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Winners and Losers: NLL Week 14

There are only a handful of weeks left in the NLL regular season and it is getting down to the nitty gritty for teams still trying to make a playoff spot. In Week 14, we had some players have huge games to help their teams win and two teams already clinch their playoff spots. Let’s see who had a winning weekend and who ended up in the losers column in this week’s Winners and Losers.

Winners

Chris Boushy

In Chris Boushy’s first weekend as a Knighthawk he scored a whopping nine goals while also chipping in four assists. Definitely one of the best Winners performances in this season’s Winners and Losers. Unfortunately the Knighthawks lost both games this past weekend, but the future is definitely bright for this team as new additions like Boushy are making an impact right away. Against Georgia, Boushy was scoring at will as he would pour in seven goals on the night from a variety of different spots and types of shots. The Knighthawks will definitely get a couple more wins this season if Boushy and the new faces to the team continue to impress.

Mitch Jones

The Vancouver Warriors are still in the hunt for a playoff spot with six games left on their schedule and Mitch Jones came up big time to get the Warriors a critical win against the New England Black Wolves. Jones scored four goals and added two assists to lead the Warriors to win in front of their home crowd. He has been their top player all season and continues to come up clutch. Jones and the Warriors could salvage their season if they continue to play like they did last weekend.

Teams Clinching Playoff Spots

There are still several weeks left in the NLL regular season, but the Georgia Swarm and Buffalo Bandits both clinched playoff berths this past weekend thanks to their stellar play all season. Georgia has been a dominate team for the past few years, but Buffalo is making its first appearance in the playoffs since 2016 and have made a big turnaround this season. Congratulations to both organizations.

Honorable Mentions

Shayne Jackson

Shayne Jackson was a huge reason the Georgia Swarm clinched a playoff spot as he had a nine point night to help slip past the Knighthawks. Jackson even got into a fight and held his own while also scoring his 500th career point in that game.

Dan Dawson

In the battle of the expansion teams it was only fitting that one of the league’s most historic players lead the San Diego Seals to victory. Dan Dawson exploded for five goals against Philly with two of the those goals coming in the fourth quarter. Dangerous Dan Dawson also moved his way up to third in all-time assists in NLL history. Definitely worthy of a Winners spot in Winners and Losers.

Matt Vinc

The Bandits can thank Matt Vinc for escaping the prairies of Saskatchewan with a win after stopping 48 of 59 shots.

Losers

Ryan Benesch’s Feet

The Rochester Knighthawks played a great game against the Georgia Swarm last weekend and it was looking like it was a tie game when Ryan Benesch scored the game tying goal with about two minutes left. However, the Swarm challenged the goal and Benesch had stepped into the crease prior to receiving the pass so the goal was called off. Benesch was looking up towards the play and had no idea he stepped in the crease. That’s just how the Knighthawks’ season has been going as one misstep ended up deciding the game.

Players Flopping

NLL players are tough and players rarely flop, but some still will to try and get a call for their team. I don’t think anyone is a fan of flopping, but many players and fans don’t mind when their team gets a power play out of it. I’m including this mostly because of the clip of Cody Jamieson impersonating an opposing player flopping. This clip is just too funny to not include.

https://twitter.com/brlive/status/1107074707772325895

Who were your Winners and Losers of Week 14?