NLL 2025 Postseason — Finals
Photo Credit: J. Crawford/Saskatchewan Rush
And then there were two.
The top two seeds in the NLL, both with 13-5 regular season records, did what they were supposed to do in the postseason and swept their way to the NLL Finals.
The two-time defending Buffalo Bandits have gotten there thanks to a godly postseason goaltending performance from Matt Vinc and his goalies-sans-pads defensive runners soaking up every shot they can. Ian MacKay has been a goal-scoring machine, lighting the lamp with vigor and abandon on the biggest stage, with OPotY Dhane Smith and Josh Byrne more than happy to support. They manhandled the Seals in the quarterfinals then put the kibosh on an exciting Warriors season. Now, they’re on the cusp of becoming the second team in NLL history to three-peat.
Standing in their way are the upstart Saskatchewan Rush, who have seen many players elevate their games to new levels this season, like DPotY Matt Hossack, indefatigable Jake Boudreau, offseason free agent acquisition Austin Shanks, and GotY Frank Scigliano. They’ve saved their best for when it counts the most, dialing up the pressure in the postseason. Boudreau had a video game statline in the quarterfinals downing of the Swarm. Shanks has been as prolific at scoring as MacKay, dramatically sending his former Thunderbirds teammates home in a wild sweep in the semifinals. All the years of wondering if Scigliano could get the job done after never getting quite across the finish line are being forgotten, as he’s manning the uprights better than at any point in his career with no signs of slowing down. Oh yeah, rookie Jake Naso’s been a revelation at the face-off dot, frustrating the very best in Jake Withers the last two weekends.
I wrote back when the Bandits were 6-0 that there were only two teams I could see downing the Bandits in the NLL Finals — the Colorado Mammoth and Rush. Injuries and work commitmments derailed the Mammoth’s season; the Rush are primed to prove my point. What I wrote back then is as true now, only somehow better. There’s a real chance Saskatchewan thwarts Buffalo’s plans, but the defending champs are the defending champs for a reason — they’re the most talented team in the NLL and know how to elevate their game in a way that only the best of the best can do after playing in the ultimate contest many times.
It may not be dramatic that the two best teams are the last ones standing, but it’s incredibly appropriate, and their hard-won final berths should have erased all doubts that they deserve to be here. All that’s left now is to get two wins, one team joining the other 12 in not getting the job done, the other hoisting that starry NLL Cup and realizing it’s still terrible for drinking victory beers out of.
Here’s how this works: I’ll tell you the matchups, the results of their five most recent contests (if applicable), top three (or four) scorers on each team, probable starting netminders, and team offensive and defensive shift stats as slash lines (S%/SOG%/E%) (offense on the left, defense on the right). All stats are based off my work for this site; as of the Semifinals, all stats are from the 2025 NLL postseason. Regular season stats can be found here.
This is intended to be bare bones, quick and easy content to get you caught up before the weekend’s games. No analysis or storylines, just the stats.
If you’re in the US, all games are available on ESPN+; if you’re in Canada, you can catch the games on the TSN app or NLL Plus.
Here’s what’s ahead.
Photo Credit: J. Crawford/Saskatchewan Rush
Saskatchewan Rush (2nd seed, 13-5 | 3-0)
vs.
Buffalo Bandits (1st seed, 13-5 | 3-0)
Friday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. ET at KeyBank Center
Sunday, May 18 at 8:00 p.m. ET at SaskTel Centre
Saturday, May 24 at 4:30 p.m. at KeyBank Center (if necessary)
Last 5 Meetings:
4-1 in Bandits’ favor
Rush
13.0 GF/GAME | 8.3 GA/GAME
Bandits
8.3 GF/GAME | 5.3 GA/GAME
Rush Top Scorers
Zach Manns, 15 PTS (5G, 10A)
Austin Shanks, 14 PTS (10G, 4A)
Robert Church, 13 PTS (4G, 9A)
Bandits Top Scorers
Ian MacKay, 12 PTS (9G, 3A)
Dhane Smith, 11 PTS (5G, 6A)
Josh Byrne, 11 PTS (1G, 10A)
Probable Starting Netminders
Rush
Frank Scigliano — 8.33 GAA | .833 Sv% | 4.27 GSAA | 180:01 min.
Bandits
Matt Vinc — 5.33 GAA | .876 Sv% | 9.17 GSAA | 180:00 min.
Offensive & Defensive Stats
Rush O | D
TrueES — 11.8/73.6/8.9 | 13.7/69.2/11.8
TruePP — 16.4/65.5/18.4 | 6.3/68.8/5.9
TrueFB — 29.7/86.5/28.2 | 9.1/81.8/8.5
TrueSH — 6.7/80.0/5.0 | 6.7/53.3/4.0
Bandits O | D
TrueES — 10.2/70.8/8.3 | 7.2/59.5/6.7
TruePP — 20.0/60.0/20.7 | 11.4/54.3/14.3
TrueFB — 30.0/80.0/21.4 | 7.7/84.6/7.1
TrueSH — 0.0/40.0/0.0 | 0.0/63.6/0.0