For all you fans of NLL teams that are not in the playoffs, or maybe those of you who want to bet some bucks on the NLL playoffs, here is a handy reference guide for why each playoff team may or may not win the Championship.

Buffalo

Will win because: Vinc. Smith. Byrne. Buchanan, MacKay. Priolo. Dawson. Matisz. Farrell. In a nutshell, they’ll win because they’re the freakin’ Bandits.

Won’t win because: They’ve won the last two Championships and have been to the finals in the last four seasons. They’re probably bored of it by now.

Saskatchewan

Will win because: Frank Scigliano is playing as well as he ever has, and that’s giving the rest of the team a ton of confidence.

Won’t win because: They have never beaten Georgia in the playoffs and are 3–7 against them all-time. Brett Dobson has never given up more than nine goals in a game to the Rush.

Vancouver

Will win because: Same as Saskatchewan, but Christian Del Bianco.

Won’t win because: The place might be empty since Vancouver fans have forgotten what “playoffs” means.

Vancouver in the playoffs

Halifax

Will win because: They will get so much love from their home fans at the first game that they’ll want to win it all for them.

Won’t win because: They may not play all their playoff games at home. In team history, they’re 17 games above .500 at home, but a game under .500 on the road. They’re also 0–3 in playoff games, all of which were on the road.

Rochester

Will win because: Two solid goaltenders. Either one can steal them a game, and if either one falters, the team has full confidence in the other one. Oh, and Connor Fields. And Ryan Lanchbury.

Won’t win because: If they do win, I’ll make over $600 because I bet on them when they were at +5000.

Calgary

Will win because: Same as Saskatchewan and Vancouver but Nick Rose. And Dane Dobbie and Curtis Dickson are playing like they’re ten years younger.

Won’t win because: They only get to the finals in years that end in either 4 or 9 (won in 2004, 2009, 2019, and lost in the finals in 2014). They missed it last year so they have to wait four more years.

San Diego

Will win because: If there’s a way to score two game-winning goals in the same game, Wes Berg will figure out how.

Won’t win because: Of all the players in team history that have at least ten playoff points in a Seals jersey, only Tre Leclaire and Wes Berg are still on the team. Though given their playoff history (they are 3–6 in playoff games), maybe that’s a good thing.

Georgia

Will win because: They just beat the freakin’ Bandits so their confidence is very high. Plus they’re undefeated against the Rush in the playoffs.

Won’t win because: Lyle Thompson has been one of the top five players in the world for most of a decade and only has one NLL Championship to show for it. Clearly the lacrosse gods have it in for the Swarm.