2016 NLL season

Last updated
2016 NLL season
NLL 30th season.jpg
League National Lacrosse League
Sport Indoor lacrosse
DurationJanuary 1 – June 4, 2016
Number of games18
Number of teams9
Regular Season
Top seed Buffalo Bandits
Season MVP Dhane Smith (Buffalo Bandits)
Top scorerDhane Smith (Buffalo Bandits)
Playoffs
Finals champions Saskatchewan Rush (2nd title)
  Runners-up Buffalo Bandits
Finals MVP Aaron Bold (Rush)
NLL seasons

The 2016 National Lacrosse League season, the 30th in the history of the NLL, [1] began on January 1, 2016, [2] and ended with the Champion's Cup Finals series on June 4, 2016. The Saskatchewan Rush won their 2nd straight title; their first while located in Saskatchewan.

Contents

Milestones and events

Pre-season

Teams

Blue pog.svg East Division Red pog.svg West Division
2016 National Lacrosse League
DivisionTeamCityArenaCapacity
East Buffalo Bandits Buffalo, New York First Niagara Center 19,070
Georgia Swarm Duluth, Georgia Infinite Energy Arena 10,500
New England Black Wolves Uncasville, Connecticut Mohegan Sun Arena 7,074
Rochester Knighthawks Rochester, New York Blue Cross Arena 10,662
Toronto Rock Toronto, Ontario Air Canada Centre 18,800
West Calgary Roughnecks Calgary, Alberta Scotiabank Saddledome 19,289
Colorado Mammoth Denver, Colorado Pepsi Center 18,007
Saskatchewan Rush Saskatoon, Saskatchewan SaskTel Centre 15,195
Vancouver Stealth Langley, British Columbia Langley Events Centre 5,276

Standings

Reference: [6]

East Division
PTeamGPWLPCTGBHomeRoadGFGADiffGF/GPGA/GP

1 Buffalo Bandits –xyz18135.7220.08–15–4251214+3713.9411.89
2 New England Black Wolves –x18108.5563.06–34–5229212+1712.7211.78
3 Georgia Swarm –x18810.4445.04–54–5238240−213.2213.33
4 Rochester Knighthawks 18711.3896.03–64–5200215−1511.1111.94
5 Toronto Rock 18513.2788.04–51–8190224−3410.5612.44
West Division
PTeamGPWLPCTGBHomeRoadGFGADiffGF/GPGA/GP

1 Saskatchewan Rush –xy18135.7220.07–26–3233190+4312.9410.56
2 Colorado Mammoth –x18126.6671.08–14–5203202+111.2811.22
3 Calgary Roughnecks –x18810.4445.05–43–6216216−-012.0012.00
4 Vancouver Stealth 18513.2788.04–51–8198245−4711.0013.61

x: Clinched playoff berth; c: Clinched playoff berth by crossing over to another division; y: Clinched division; z: Clinched best regular season record; GP: Games Played
W: Wins; L: Losses; GB:  Games back; PCT: Win percentage; Home: Record at Home; Road: Record on the Road; GF: Goals scored; GA: Goals allowed
Differential: Difference between goals scored and allowed; GF/GP: Average number of goals scored per game; GA/GP: Average number of goals allowed per game

Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; LB = Loose Balls

PlayerTeamGPGAPtsPIMLB
Dhane Smith Buffalo Bandits 1872651379111
Shawn Evans New England Black Wolves 17506811839116
Callum Crawford Colorado Mammoth 1832831151589
Rob Hellyer Toronto Rock 1845681132388
Rhys Duch Vancouver Stealth 184863111883
Mark Matthews Saskatchewan Rush 1840691092376
Curtis Dickson Calgary Roughnecks 1861461071384
Cody Jamieson Rochester Knighthawks 18336194083
Dan Dawson Rochester Knighthawks 184055951262
Randy Staats Georgia Swarm 183659952284

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses: GA = Goals Allowed; SV% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals against average

PlayerTeamGPMinsWLGASV%GAA
Aaron Bold Saskatchewan Rush 1810421251790.76110.30
Evan Kirk New England Black Wolves 18844941660.78811.79
Anthony Cosmo Buffalo Bandits 18711821390.78211.73
Dillon Ward Colorado Mammoth 16743731280.79910.33
Brodie MacDonald Georgia Swarm 18823671760.74912.82

Playoffs

Division semifinals Division finals (3-game series) Finals (3-game series)
         
E1 Buffalo2
East Division
E2 New England 0
E2 New England14*
E3 Georgia 13
W1 Saskatchewan2
E1 Buffalo 0
W1 Saskatchewan2
West Division
W3 Calgary 0
W2 Colorado 10
W3 Calgary11*

*Overtime

Division semifinals

East Division

(E2) New England Black Wolves vs. (E3) Georgia Swarm

May 6, 2016 New England Black Wolves 14–13 OT
(3–2, 5–5, 3–5, 2–1, 1–0)		 Georgia Swarm Mohegan Sun Arena
Attendance: 3,266
Game reference
Evan Kirk Goalies Brodie MacDonald
Crowley (Hoar) (SH) – 02:281–0
Burns (Kirk) – 03:522–0
2–110:17 – White (SH)
Hall (Evans, Kyle Buchanan) – 11:123–1
3–211:50 – Powless (Matisz, Staats)
Evans (Hall, Saunders) – 21:124–2
4–322:59 – M. Thompson (Staats, King) (PP)
4–423:12 – Jackson (MacIntosh)
Kyle Buchanan (Ball, Kirk) – 23:565–4
5–524:13 – Staats (White)
Crowley (Saunders, Kevin Buchanan) – 24:526–5
6–627:11 – L. Thompson (MacIntosh)
Evans (Saunders) – 27:287–6
7–728:57 – Powless (Matisz, Jackson)
Kyle Buchanan – 29:088–7
Evans (Hall, Crowley) – 31:319–7
Crowley (Kyle Buchanan, Hall) (PP) – 41:1610–7
10–841:51 – L. Thompson (Jackson, Powless)
Crowley – 42:5611–8
11–943:11 – L. Thompson (O'Connor)
11–1043:42 – M. Thompson (L. Thompson, Tutton)
11–1144:37 – Staats (Tutton, Powless)
11–1244:59 – King (Staats, L. Thompson)
Kevin Buchanan (Evans, Crowley) – 46:1112–12
Kevin Buchanan (Hall, Crowley) – 46:4413–12
13–1354:50 – L. Thompson (King) (PP)
Evans (Crowley) (PP) – 60:5714–13
12 minPenalties19 min
52Shots66

West Division

(W2) Colorado Mammoth vs. (W3) Calgary Roughnecks

May 7, 2016 Colorado Mammoth 10–11 OT
(2–3, 3–2, 1–2, 4–3, 0–1)		 Calgary Roughnecks Pepsi Center
Attendance: 13,116
Game reference
Dillon Ward Goalies Mike Poulin
Frankie Scigliano
Noble (Crawford, Grant Jr.) (PP) – 03:141–0
Wardle (Gajic) – 06:242–0
2–109:18 – Digby (O'Connor, Shattler)
2–209:46 – Digby (Dickson, Dobbie)
2–311:59 – Dobbie (Berg, Dickson) (PP)
2–416:02 – Dickson (Dobbie, Berg)
Jones (Mallroy) (PP) – 21:583–4
Noble – 22:474–4
4–524:29 – Berg (Dobbie)
Noble – 29:365–5
5–637:27 – Dickson (Shattler, Poulin) (SH)
Jones (Grant Jr.) (PP) – 43:216–6
6–743:41 – Dickson (Burton, Shattler) (SH)
Noble (Crawford, Mallroy) – 46:347–7
Jones (Noble, Crawford) – 48:148–7
8–849:36 – Dickson (Poulin)
8–951:19 – Digby (Berg, Dickson)
Cupido (Gajic) – 51:289–9
Jones (Grant Jr., Mallroy) – 51:4810–9
10–1059:35 – Dickson (Shattler)
10–1170:17 – Dobbie (Shattler, Dickson)
10 minPenalties18 min
67Shots58

Division Finals (best of three)

Eastern Division

(E1) Buffalo Bandits vs. (E2) New England Black Wolves

May 16, 2016 New England Black Wolves 10–15
(3–5, 2–3, 3–3, 2–4)		 Buffalo Bandits Mohegan Sun Arena
Attendance: 3,697
Game reference
Evan Kirk
Tye Belanger 		Goalies Anthony Cosmo
Kevin Buchanan (Kyle Buchanan, Saunders) – 01:451–0
Saunders (Crowley) (PP) – 04:322–0
Kyle Buchanan (Crowley) – 05:073–0
3–106:31 – Benesch (D. Smith) (PP)
3–208:51 – Hill (D. Smith)
3–309:56 – Jones (Benesch)
3–411:32 – D. Smith (Benesch) (PP)
3–513:35 – Hill (Benesch)
Evans (Crowley, Hall) (PP) – 16:054–5
4–617:02 – Hill (Weiss)
4–718:09 – D. Smith (Benesch, Culp)
4–821:02 – D. Smith (Malcom)
Saunders (Evans, Kyle Buchanan) (SH) – 27:315–8
5–930:33 – Culp (Benesch, Steenhuis)
5–1033:33 – Steenhuis (Veltman, Culp)
5–1133:53 – D. Smith (Jones)
Burns (PP) – 39:286–11
Bucktooth (Manney, Belanger) – 42:477–11
Kyle Buchanan – 42:548–11
8–1251:08 – Hill (Benesch)
Saunders (Evans) – 51:369–12
9–1352:51 – D. Smith (Culp)
9–1453:05 – Benesch (Brownwell, Thorimbert)
Kyle Buchanan (Kevin Buchanan, Hall) – 58:0410–14
10–1558:45 – Benesch (Brownwell, Weiss) (ENG)
38 minPenalties32 min
55Shots52
May 21, 2016 Buffalo Bandits 20–15
(3–5, 6–4, 5–4, 6–2)		 New England Black Wolves First Niagara Center
Attendance: 14,255
Game reference
Anthony Cosmo Goalies Evan Kirk
Thorimbert (Jones) – 00:111–0
Steenhuis (D. Smith, Hill) – 02:182–0
2–102:58 – Hoar (Kirk)
2–208:38 – Kevin Buchanan (Evans, Kyle Buchanan)
2–309:07 – Crowley (Bucktooth, Kirk)
2–412:03 – Evans (Bucktooth, Reid) (PP)
2–513:52 – Evans (Bucktooth)
Jones (Benesch, Hill) – 12:373–5
Malcom (Culp, Benesch) – 15:314–5
Steenhuis (PP) – 15:595–5
5–616:53 – Saunders (Hall, Kevin Buchanan)
Hill (Steenhuis) (PP) – 19:056–6
6–720:39 – Saunders (Evans, Hall) (PP)
6–821:16 – Crowley (Evans, Hall) (PP)
6–922:31 – Suddons (Bucktooth) (SH)
Hill (D. Smith, Brownwell) – 23:567–9
Benesch (D. Smith) (PP) – 27:238–9
D. Smith (Watt) – 29:059–9
Culp (D. Smith) – 35:1010–9
10–1035:40 – Kevin Buchanan (Crowley, Saunders)
D. Smith (Malcom, Steenhuis) – 36:1511–10
11–1138:36 – Burns (Kirk) (SH)
Hill (Benesch, D. Smith) (PP) – 39:1412–11
12–1239:46 – Kevin Buchanan (Crowley, Evans)
D. Smith (Priolo, Weiss) (SH) – 41:4813–12
13–1343:58 – Kevin Buchanan
Malcom – 44:1714–13
Culp (Brownwell, Cosmo) – 48:0415–13
15–1452:53 – Kevin Buchanan (Hall, Evans)
Benesch (Hill) – 54:2916–14
Benesch (Weiss, Cosmo) – 55:1317–14
17–1555:53 – Kevin Buchanan (Hall)
Culp (Benesch) – 58:0718–15
Steenhuis (PS) – 58:5219–15
Hill (Jones) – 58:5720–15
28 minPenalties21 min
61Shots50

Bandits win series 2–0.

Western Division

(W1) Saskatchewan Rush vs. (W3) Calgary Roughnecks

May 14, 2016 Calgary Roughnecks 10–16
(3–4, 2–2, 3–2, 2–8)		 Saskatchewan Rush Scotiabank Saddledome
Attendance: 12,211
Game reference
Mike Poulin
Frankie Scigliano 		Goalies Aaron Bold
0–101:18 – Davis (Taylor, Matthews)
O'Connor (Dobbie, Dickson) – 01:441–1
1–203:32 – Matthews (Mydske)
Dickson (Shattler, Manning) – 04:192–2
2–305:21 – Bilic
Harnett (Dobbie) (PP) – 11:353–3
3–414:51 – Church (Taylor, Davis)
3–521:25 – McIntosh (Matthews, Greer) (PP)
Berg (Dobbie, O'Connor) – 22:224–5
4–625:12 – McIntosh (Taylor, Corbeil)
Shattler (Leung, McIntosh) – 27:055–6
5–730:06 – Thompson
Dobbie (Dickson, Berg) (PP) – 31:016–7
Digby (O'Connor, Harnett) – 31:507–7
Dickson (Bell, Harnett) –33:428–7
8–841:21 – Mydske
8–947:09 – Church (Dilks, Bold)
8–1048:52 – Matthews (Church) (PP)
8–1150:42 – Bilic
Shattler (Dobbie, Digby) – 51:199–11
9–1252:22 – McIntosh (Matthews, Church)
9–1354:50 – Corbeil
9–1457:49 – McIntosh (Sorichetti, Corbeil) (ENG)
Dickson (Shattler, O'Connor) – 58:2210–14
10–1558:33 – Corbeil (Rubisch) (ENG)
10–1659:33 – Cornwall (Corbeil, Taylor) (ENG)
14 minPenalties12 min
45Shots52
May 21, 2016 Saskatchewan Rush 12–9
(1–1, 4–2, 3–2, 4–4)		 Calgary Roughnecks SaskTel Centre
Attendance: 15,192
Game reference
Aaron Bold Goalies Mike Poulin
Frankie Scigliano
Church (Matthews) – 04:111–0
1–111:47 – Digby (Berg, O'Connor)
Greer (Matthews, Church) – 16:092–1
Matthews (LaFontaine, Bold) – 16:343–1
3–218:25 – Berg (O'Connor, McFetridge)
Church (Greer, Matthews) (PP) – 20:324–2
4–327:23 – Dobbie (Dickson) (PP)
McIntosh (Church, Greer)5–3
LaFontaine (Matthews, Davis) – 35:116–3
McIntosh (Cornwall) – 38:337–3
7–439:43 – McFetridge (Harnett)
Sorichetti (Rubisch) – 41:248–4
8–543:00 – Dickson (Dobbie, Shattler) (PP)
8–647:04 – Digby (Berg)
Greer (Davis) – 50:269–6
Matthews (Bilic, Thompson) (ENG) – 50:3410–6
Greer (Matthews, Church) – 53:5111–6
Greer (McIntosh, Taylor) – 55:1012–6
12–756:08 – Dobbie (O'Connor)
12–857:47 – Digby (O'Connor)
12–959:10 – Digby (O'Connor)
6 minPenalties10 min
49Shots48

Rush wins series 2–0.

NLL Finals (best of three)

(E1) Buffalo Bandits vs. (W1) Saskatchewan Rush

May 28, 2016 Buffalo Bandits 9–11
(0–2, 6–4, 2–2, 1–3)		 Saskatchewan Rush First Niagara Center
Attendance: 12,692
Game reference
Anthony Cosmo Goalies Aaron Bold
0–107:51 – Matthews (Church, Davis)
0–213:50 – Sorichetti
0–315:53 – Matthews (Church) (PP)
Malcom (Weiss, Jones) – 17:131–3
D. Smith (PP) – 18:192–3
2–420:26 – Cornwall
Benesch (D. Smith) (PP) – 21:583–4
Steenhuis (D. Smith, Culp) – 23:534–4
Malcom (D. Smith, Benesch) – 24:015–4
Hill (Thorimbert) – 24:436–4
6–525:49 – Greer (Matthews)
6–627:20 – Davis (Knight, Matthews)
D. Smith (Veltman, Culp) – 32:367–6
7–736:37 – Church (Knight)
D. Smith (Steenhuis) – 42:128–7
8–842:50 – McIntosh (Greer) (PP)
Benesch – 49:189–8
9–950:04 – Church (McIntosh, Sorichetti)
9–1055:44 – McIntosh (Davis)
9–1156:34 – Greer (Church, Knight)
6 minPenalties4 min
52Shots52
June 4, 2016 Saskatchewan Rush 11–10
(3–4, 2–1, 2–4, 4–1)		 Buffalo Bandits SaskTel Centre
Attendance: 15,182
Game reference
Aaron Bold Goalies Anthony Cosmo
11 minPenalties8 min
54Shots57

Rush wins series 2–0.

Awards

Annual awards

AwardWinnerOther Finalists
Most Valuable Player Dhane Smith, BuffaloShawn Evans, New England
Mark Matthews, Saskatchewan [7]
Goaltender of the Year Evan Kirk, New EnglandNick Rose, Toronto
Dillon Ward, Colorado [8]
Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Dilks, Saskatchewan Chris Corbeil, Saskatchewan
Steve Priolo, Buffalo [9]
Transition Player of the Year Brad Self, RochesterJordan MacIntosh, Georgia
Jeremy Thompson, Saskatchewan [10]
Rookie of the Year Randy Staats, GeorgiaWesley Berg, Calgary
Jesse King, Georgia [11]
Sportsmanship Award Ben McIntosh, SaskatchewanKarsen Leung, Calgary
Kiel Matisz, Georgia [12]
GM of the Year Steve Dietrich, BuffaloJohn Arlotta, Georgia
Rich Lisk, New England [13]
Les Bartley Award Glenn Clark, New EnglandTroy Cordingley, Buffalo
Derek Keenan, Saskatchewan [14]
Executive of the Year Award Lee Genier, SaskatchewanMike French, New England
Scott Loffler, Buffalo [15]
Teammate of the Year Award Mike Poulin, CalgaryJoel McCready, Vancouver
Andrew Watt, Buffalo [16]
Air Canada Wingman of the Year AwardCallum Crawford, ColoradoRob Hellyer, Toronto
Dhane Smith [17]
Tom Borrelli Award Teddy Jenner, ILIndoor.com [18]

Monthly awards

Awards are presented monthly for the best overall player and best rookie.

MonthOverallRookie
January [19] Dhane Smith- Buffalo BanditsRandy Staats- Georgia Swarm
February [20] Dhane Smith- Buffalo BanditsJesse King- Georgia Swarm
March [21] Dhane Smith- Buffalo BanditsWesley Berg- Calgary Roughnecks
April [22] Rob Hellyer- Toronto RockRandy Staats- Georgia Swarm

Stadiums and locations

Buffalo Bandits Georgia Swarm New England Black Wolves Rochester Knighthawks Toronto Rock
KeyBank Center Infinite Energy Arena Mohegan Sun Arena Blue Cross Arena Air Canada Centre
Capacity: 19,070Capacity: 11,355Capacity: 7,700Capacity: 11,200Capacity: 18,819
HSBC Arena Lacrosse.jpg ArenaatGwinnettCenterSat.png Mohegan Sun Arena.jpg Rochester Blue Cross Arena - NW Exterior.jpg Air Canada Centre and CN Tower from Bay St.jpg
Calgary Roughnecks Colorado Mammoth Saskatchewan Rush Vancouver Stealth
Scotiabank Saddledome Pepsi Center SaskTel Centre Langley Events Centre
Capacity: 19,289 Capacity: 18,007Capacity: 15,190Capacity: 5,276
Pengrowth Saddledome lacrosse.jpg Denver Pepsi Center 1.jpg Sasktel Centre.jpg LangleyEventsCentreExterior.jpg

Attendance

Regular season

Home TeamHome GamesAverage AttendanceTotal Attendance [23]
Buffalo Bandits915,833142,505
Colorado Mammoth913,832124,489
Saskatchewan Rush911,737105,637
Calgary Roughnecks911,471103,246
Toronto Rock99,15982,432
Rochester Knighthawks98,16473,483
Georgia Swarm94,66742,010
Vancouver Stealth93,75833,828
New England Black Wolves93,75133,761
League819,152741,391

Playoffs

Home TeamHome GamesAverage AttendanceTotal Attendance [24]
Saskatchewan Rush215,18730,374
Buffalo Bandits213,47326,947
Colorado Mammoth113,11613,116
Calgary Roughnecks113,11613,116
New England Black Wolves23,4816,963
League811,20189,611

See also

References

  1. ↑ "NLL announces 30th Anniversary Team countdown". NLL.com. November 13, 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ "League announces 2016 NLL regular season schedule". NLL.com. September 27, 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Swarm Announce Relocation to Metro-Atlanta Area". NLL.com. May 29, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Rush announce relocation to Saskatchewan". NLL.com. July 20, 2015. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Bandits legend Tavares retires after 24-year NLL career". NLL.com. September 2, 2015. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  6. ↑ "NLL Standings". NLL.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  7. ↑ "2016 NLL Most Valuable Player award finalists". NLL.com. June 30, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  8. ↑ "2016 NLL Goaltender of the Year award finalists". NLL.com. June 2, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  9. ↑ "2016 NLL Defensive Player of the Year award finalists". NLL.com. June 21, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  10. ↑ "2016 NLL Transition Player of the Year finalists". NLL.com. June 23, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  11. ↑ "2016 NLL Rookie of the Year finalists". NLL.com. June 29, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  12. ↑ "2016 NLL Sportsmanship Award finalists". NLL.com. June 20, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  13. ↑ "2016 NLL GM of the Year finalists". NLL.com. June 28, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  14. ↑ "2016 NLL Head Coach of the Year finalists". NLL.com. June 27, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  15. ↑ "2016 NLL Executive of the Year finalists". NLL.com. July 7, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  16. ↑ "2016 NLL Teammate of the Year finalists". NLL.com. July 5, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  17. ↑ "2016 NLL Air Canada Wingman of the Year finalists". NLL.com. July 6, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Teddy Jenner named 2016 NLL Media Person of the year". NLL.com. July 11, 2016. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  19. ↑ "Bandits' Dhane Smith wins Player of the Month for January". NLL.com. February 5, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Bandits' Smith repeats as NLL Player of the Month". NLL.com. March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Bandits' Smith wins third-straight Player of the Month award". NLL.com. April 1, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Rock's Hellyer wins NLL Player of the Month for April". NLL.com. May 6, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
  23. ↑ "National Lacrosse League - attendance | Pointstreak Sports Technologies".
  24. ↑ "National Lacrosse League - attendance | Pointstreak Sports Technologies".
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