Week 5 offers another opportunity to pick winners, and get it all right! I’m still far from perfect, but this week I’m feeling it, and I think I have my picks on lock. 2015 MLL Predictions, coming at you hot and heavy each week of the Major League Lacrosse season!
Photo Credit: Craig Chase
I’m now 7-6 with my picks, which isn’t bad… but it’s also far from great. I’ve got a mountain to climb, but I’m a seasoned hiker.
Oh yeah, HAPPY belated BIRTHDAY to Marcus Holman!
Top 10 Plays – Week 4
2015 MLL Predictions – Week 5
This weekend, we have four big games, and one each will be played on Friday and Saturday, with two being played on Sunday.
Boston @ New York – Friday, May 8th, 730pm – Last week’s BOS-NY tilt was an exciting and tight game. Boston’s D looked improved, and that trend should continue for the rest of the early season for the Cannons. At the same time, NY won without Gurenlian or Hartzell, so I’ll keep picking the Lizards until they lose. I might even keep picking them even if they lose… plenty of talent there, and the clear favorite in the early going.
Ohio @ Florida – Saturday, May 9th, 7pm – Either Florida and Ohio both move to 1-3, OR Ohio gets to 2-2 and Florida falls to 0-4. That’s actually a lot of motivation for both teams, and while I think Florida should be more desperate, I like the direction that Ohio is headed right now. If the Machine can continue to balance their scoring, they can continue to improve. I’ll take Ohio, but I expect it to be very tight.
Denver @ Rochester – Sunday, May 10th, 1pm – Both franchises are still not quite what they will be in another month due to missing players, but Denver has shown a good ability to win regardless, and Rochester has shown a really strong desire to win in their last two games. For me, this one is a toss up, but I have to pick a winner, so I’ll go with Denver on the road.
Chesapeake @ Charlotte – Sunday, May 10th, 1pm – I’ll take the 2-1 Bayhawks over the 1-2 Hounds, but again, I don’t feel great about this selection. Chesapeake needs to find more rhythm in transition and they need work on face offs in a major way. Charlotte has done a good job of shooting on cage so far this year, but they don’t generate a ton of shots per game. I guess I’ll go with the Bayhawks, but their face off play really gives me cause for concern.
Other Week 5 2015 MLL Predictions
– Ohio will give up their first man down goal of the year. So far the Machine is 7 for 7 on penalty kills. That streak has to end sooner or later, and I say it happens this week in Florida.
– Brian Spallina will finish the weekend with TWICE as many penalty minutes as the next guy on the list. Right now he has 14 minutes in 4 games, while Mike Lazore has 7.5 minutes in 3 games.
– I will get at LEAST one of my picks wrong. This league is TOO tight to call sometimes. I love it!
LongStickMiddie.com Play of the Week
These are ALWAYS good! Love the LSM between the lines plays of the week! Game changers. Love them.
Attendance Notes
Franchise – 2015 Attendance Average
Denver – 5,925
Chesapeake – 4,639
Boston – 4,203
New York – 4,100
Charlotte – 2,276
Ohio – 2,273
Florida – 1,873
Rochester – 1,182
Numbers are definitely up since last week, if only slightly. Denver climbed to the top of the charts with their first game, but Chesapeake, Boston, and New York are all showing strong numbers as well. Rochester increased their totals by 75 people from last week. It’s progress! Considering college is still going on, these numbers are really quite solid!
