Minnesota Swarm 13 Buffalo Bandits 22 (2024)

	Minnesota Swarm (1-2 H 1-1 A 0-1)
	Buffalo Bandits (2-2 H 2-0 A 0-2)

What’s the Swarm got? Nothing!!!

Saturday, January 20, 2007
Buffalo, New York
Attendance: 12,883

The Minnesota Swarm know what the French felt in 1940 as the Germans blitzkrieged through Paris. Tonight in front of 12,883 extremely happy fans, the Buffalo Bandits (2-2) routed the Swarm (1-2) 22-13. The league’s all-time scoring leader, John Tavares, had three goals and ten assists to lead the massacre at HSBC Arena. In addition, the Bandits burned the Swarm on the power play going nine for nine. The twenty-two goals is not a record for goals given up by the Swarm. They gave up twenty-three to the Bandits on March 11th, 2005 in a 23-16 loss in St. Paul.

The game started with both teams exchanging blows. First off, the Swarm’s Michael Kilby and the Bandits Kyle Laverty square off in a long lasting battle which came out even. That may have been the highlight of the evening for the Swarm. Later in the quarter, Rory McDade of the Swarm and Pat McCready of the Bandits squared off with McCready getting the advantage after McDade went to the floor after losing his balance. While the fights were going on, the Bandits were starting the barrage with four power play goals to lead after one quarter 7-1.

The Bandits opened the second quarter with two goals. This caused Swarm Head Coach Duane Jacobs to replace starting goaltender Matt Disher with wunderkind Nick Patterson. The Swarm rallied with three goals including a shorthanded goal by captain Ryan Cousins. Both teams exchanged two more goals in the quarter and the Bandits went to the locker room up 11-6.

The third quarter saw the Swarm taken to the cleaners as the Bandits continued to score at will. The Bandits Dan Teat got a hat trick just in the third to lead the Bandits. The Swarm couldn’t keep up with the fantastic passing by the Bandits offense and that is when they were transitioning well from offense to defense. The Bandits continued to run the Swarm ragged as they got nine goals in the quarter. After McCready scored to make it 16-7 for the Bandits, Jacobs brought Disher back in to be fed to the slaughter again. The nine goals given up tied the Swarm record for most goals given up in a quarter which was first set in an 18-17 loss to the Philadelphia Wings on February 20th, 2005.

The fourth quarter started well for the Swarm as Cousins and Kelly Hall scored early to cut the Bandit lead to eight, 20-12. However, in trying to get back, the Swarm had to pull out all the stops and the Bandits took advantage to finish the fourth quarter outscoring the Swarm two to one.

The Bandits power play was outstanding and this game goes to show that Tavares is still the master of his domain as he picked apart the Swarm defense with his passing. The Swarm did score 13 goals which is a season high but it is of little consolation after the beating they took after playing the night before in St. Paul against Rochester. Their flight to Buffalo was at six in the morning and they arrived at 12:30, well correct that, I think they may still be on the plane because the Swarm team last night sure wasn’t there tonight.

The Swarm were lead in scoring by Kelly Hall and Ryan Ward who racked up six points. Hall got a Swarm season high four goals. Travis Hill continued his good work on the face off by winning 18 of 30. Ryan Cousins did all he could on defense by scooping up ten loose balls and scoring two goals but it just wasn’t enough tonight. Swarm fans hope the Swarm goaltenders have short memories. Matt Disher started and finished by saving 29 of 44 shots in forty minutes. Nick Patterson was sandwiched in between Disher and gobbled up the Bandits only making 7 saves on 14 shots in the remaining twenty minutes. The Bandits out shot the Swarm 58 to 47, won the loose balls 91-73 and were perfect on the power play going 9 for 9 while the Swarm went only 3 for 9.

The Swarm next travel to Calgary to take on the Roughnecks at the Pengrowth Saddledome on Saturday, January 27th, 2007 at 8:30 pm. The Swarm return home on February 18th, 2007 against the New York Titans at 7:00 pm at the Xcel Energy Center. The Bandits have next week off and return to action with a home and home starting at home against the Toronto Rock on Friday, February 2nd and continuing the next night in Toronto.

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