Live Blogging from the Lacrosse title game

End of the Game: Bandits barely hold off the Jax in the final seconds after losing possession and win their first championship in 12 years. Huge celebration in front of the Buffalo net.

32.0 seconds left in the game:  Big defensive play by Phil Sanderson behind his own net to knock the ball away from the Jax and Bandits have possession. Buffalo coach Darris Kilgour calls timeout. Shot clock is at 25 seconds. The Portland net is empty.

51.9 seconds left in the fourth: Jax score to make it 14-13. Could it be any other way?

1:00 left in the the fourth: Portland pulls the goalie again, another save by Thompson. The Jax call timeout with 58.6 seconds to go and this place is bedlam. Who says this is a minor sport?

2:20 left in the fourth: Jax pull the goalie with 2:30 left, but he's back in now after Bandits gain possession. Under two minutes to go and the crowd is howling and on its feet.

4:54 left in the fourth: I just voted for Steenhuis for game MVP, though Thompson has been big in goal. Portland has a 46-38 edge in shots. Of course, we might have to re-evaluate if the Lumberjax come back to tie. They've come back all night. Fans singing "Livin' on a Prayer" now. This place is rocking. Lot of kids. I wish I was one of them.

6:42 left in the fourth: Still 13-12, Buffalo. Bandits appear a little tight in the offensive end, like they're pressing for that two-goal edge. They're also getting beat to a lot of loose balls. But they're on the attack again. Steenhuis busts in and scores to make it 14-12. That's five goals for Steen-house.

11:29 left in the fourth: Now the Jax have a goal disallowed because of a crease violation. Bandits need to regain that two-goal lead here. The momentum is with the visitors. The crowd is a bit restive, chanting "De-fense, de-fense."

13:52 left in the fourth: Uh oh. Steenhuis goal is negated because he was in the crease and Jax score in transition to make it 13-12. They don't whistle the play dead in this game on an overruled goal.  Now , after one shot hits the crossbar, a great save by Thompson from his butt to keep the Bandits on top. What a terrific game.

End of third quarter: Bandits lead, 13-11. It hasn't been tied since 2-2 at the 4:40 mark of the opening quarter. Borrelli informs me that Portland trailed in the fourth quarter of both of its playoff victories. So stay tuned. This one is far from over. Now that you mention it, I seem to recall a team on skates blowing a couple of late two-goal leads in this building a while back.

47.2 left in the third: I think I'm getting the hang of this. Predictably, the LumberJax scored to cut the deficit back to 13-11. If they ever tie the game, it could be a huge letdown for the Bandits.

1:52 left in the third: Bandits get a penalty for illegagl substitution. Someone left the bench too early. Tavares gets stopped on a breakaway. But Billy Dee Smith is not to be denied. He converts on a breakaway of his own and it's 13-10. Borrelli says four-goal margins tend to be magical in this game. The Bandits have lost just one game in their history when they led by four at any point. Let's see if the Bandits can build on this and get their first four-goal bulge of the night. The way things have been going, I doubt it.

4:00 left in the third: Steenhuis scored to make it 12-9. But sure enough, Powell answers seconds later to make it 12-10, Bandits. Powell has been sensational tonight. He has two goals and two assists in this quarter alone.

5:21 left in the third: Portland scores to make it 11-9. Seems almost inevitable that they'll keep getting within a goal and putting the heat on Buffalo. Borrelli reminds me that Portland has scored six and seven goals in the fourth quarter of its playoff wins. This is where New York folded last Saturday, but it seems Portland is a much more resilient opponent. Where's Tavares?

10:28 left in the third: Peter Morgan scores a power play goal on another nice feed from Ryan Powell and it's 9-8, Bandits. The LumberJax just won't go away. But once again, the Bandits answer. Kevin Dostie scores his third on a laser from the right. Portland has never led. Shots are pretty even right now, 27-26 for the visitors.

12:29 left in the third: Bandits are without their top defenseman, Chris White, who hurt his ankle in the first quarter. More flashbacks to the '06 Sabres playoffs. Scott Stapleford scores from in front to cut the Bandits' edge to 9-7. Now the Bandits get a penalty on top of it. Powless goes for elbowing. Another big penalty kill.

Halftime: Bandits lead it, 9-6. Tavares said before the game that he felt the responsibility as a leader to show his team the way, on and off the, uh, floor. Guess he did it. That eighth goal was huge. Thanks for the info. on the Six Nations, by the way.

2:26 left in the second: Tavares dekes his way through half the Portland team and scores to make it 8-6. Tavares said before the game there are nights when he wonders if it's going to be his last game. Yeah, right. He looks 29 tonight, not 39. Too bad Max Afinogenov can't finish like that.

Hold it, they just scored again. Take your eyes off the action for two seconds and you miss a goal in this sport. Steenhuis again. Who's House? That's three for the night. 9-6, Bandits. Think that Tavares goal gave his team a little jolt?

4:56 left in the second: A quick review of the game notes shows that no Bandit has been accused of pulling a gun on his father lately. But there's a penalty. Bomberry is in the box for two minutes. This would be a big penalty kill for the Banditos. Rich Kilgour had a great chance for a shorthanded goal on a two on one, but couldn't convert. Then the Jax scored to make it 7-6.

5:59 left in the second: So much for the funk. Steenhuis scores on a long feed from goalie Thompson. PA man Chris Swenson yells, "Whose House?" Fans answer, "Steenhuis!" It's pronounced Steen-house.

7:14 left in the second: The LumberJax are within a goal after a shorthanded tally by Dan Dawson, who scored 12 goals in Portland' two previous playoff games. That makes up for the goal that Portland allowed late in the first. The Bandits seem offensively stagnant right now. They've been slow starters lately, so maybe this is a late-arriving funk.

10:48 left in the second: Portland cuts the lead to 6-4. The LumberJax are a very good come-from-behind squad. They've come back to win both of their previous playoff games.

0:03 left in the first: Mark Steenhuis, the Bandits' top goal-scorer, gets on the board with just 3.1 seconds left in the quarter. Very big goal, whatever sport they're playing in this building. I love the interactive announcing at these games. It's a bit tough on the ears, though. David Stern would not approve, I'm sure.

3:14 left in the first: Roger Vyse caps off a dazzling shift by whipping one home to make it 5-2. Vyse is a native of Six Nations, Ont. There are several natives of Six Nations on the roster. I just love writing that name. Six Nations. Someone google Six Nations and tell me more.

4:45 left in the first: Jacobs, the kid, scores again and it's 4-3. Looks like the LumberJax have no intentions of backing down here.

4:53 left in the first: Just seven seconds left in the power play and no score. Thompson made one big point-blank save. Bandits are second in the NLL in penalty kill and showing why here.  Hey, I just realized I'm not missing an NBA game tonight. This is perfect.

7:41 left in the first: Tavares makes a beautiful touch pass to Dostie for the score to make it 4-2. No one has ever been better at that little touch pass. Something tells me I'll be talking to Tavares again before the night is through. Powless takes a dumb roughing penalty and the Bandits are shorthanded.

9:40 left in the first: Whew! Bandits strike back. Kevin Dostie scored on a gorgeous feed from Roger Vyse, who set the all-time NCAA goal-scoring record in college at Limestone. Borrelli tells me Vyse changed his style for the indoor game and has become a terrific setup guy. That was his 11th assist in three playoff games.

10:20 left in the first : Portland ties it again, 2-2, on goal by Pete Jacobs, at 18 the youngest player ever in a championship game. Bandits goalie Mike Thompson was unobstructed and probably should have stopped it. Ryan Miller thinks we're being too critical of the guy.

11:11 left in the first: Urged on by the ubiquitous PA announcer, the fans are chanting "One, two, we want three!" It must be great when they score 19 goals, like they did a week ago in the East final.

12:59 left in the first: This is a lot harder than keeping track of hockey scoring, I have to admit. The Bandits come right back to regain the lead on a goal by Brett Bucktooth, just 2:01 into the game. Love that name.

14:32 left in the first quarter: Just 22 seconds into the game, the legend, John Tavares, fires one home to give the Bandits a 1-0 lead. I spent time with Tavares a couple of hours before the game for an early column. Way to come through, John. But Portland comes back in transition to tie it a little over a minute later, on a goal by Bruce Alexander.

7:32 p.m. -- I won't lie to you. A part of me wishes I were sitting here awaiting the start of a Stanley Cup conference semifinal game. But I have to say,  it's pretty electric in sold-out HSBC Arena right now, as they announce the Bandits starters for the NLL championship game. It's a sea of orange in this place. My Hall of Fame colleague, Tom Borrelli, says the Bandits are about a three-goal favorite. I'll take his word for it,  since my knowledge of the game is a little sketch. Anyway, there's nothing like a championship game. Indoor lacrosse is a fast-paced, exciting game, so it should be a fun night.

Comments

[Phil]

Jerry, Jerry, Jerry...you really must've had a problem hearing through all that noise...lol. It's pronounced STAIN-house. Great article on Speedy McCready the other day, BTW

[Rich Kozak]

Pete,

Still wish you were up here. Gurtler can't hold a candle to you.

[Tom-Tonawanda]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Bandits

Check it out -- somebody already updated the Bandits' wiki page!!!!!

[Tom]

I haven't been this excited since Eddie Azavedo and Jim May smoked a cigarette with me before the Stallions home opener in '82.

[Pete Weber]

This is exciting -- even listening on the computer in Nashville!

[Tom-Tonawanda]

This is awesome. I couldn't go but I'm following you Sully. Great Max and Hardy slaps!

[1918, 2004, 2007]

According to Wikipedia, "Six Nations of the Grand River is the name applied to two contiguous Indian reserves southeast of Brantford, Ontario, Canada – Six Nations reserve no. 40 and Glebe Farm reserve no. 40B." In addition to Bandits players, other notables include actors Graham Greene and Jay Silverheels.