Note: This weekend’s games are the final games of the National Lacrosse League regular season. I will rank the teams one more time in the middle of next week.
1. Toronto Rock (10-6), The Rock’s regular season is complete and while the rest of the league fights for playoff position in the final weekend, the Rock know they have clinched the East Division championship and are hoping for an Edmonton loss to Calgary to grab home-floor advantage throughout the postseason.
2. Edmonton Rush (9-6), The Rush started out the season slow, but have finished stronger than any team out there. A win over Calgary and they are the NLL’s number one overall seed in the postseason.
3. Washington Stealth (8-7), The Stealth suffered a disappointing loss to Buffalo last weekend, but still control their own fate for a home playoff game needing only to beat Philadelphia in the regular season finale.
4. Calgary Roughnecks (8-7), The logjam at the top of the league continues with the Roughnecks, who can win the West Division championship with a victory over Edmonton this weekend.
5. Philadelphia Wings (7-8), The Wings can clinch a home playoff game with a win over the Stealth and a Rochester loss.
6. Rochester Knighthawks (7-8), The defending champions don’t have the most impressive record in the league, but goalkeeper Matt Vinc is playing at an MVP-level and will make the Knighthawks a team nobody wants to face in the postseason, though there is a scenario where they might not even get in.
7. Minnesota Swarm (7-8), Minnesota is pretty locked into the fourth position in the West, but with help could move up to the No. 3 spot.
8. Colorado Mammoth (6-9), For the Mammoth it is pretty simple, beat Minnesota on Saturday and they are in the postseason.
9. Buffalo Bandits (6-9), The scenarios for the Bandits might be the strangest of all teams. A week ago it appeared the Bandits were dead to rights until they ended their six-game losing streak with a 15-10 win over Washington. Now the Bandits only need to win to get in the postseason — but even more surprising, the Bandits can clinch a home playoff game with a win over Rochester and a Philadelphia loss to Washington.
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