“Muffler” Mike Kostiuk – All Lacrosse All The Time, a Division of the Edge of Philly Sports Network
The undefeated San Diego Seals hosted the winless Vancouver Warriors at Pechanga Arena in a Week 6 NLL matchup. Coming into the game, only Halifax has scored more goals than the Seals. Conversely, Vancouver has allowed the most goals of any team in the league so far. The Warriors released goaltender Steve Fryer earlier this week, hoping a personnel change in net could jump start the defense. Unfortunately, that was not the case, as the Seals jumped out to a 6-4 halftime lead, then took control of the game in the third quarter. Their 16-11 win improves them to 4-0 on the season, while the Warriors drop to 0-4.
Seals use late first half run to take halftime lead
The Warriors started Aden Walsh in net, with Ethan Woods backing up after coming off injured reserve. The Seals surprisingly went with 20 year old backup Chris Origlieri in net. Vancouver struck early, with Kyle Killen scoring back-to-back (2:16; 5:16 power play) for a 2-0 lead. San Diego equalized with league leading goal scorer Curtis Dickson (3g, 2a; 10:42) and Dane Dobbie (4g, 2a; 11:35). After 15 minutes of play, the game was tied 2-2.
The teams continued to trade goals through the first ten minutes of the second quarter. Mitch Jones (3g, 3a; 4:19) put Vancouver back on top, but Dobbie’s second (5:36) leveled the score. Shawn Evans (2g, 3a) tallied a power play marker (8:37) before Mike McCannell scored his first career NLL goal (9:17) to knot the game at 4-4. San Diego would add to the run, with Austin Staats (4g, 3a; 12:57) and Dobbie’s hat trick goal (13:24) putting them up 6-4 at halftime.
Seals double up Warriors in the third quarter
Riley Loewen (2g, 1a; 1:36) closed the gap to one for Vancouver, but San Diego responded with a three-goal run. Staats tallied his second and third goals (2:08; 6:44 power play), then Dickson scored his second on a power play (7:20) to put the Seals up 9-5. Jones scored his second on a power play (9:22), only for the Seals to get two more back. Dickson’s hat trick goal (11:52) and Cam Holding (12:05) made it an 11-6 game. The second goal from Evans (13:30) cut the deficit to four, but Kevin Crowley beat the third quarter buzzer (14:59) to make it 12-7 entering the final frame.
The fourth quarter saw both teams net four goals each, with the Warriors unable to narrow the Seals lead to less than three. For Vancouver, Jones notched his hat trick (2:27), followed by Loewen’s second (6:12), Keegan Bal (8:04), and Reid Bowering (14:07). The Seals countered with Wes Berg (4:50), the fourth from Staats (12:07), Tre Leclaire (13:09), and Dobbie’s fourth of the night (14:37) to close the scoring on the 16-11 win.
Other Stats of Note
Origlieri (SD): 37 saves
Walsh (VAN): 27 saves
A bright spot for Vancouver was the return of Tyrell Hamer-Jackson to the lineup; the Warriors won 20 of 31 faceoffs
Power Play: VAN 3 of 5; SD 3 of 5
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“Muffler” Mike Kostiuk was formally introduced to box lacrosse when he attended a New England Black Wolves game on a whim in 2016. Instantly hooked, he has since become an avid follower of the National Lacrosse League. Following the postponement of the 2019-2020 NLL season, he was offered the chance to share his wealth of statistical knowledge and unique insights with the lacrosse community at large. He cheerfully accepted, and currently serves as Edge of Philly’s correspondent for both the Albany FireWolves and New York Riptide.
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