero for eight. Colin Doyle and Stephan Leblanc led scoring for the Rock with Doyle notching 4/8 and Leblanc 5/11.

Looking at the shots on goal can be slightly misleading. The Rock finished with 46 and the Bandits 37. However, showing how much stronger the Rock played towards the end, 31 of those 46 shots were in the second half whereas the Bandits only had 15.

Buffalo Bandits 11, Toronto Rock 13

MVP: Stephan Leblanc

Attendance: 9,367

Boston Blazers at Orlando Titans

To say this was a close game is a bit of an understatement. These two teams were so well matched that as the clock wound down, you half expected it to come down to the wire in overtime. It didn’t go into extra quarters, but it was still a close contest.

Shots on goal were only separated by three with Titans on top, but Blazers led in the other important areas such as looseballs and faceoffs. All of the penalties were in the first half, with Orlando only capitalizing on one, and Boston on zero although the Blazers did have two shorthanded goals in the first quarter.

In the end, it came down to a battle of the goalies with neither team scoring in the final four minutes.

Boston Blazers 11, Orlando Titans 12

MVP: Casey Powell

Attendance: 4,205

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The intimidation factor seems to have been diluted greatly, and not just by the losing record.

Whereas it was once overwhelming to play in what is often cited as the loudest house in lacrosse, as players have matured and played here more frequently, it became less of a factor. Especially after it was eventually proven that the Mammoth could be beat at home and their fans silenced.

The Colorado Mammoth’s final game against the Calgary Roughnecks was hard-fought, with several reviewed goals so close they required an astute eye and easily could have gone either way.

The Mammoth went into the game fighting to end their season on a high note and break their home losing streak. The Roughnecks on the other hand were fighting to stay in the race for a home playoff game.

Chris Levis really seems to have found his groove in the second half of the season, making unbelievable saves left and right throughout this game. Whereas it seemed like the Mammoth offense gave Mike Poulin more easy goals to block than not, the Roughnecks made Levis stand on his head all game.

Power plays have been the Mammoth’s bane this year. They have been unable to convert when on the power play (worse, they have given up fourteen short-handed goals this season), and unable to kill the penalty. Last night was much better. They went 2 for 3 and kept Calgary to 1 for 3 including a 5 minute major given to Ryan McFadyen for high sticking in the 4^th quarter.

Jed Prossner continued to look strong, notching three goals on 10 shots.  Meanwhile Jamie Shewchuck, Cliff Smith and Jamie Floris each scored twice. In his second game back, Ilija Gajic went 1 for 2.

Overall, the game remained close, never getting more than a couple goals either way in either team’s favor.

As the clock wound down, it certainly looked like it was going to truly come down to the wire and head into overtime after Jed Prossner scored on an extra attacker play to tie the game with only 47 seconds left. Unfortunately for the Mammoth, in what is bound to be considered a controversial review, Scott Ranger’s goal with 15 seconds left was determined to be good and the Mammoth were unable to tie it up despite winning the face off. Final score, Calgary Roughnecks 11, Colorado Mammoth 10

While the Mammoth were unable to give their fans a win, they certainly made Fan Appreciation Night special by going above and beyond just the usual in-game giveaways. To start off the night, the fans who purchased the charity auction Blackout jerseys got to run out on the field with their respective players and even run down the line fist-bumping everyone. To end the night, 23 lucky fans won the season worn jerseys right off the players backs.

Despite losing, the players ran a lap around the arena to lots of applause from their loyal fans. Cliff Smith threw his lacrosse stick into the lucky hands of a four year old boy who apparently was so ecstatic, he not only didn’t want to put it down when he got home, he slept with it. Definitely a future Mammoth player in the making.

Attendance: 15,727

Around the League:

Friday

Orlando Titans 11, Philadelphia Wings 5

Saturday

Orlando Titans 12, Minnesota Swarm 11 OT

Rochester Knighthawks 9 , Washington Stealth 14

Boston Blazers 10 , Buffalo Bandits 13

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Although a slow start, heading into the second half of the season, the Mammoth had the potential to turn it around. But despite the amount of control and influence they still held over their playoff potentials, when it really came down to the Mammoth needing to step up… they just couldn’t seem to do it.

Winning the game against the Calgary Roughnecks last week would’ve had a positive effect on their chances. Not only because they notched one more win, but because the Minnesota Swarm lost,it wouldn’t have made their game against the Boston Blazers a must win combined with a Swarm must lose situation.

The game between the Mammoth and the Blazers could be described with several words – calamity, circus, disaster, contentious, defensive, offensive, disturbing, wild, questionable… and the list goes on. However, none of them accurately depicts the game.

The game was certainly defensive. Going into halftime, the score was Blazers 3, Mammoth 2.* The first goal wasn’t scored until just over 4 minutes remained in the first quarter, the second three minutes later; both by Boston. With the quarter almost over, the Mammoth went on the power play but were unable to convert.

Unfortunately for the Mammoth, while Chris Levis and the Mammoth defense kept the Blazers scoreless for 11 minutes, Anthony Cosmo and the Blazers defense kept the Mammoth scoreless for over 21 minutes until Jed Prossner broke the scoring drought.

It certainly didn’t help the Mammoth that the offense struggled much in the first quarter, dropping several passes and giving Cosmo easy shots to block. Missing rebounds and loose balls resulted in the Mammoth defense being on the floor more than the offense.

While some fans were excited to see Ilija Gajic back in the line-up after fighting illness, many others couldn’t help but question the coaches’ decision. After all, the team finally seemed to be clicking, it was a pivotal game and Ilija hadn’t played since early in the season. It could be argued that Ilija had such a large impact in the first few games that not playing him now that he was better didn’t make sense. However, he looked rusty and was a big part of the passing issues.

Overall, other than a couple of minor skirmishes with one resulting in matching penalties as the second quarter wound down, the first half was pretty quiet. The second half was anything but.

*To begin with, as halftime ended, in an extremely questionable call, it was announced that Crew Chief, Chet Couture, had re-reviewed Alex Gajic’s goal during halftime and determined that it was not a goal. The goal in question had originally been determined good upon review, overturning the call on the floor. Couture’s reasoning behind the re-review behind closed doors? He claims he was not provided the correct footage for review.

Regardless of whether this was for or against the Mammoth, Couture’s decision completely undermines the purpose of the replay system. The first question one has to ask, if he didn’t recognize it as being incorrect footage at the time immediately after it happened, how would he recognize it as such several minutes later? The second question has to be, is that even within the scope of the official rules?

In what seems to have become the NLL standard this season, inconsistent refereeing reared it’s ugly head once again. Minor calls are one thing (and there’s often some fan bias) however, watching players picked up and tossed to the ground in front of the ref, players hit from behind, again in front of the ref… with no call? Although, in a rare call, Boston received a penalty call for “diving”.

The third quarter remained relatively defensive, with Jamie Shewchuck, Cliff Smith and Jed Prossner each scoring once for the Mammoth. Mat Giles notched one and Dan Dawson two for the Blazers to end the third quarter Boston 6, Mammoth 4.

The fourth quarter is when the melee started.

At the request of the Colorado Mammoth, Boston Blazer goalie Anthony Cosmo’s equipment was checked by the refs, overseen by Mammoth Assistant Captain, Bruce Murray, and Blazers Captain, Dan Dawson.

Cosmo’s equipment was found to be illegal. He received a 2:00 illegal equipment penalty in addition to a 10:00 game misconduct which resulted in him being ejected from the game.

It’s interesting to note that the Mammoth have now faced 8 goalies in four consecutive games.

It became apparent two minutes in to the fourth quarter that the refs were rapidly losing control of the game. As sometimes happens, between plays, several fights broke out although penalties were only handed out to five players. At one point Paul Dawson swung a right hook at Jamie Shewchuck, missed and hit the ref trying to break it up. Amazingly enough, neither of them received a penalty.

At another point Jonathan Dumo, who had received a penalty for fighting, nearly came to blows with the Mammoth announcer Willie B. One of Dumo’s teammates (Greg Downing or Kyle Ross) temporary tempered the fight by separating the men by pushing the penalty box door between them. However, even while sitting on the bench, Dumo didn’t want to let it go and while Dumo didn’t seem to receive any further warnings, Willie B mentioned after the game that he was threatened with a 5:00 penalty against the Mammoth if he continued.

Needless to say, the fracas brought to mind the Mammoth’s final home game of their inaugural season against the Albany Attack which resulted in a bench clearing brawl close to the end of the game.

Alex Gajic, Jamie Shewchuck and Rich Catton all scored goals for the Mammoth. Although the Mammoth kept him from shooting from the crease, the defense struggled to completely stop “Dangerous” Dan Dawson. He scored twice more from further out to bring his total to five. Jon Harnett also notched a goal as the clock wound down to end the game Blazers 9, Mammoth 7.

Adding insult to injury, the Minnesota Swarm lost their game againt the Philadelphia Wings in overtime.

The Colorado Mammoth play their final game of the season against the Calgary Roughnecks, Friday, 7 pm MDT at the Pepsi Center.

Attendance: 15,104

Around the League:

Buffalo Bandits 7, Orlando Titans 9

Rochester Knighthawks 7, Toronto Rock 15

Calgary Roughnecks 15, Edmonton 14 OT

Philadelphia Wings 13, Minnesota Swarm 12 OT

Edmonton Rush 14, Washington Stealth 13

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While Colorado may not have had a perfect weekend, they managed to keep their slim playoff hopes alive with some help from the Minnesota Swarm.

Friday vs Edmonton Rush

Coming off a three game winning streak, the Edmonton Rush looked to take first place in the Western Division with a win over the Mammoth.  Colorado had other plans in mind.

The Mammoth looked amazing claiming a solid win over the Rush.

Goaltending has been an issue for much of this season, but you wouldn’t have guessed it watching Chris Levis play. He made some phenomenal stops behind a defense that did a great job of keeping the Rush from getting in close to the net. Brad Richardson won more than half the face-offs, and Chris McKay had 13 of the 71 Mammoth loose balls.

Just as important, while the Mammoth went 0 for 2 on the power play, Colorado held the Rush 1 for 2 on their man advantages.

Then there was the Mammoth offense.

The Rush successfully shut down Alex Gajic, who went 1 for 2, but Brian Langtry and Jamie Shewchuck picked up the slack. Despite injuring his ankle, Langtry notched 5 goals on 14 shots and 2 assists. Game MVP Jamie Shewchuck scored 4 goals on 12 shots and 5 assists.

Although the Mammoth allowed a short-handed goal in the 3^rd quarter, they stepped it up in the fourth.  Colorado kept Edmonton to one goal in the quarter, scored by former Mammoth Captain Gavin Prout, his second on the night.

Final Score – Colorado Mammoth 14, Edmonton Rush 10

Saturday vs Calgary Roughnecks

Playing back-to-back games is never an easy task, especially when playing different opponents each night.

The Mammoth came out strong in the first half against Calgary, playing much like they had the previous night.  However, by the second half, exhaustion appeared to set in.

Unlike the previous night where there were only two infractions for a total of four minutes between the teams, it seemed Calgary was looking to set a penalty minute record and bring the Mammoth along with them. It’s typically chippy between these two teams, as they have a long history that has most certainly developed into a strong rivalry.

In the first quarter alone, Calgary had 8 penalties resulting in 27 penalty minutes and Jeff Moleski being ejected. The Mammoth had 5 penalties for 13 minutes in just the first quarter. Unfortunately for the Mammoth though, they were only able to capitalize on 2 of their 8 power plays, while Calgary went 3 for 5 including a short-handed goal.

Going into the half, the Mammoth led 7-4, but they came out in the 3^rd looking like a different team.

Calgary made the most of it, scoring 5 goals and taking the lead while the Mammoth struggled both offensively (1 goal) and defensively.  Adding insult to injury, 2 of their goals were on the power play, and one was short-handed.

Calgary dominated the first half of the fourth quarter, but the Mammoth fought hard to retake the lead.  Colorado was only able to get within one before the final buzzer.

Jamie Shewchuck had another strong game with 3 goals on 9 shots and 2 assists. Jed Prossner had one of his best games this season, notching 4 goals on 12 shots and 1 assist. Alex Gajic struggled, though, going 0 for 7.

Faceoffs seemed to make a huge difference in the game as Brad Richardson struggled, only winning 5 of the 25.

With the Minnesota Swarm losing both of their back-to-back games this weekend, winning over Calgary would have put the Mammoth solidly into the playoff race. Even with the loss, the Mammoth are still in the playoff race, although their chances are slim.

Final Score – Colorado Mammoth 11, Calgary Roughnecks 12

Around the League:

Friday

Rochester Knighthawks 12, Minnesota Swarm 11

Saturday

Washington Stealth 17, Orlando Titans 7

Toronto Rock 10, Buffalo Bandits 13

Philadelphia Wings 12, Rochester Knighthawks 15

Minnesota Swarm 8, Boston Blazers 13

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Yay! The Mammoth won.

The Bad

After having the lead the entire game, the Mammoth sat back on their heels trying to nurse a four goal lead.  In the last two minutes of the game, the Buffalo Bandits erased that lead to send the game into overtime.

Overall

The Mammoth continue to show their fans glimpses of greatness, however, they temper it with the apparent inability to play a solid four-quarter game.

The Power Play continues to struggle for Colorado, only going 1 for 3 in this contest. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bandits went 2 for 2.  And while shots on goal were virtually the same, the Bandits won 2/3 of the playoffs and got 66 loose balls to the Mammoth’s 47.

1st Quarter

Rookie of the Month, Alex Gajic, started off the scoring, notching his first goal of the night a minute in.  Mike Accursi scored the first goal for the Bandits four minutes later, but Jamie Shewchuck put the Mammoth back in the lead.

Colorado followed that with a Power Play goal by Alex Gajic to end the quarter. Mammoth 3 Bandits 1

2nd Quarter

Fan favorite Brian Langtry scored his first goal of the night 30 seconds into the second quarter, followed by another goal from Alex Gajic and the first of two goals from Jed Prossner.  The Buffalo Bandits chose to swap goalie Angus Goodleaf in for Mike Thompson.

Chris Levis and the Mammoth defense were able to shut down the Bandits’ offense for about 22 minutes before John Tavares and Mark Steenhius (Buffalo’s top scorers and probable future hall of famers) each notched goals to keep the Bandits in the game.  Mammoth 6 Bandits 3

3rd Quarter

The first half of the third quarter was a test of both defenses until Kevin Dostie scored a Power Play goal, followed a minute later by a second Buffalo Power Play goal.  Jamie Shewchuck and Jed Prossner scored back-to-back goals with under four minutes remaining to maintain their advantage.

The Mammoth struggled to stop Dostie, though, and he scored a third goal before the quarter ended.  Mammoth 8 Bandits 6

4th Quarter

As expected, the 4th quarter was the Mammoth’s true test.

As has continuously been mentioned, the Mammoth have struggled to finish games this year.  Colorado has led in several games, but been unable to stay on top through the final buzzer.  Even in their losses last week against the Washington Stealth, the Mammoth had the lead for part of the game… they just couldn’t maintain it.

That was, once again, the modus operandi against the Bandits.

Steenhuis started the scoring off in the 4th to bring the Bandits within one.  In response, Derek Malawsky, Brian Langtry and Alex Gajic each scored goals over the course of three minutes for the Mammoth.  But as proof that no lead is safe in this sport, in less than a minute and a half and as the game neared its end, Mark Steenhuis scored again supported by three goals by Brett Bucktooth.  Those four Buffalo tallies tied the game at 11 and sent it into overtime. Mammoth 11 Bandits 11

Overtime

The Mammoth must have an overtime fairy.

How else can you explain that the only wins the Mammoth have this season have come in overtime?  Or that they were still able to win against Buffalo despite Colorado doing almost everything possible to give the Bandits the game?

The Mammoth failed to win the face off, giving the Bandits the first shot on goal in a one-and-done situation.  Luckily for the Mammoth, Levis made the stop and the game continued.  That was followed by rushed play on both sides before Nick Carlson scored the game-winning goal on a breakaway.

Around the League

Friday

Calgary 8, Toronto 9

Washington 13, Edmonton 14 OT

Saturday

Edmonton 13, Minnesota 12 OT

Toronto 13, Philadelphia 6

Calgary 11, Rochester 9

Orlando 13, Boston 10

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Going into the half Friday night, they looked especially good.

The Mammoth offense was playing aggressive, Andrew Leyshon was making phenomenal saves, the defense was stopping the Stealth, and the Mammoth were in the lead 8-5. But it was downhill from there.

The Mammoth lost Friday 14-15 and on Saturday 9-12, and the Stealth became the first team to clinch a playoff berth.

Heading into this weekend against the Buffalo Bandits, the Mammoth’s playoff hopes are slim, but they’re still alive. However, if they lose this weekend, their playoff fate is sealed as the remaining three western division teams clinch.

The Bandits are currently 6-6 and on a three game winning streak while the Mammoth are 2-9 and on a seven game losing streak.

The question of course is, can the Mammoth beat the Bandits? If they play like the team that started last weekend for four quarters instead of only two, than most certainly they can win. However, playing four strong quarters has definitely been an issue for the Mammoth this season.

The irony is that it just might take the Mammoth getting knocked out of playoff contention for them to finally start winning.

Around the league:

Minnesota Swarm 17, Calgary Roughnecks 13

Toronto Rock 8, Orlando Titans 10

Buffalo Bandits 14, Rochester Knighthawks 7

Minnesota Swarm 14, Edmonton Rush 16

Boston Blazers 7, Philadelphia Wings 13

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1. No more two-week breaks between games!

This is actually a big one. While every team has at least one long break between games, the Mammoth are the only team to have three of them.

Not only have they had three of them, they have been broken up from the first week of February through the last week of March.  For a league that only allows once-a-week practices, it’s extremely difficult for a team to find their groove if they play a game, have a two week break, play a game, have a two week break – especially if you’re going up against teams that haven’t had any long breaks.

Between February 27 and March 13, seven teams were on break.  Only two of those teams won their first game back…one of which was the Edmonton Rush playing against another team coming back from a long break – the Colorado Mammoth.  Six teams have been on break from March 13 through March 26, so it will be interesting to see how many win their games this weekend.

2. Bob Hamley + Bob McMahon = Power Team

The Mammoth have had a revolving door of coaches the past few years with both Hamley and McMahon included among those.  For those who don’t know, GM Steve Govett named Bob Hamley as coach and Bob McMahon as Assistant Coach.

Many fans are both excited and worried about this recent change.

Fans are excited because, although both Hamley and McMahon have been successful in the league, their success has always been with both coaching on the same team.  Neither seems to have been as successful on their own.

Fans are worried because Bob McMahon, who was let go as Head Coach earlier this season, is back on the coaching staff… albeit at Hamley’s request.  Regardless, in a season wrought with injuries and filled with new players, the Mammoth need some stability, especially in their coaching staff.

3. Two Back-to-Back Games

Back-to-back games can either be really good or really bad for a team.

As GM Steve Govett said recently, teams usually play better in the second night of a back-to-back.  It’s certainly not uncommon for a team to split back to back games.  For the Mammoth, who seem to be struggling because of a lack of playing time as a team, having to back-to-back games in the second half of the season may turn out to be very fortuitous.

4. The Rookies are finding their way

As John Gallant said, playing in the NLL is unlike playing anywhere else.

For many rookies, playing in the NLL is often like playing an entirely new game because many of them come from playing outdoor lacrosse.  Some make the transition well, some don’t.  But add on to that playing in front of a packed Pepsi Center known across the league for how loud it gets, and you have an elevated stress level.

Getting comfortable with both the team and the new environment can be hard, but as Rookie of the Week Alex Gajic showed recently, he’s coming along fine.

5. John Gallant is back in the line up

The Mammoth have been struggling for leadership this season.

Colorado is now on their third coach and the season is only half over.   Add to that having your team captain injured and unable to play for six weeks.  The only benefit was that Gallant was injured during the Mammoth’s short game month, so he didn’t miss as much playing time on the field as he could have.

The Mammoth have seven games remaining with five of them against divisional opponents.  While they may not hold all the cards, they definitely have a say in their destiny.  They could go from being 2-7 on the season to 9-7 if they’re able to play to their ability and the talent level that is on the team.    They could also go 2-14, but I think it’s a long shot.  Once this team connects, look out.

This Weekend:

The Mammoth play the first in a “barn to barn” with the Washington Stealth on Friday March 26 at the Pepsi Center, then head to Washington to face the Stealth again on Saturday.  Game time is 7 PM and tickets start at $5.

This game is important for another reason; the Mammoth will be taking part in a league-wide initiative to “Black Out Cancer“.

Many of the NLL’s teams are doing special events and auctions to raise funds and awareness.  The Colorado Mammoth have opted to wear pink helmets and a special black jersey for the cause to be auctioned off afterward.  If you’ve never seen a Mammoth game, come out and help support the team and a great cause.

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Andrew Leyshon

Different day, but the story is still the same.  The Colorado Mammoth continue to struggle in several key areas and frustrations are running high from the fans through the organization. The game was rife with inconsistency.  For every phenomenal play or save there was a ‘what the hell?’ moment.

The Positives

• Alex Gajic looked phenomenal scoring 5 goals on 8 shots plus 1 assist.
• Even though they were behind the entire game, the Mammoth didn’t lead in penalties.
• Mammoth scored twice on the power play and a shorthanded goal.
• It felt like the Mammoth didn’t give up like they have in previous games.
• Captain John Gallant was back in the lineup after being out for six weeks with a hand injury.
• Several shots hit the pipes, so the score could easily have been very different.

The Negatives

• Despite scoring twice on it, the Mammoth power play is struggling – at one point in the third quarter they had over 13 minutes worth of power play advantage including at least two 5 on 3 advantages and a penalty shot (that Jamie Shewchuck shot directly into Matt Disher’s chest) without finding the back of the net once.
• The goalies seemed like a revolving door with both goalies playing well, but not at the top of their game resulting in a total of five goalie changes.  Chris Levis started the game, Andrew Leyshon played the majority of it as well as finished it.
• Shot Selection
  • Although Disher made some phenomenal saves, many were right at his chest.
  • The Mammoth scored 9 goals on 54 shots (17%) while the Rush scored 13 goals on 50 shots (including an empty netter) (26%).
  • Previous years’ top scorers are not producing but leading the team in shots on goal
    • Brian Langtry only had 1 goal on 11 shots, 4 assists (9%).
    • Jamie Shewchuck had 2 goal on 13 shots, 1 assist (15%)
    • The offense became very predictable, showing a pattern in their passing in front of the goal.
    • Defense struggled in the 4^th quarter to keep the Edmonton Rush away from the net
    • Refereeing continues to be inconsistent however, it’s to both teams benefit and detriment
    • The Rush consistently pushed their luck with line changes taking place causing as many as 7-8 players to be on the field during plays, however, they only had one delayed penalty that the Mammoth were successful in scoring on.
    • 2 week breaks are proving to be a big factor… and the Mammoth head into their third since February 5

Final Score – Colorado Mammoth 9, Edmonton Rush 13

Attendance: 14, 566

Around the league:

Friday:

Buffalo Bandits 11, Toronto Rock 10 OT

Philadelphia Wings 9, Orlando Titans 11

Saturday:

Washington Stealth 12, Calgary Roughnecks 11

Orlando Titans 9, Rochester Knighthawks 4

Buffalo Bandits 9, Boston Blazers 8 OT

Minnesota Swarm 11, Philadelphia Wings 20

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A Canada native, Gallant has played defense for the Colorado Mammoth since they were the Washington Power.  Before playing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) he played in Canada for Six Nations and the Victoria Shamrocks.

This is the second of two parts.  You can read the first part here.

MD: What would you tell a young student of the game who wants to improve his defensive play?

JG: I would tell them, get in shape.  You have to physically get in shape.  You have to mentally be in shape enough to be committed to do that.  Doesn’t mean you can’t go out with your friends on Friday night because you gotta practice on Saturday right?  I think every time you can go play, whether it’s buddies or whether it’s a practice, you have to commit yourself to be the absolute best that day.  It’s obviously it’s a very tough thing and it’s not always going to happen.  I think that you got to play as much as you can.  You got to commit to being the best you can all the time.

I think to be honest with you, you got to have something else.  You gotta whether it’s, you’re gonna work on your stick so you can shoot the ball, so you can be comfortable moving the ball, taking face-offs, you gotta have something else.  I think that’s the one key with anybody, you know.  Assuming I wanna play defense, ok, but can you run the wing on a face-off?  Can you transition the ball?  Can you transition the ball, stay up and play offense?  And that goes for field lacrosse too.  Can you shoot?  With a long pole?  I think for young kids, kids even if they’re just in high school, you gotta learn everything.  Learn how to play attack, learn how to play midfield, learn how to play defense, learn how to take face-offs.  Learn to play short man, learn how to run the wing.

That’s my biggest piece of advice, learn the whole game so that like, myself, when you get to a team and they say well do you want to be on this team or not?  You better have something there.  Right?  When I was 18 and I went to Six Nations, if I said no, I play offense and they said maybe, well can you play defense and I said no, or I did it and did it with a half heart, I wouldn’t be here.  Right?  There’s always going to be somebody better.  There’s always somebody better than you, so you gotta learn the whole game.

So that’s basically number one.  And then number two, I’d play other things.  Too many people focus only on one thing and play it like all year round.  I would do other things because you learn so much.  If you’re solely only playing lacrosse your whole life, by the time you get to high school, or I mean like college, you’re going to hate it.  You’re going to hate it.  There’s always got to be the joy to playing.  Because there’s going to be moments where you are going to hate playing whether it’s because coaching staff, coaching in a certain way or you know it’s because when you get to college and you’re playing every single day and you’re playing at six in the morning, well you’d better enjoy it.

MD: How do you keep from getting burnt out at this level?

JG: Doing other things.  Joel Rather is our strength and conditioning coach.  You trust him and you listen to what he says.  You do that and that physically prepares your body.  Right?  And then your mind, the mental part, you just have to get away from it.  You spend time during the day working on your skills and improving, but you spend time doing other things – whether that’s another sport, whether it’s spending time with your family and your kids, whether that’s reading a book.  You find something else that pleases you, because if it is your entire life, the rest of your life is not going to be successful.  Your relationships are not going to be successful, your business life is not going to be successful.   That’s what I’ve kinda learned, sometimes the hard way.  It’s like anything in life, any food, if it’s all your life, it’s only a matter of time before you burn yourself out.

MD: How much impact does a goalie have on the defense and vice versa?

JG: Tremendous.  A lot.  I don’t think I could give you statistical…a lot.  Because it’s confidence.  Listen, like we’re always getting scored on.  Right?  When there’s a goal it’s because we made a mistake somewhere.  Right?  So for us to be successful, we have to play with confidence.  We have to know that the goalie behind us is gonna stop the shots he’s supposed to stop.  Just stop the ones you’re supposed to stop.  Stop one or two that you know, you’re maybe not supposed to.  But if you just stop the ones you’re supposed to, I can play my game.

If I start getting worried about you.  Right?  I’m going to start doing things that I shouldn’t, that are out of our game plan and that can only cause more problems.  So they have a lot.  They’re obviously going to get shots, so our job is to limit their good shots.  Let them have shots from where we want them to have it.  The goalie’s job is stop the ball.  Stop the ones he’s supposed to stop.  They work together, but if he doesn’t trust us, or we don’t trust them, then you’re playing outside of the game plan and then you start doing too much.  You start doing too much outside of the game plan and they will score more goals.

MD: A lot of people have complained about Bob McMahon and his lack of emotion, how did that impact the team?

JG: I loved playing for him.  I really did.  I think I was a better player, playing for him.  I think his style may not have meshed with the personnel we had.  His style might’ve been more a veteran type team.  Right?  Perhaps.  But, you know he was very calm on the bench which I think is a positive.  I think you see that with Steve too.  He’s very calm and relaxed.  You have to be.  Just like anything else, you follow your leader.  If your leader is gonna be yelling and screaming, and if he’s going to be rattled, the players are gonna be.  Yeah he had a lack of emotion, but I don’t think it was a huge negative.  He was tough.  I loved playing with him.  The head coach or the boss is going to take the fall.  I think that was the disappointing part.  You feel like you let him down – someone who put in a lot of time and effort to make you and the organization better, and has to take the fall for it.  Especially for someone who you truly respect, it’s tremendously disappointing.

MD: A common comment from players on the 2006 team was about team chemistry and how there were no egos.  What do you think was the biggest factor in that team unity?

JG: I think leadership.  I think Gary.  A lot of it was Gary.  Right?  That’s it.  It’s Gary Gait, his mentality and how he ran it.  You knew where you stood and you knew what he wanted.  You knew what your job was and you knew if you didn’t do your job what the consequence was.  And you trusted and respected all the other guys there.

MD: Do you see that potential in this team?

JG: I think you do, I think if you didn’t there’s bigger issues.  I think that goes back to your rebuilding.  If you didn’t, you go, either you need to make a change with some of the other guys, or get me outta here.  You don’t want to be in a place where you know you’re gonna fail.  Right?  So I think there is.  It’s gonna be a lotta hard work.   But I think if guys are willing to commit to sacrifice personal goals for the betterment of the group, you’ll always have the potential to be great.

MD: What person have you learned the most from?

JG: There’s nobody coming to mind.  I think I’ve learned a little bit from everybody.  I learned a lot of how to play while playing in Victoria.  And that was a lot from playing with really good players and having a good coaching staff.  Right?  Playing in Six Nations, I learned a lot.  I learned how to be a good lacrosse player.

MD: How did it feel the first time you saw a fan wearing your jersey?

JG: It was good.  Like, I couldn’t tell you where.  It was good.  To be honest with you it was odd.  It was odd.  It felt odd because I wouldn’t put my personality to be very out there, to want attention.  It was odd because I was like wow.  Someone has my jersey, and it was kind of a realization that I guess, we are sort of important in some way and you kind of take that for granted sometimes.  That the influence, you know, the enjoyment people have you know, watching you.  We have other jobs so it’s not the same as some of the other sports, but the way we’re treated by our fan base is the same.  It’s flattering, I guess would probably be a better word.  It’s very flattering.

If someone is gonna spend the money – and enough to have your jersey, it’s for a reason.  A positive reason.  There are a lot of moments, especially in a season like this, where you start questioning yourself.  Questioning what you’re doing.  And you know a lot of times all it takes is for someone to just say, ‘No, no, you’re ok.  Just keep doing what you’re doing.  You’re fine.’  It’s very flattering.  I mean, and it’s odd.  [laughs]

MD: What made you want to be a teacher?

JG: I like teaching.  Enjoy helping children understand the fundamentals, and the basics, of what to do, of education, of life.  I enjoy that.  It’s just something I have a passion for, something I want to be better at.  I enjoy teaching.  I enjoy educating.  I never grew up thinking I wanted to be a teacher.  I had an opportunity to do it and I did it and I enjoyed it.  Went back to school to be able to teach.  I enjoy waking up knowing that I’m helping people learn the very basics of their education which they will then use the rest of their life.

MD: What did you think you were going to be?

JG: I thought I was going to be a chemist.  I wanted to be a chemist.  I wanted to be an environmental chemist.  A toxicologist.  That’s what I wanted to do.  It’s a little different, yes.  That’s what I went to school for.  You know, there was the idea of being a police officer.  And you know, it wasn’t necessarily for me and then teaching came up after that.

MD: What subject/grade do you teach?

JG: Kindergarten, 1^st and 2^nd grade

MD: What from teaching have you been able to apply to lacrosse and vice versa?

JG: Patience.  Patience dealing with people, dealing with different situations.  Absolutely, without a doubt, that’s it.  You gotta have patience.  You gotta have patience when teaching.  You gotta have patience when dealing with middle school, or teenagers.  You have to have patience when dealing with young kids.  Just different.  Patience, how to communicate.

MD: What did you grow up watching as a kid?

JG: I was a Transformers guy.  I loved it.

MD: Which Transformer would you be?

JG: I’d be Optimus Prime.  Without a doubt.  I’d be Optimus Prime because he’s the truck.  Solely cause he’s the truck.  The first game we had, they interviewed me then and asked me what I wanted to be and I said a garbage man.  I had a fascination with, still do I guess, with transport trucks.  That was my thing growing up.  Cause they were big, huge.  That’s why I liked them.  That’s why Optimus Prime, because he was the truck.  Not cause he was the leader or a cool guy, whatever.

MD: What’s the last book you read?

JG: I read Mitch Albom’s 5 People You Meet in Heaven, that’s probably the last one.  That was in the summer.  During the year, I read more magazines.

MD: What’s your favorite book?

JG: One book I read a lot in school is, The Little Engine That Could. I kinda enjoy reading it.  Obviously, with my job, I read it often.  So I enjoy reading it.  So I’d say go with that one.  [laughs]

MD: What’s your favorite movie?

JG: Ghostbusters

MD: What’s your dream car?

JG: I’d have a motorcycle if I could have anything.  I think I’d have a Harley.

MD: Where in the world do you most want to travel to?

JG: I’d probably go to Europe, to Spain.  I’d go to Spain.  I’d go to Ireland.  I’d go to Europe.

MD: Where’s your favorite place to travel to?

JG: You know, I like Mexico.  I do.  I liked Australia.

MD: What item can you not live without?

JG: These pants are ok.  TV.  Definitely need TV.  Need a DVR now too.  That and comfortable clothes.  Jogging pants.  Love jogging pants.

MD: What do you wish people knew about you?

JG: I wish…This goes to Josh Gross and some other people.  My last name is Gallant (Guh lant with a hard a like ant).  Not Gallant (Guh lont with a soft a like aunt).  Not Gallent.  So I wish people knew about me 1.  Say my name right.  2.  Just that I’m a normal everyday person, easy going, relaxed.  I wish they knew about me that I am a nice person, very approachable.  I’m a nice respectful person.    My mother and father did a good job raising me, and I’d like them to know.

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