The Buffalo Bandits are a lacrosse team based in Buffalo, New York playing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The 2018 season was their 27th season in the NLL.
The Bandits held the first overall pick in the NLL Entry Draft, where they selected Josh Byrne with the first overall pick. They also selected Chase Fraser with the 13th pick. These players would be instrumental in the Bandits' contention window opening, which would lead to three straight titles between 2023 and 2025.
However, Buffalo finished the 2018 season with an 8–10 record, finishing last in the East for a second straight season, in addition to missing the playoffs. Despite a slim chance to make the playoffs near the end of the season, Buffalo lost three straight games to finish the season, ending their playoff hopes.
As of the 2026 season, this remains the most recent season in which the Bandits missed the playoffs or finished with a losing record.
Regular season
Final standings
Game log Reference:
Roster
Entry Draft The 2017 NLL Entry Draft took place on September 18, 2017. The Bandits made the following selections: RoundOverallPlayerCollege/Club 11 Josh Byrne 213 Chase Fraser 220 Ethan Schott 333 Dallas Bridle 434 Mackenzie Mitchell 436 Connor Laird 543 Dylan Molloy 651 Braden Wallace
Player stats Reference:
Runners (Top 10) Player GP G A Pts LB PIMDhane Smith 18 37 68 105 95 0Mitch Jones 18 38 43 81 116 8Jordan Durston 18 24 41 65 79 15Josh Byrne 18 26 37 63 72 9Callum Crawford 9 18 22 40 29 16Vaughn Harris 14 18 14 32 105 6 Shawn Evans 8 16 16 32 42 8Nick Weiss 18 9 13 22 114 23Craig England 14 9 11 20 29 25Steve Priolo 18 3 16 19 138 45 Totals 232 341 573 1,416 287
Goaltenders Player GP MIN W L GA Sv% GAAAlex Buque 18 709:41 6 6 153 .771 12.94Zach Higgins 16 373:23 2 4 81 .758 13.02Davide DiRuscio 2 0:31 0 0 1 .000 116.13 Totals 1,083:35 8 10 235 .766 13.01
See also 2018 NLL season
References
External links 2018 Buffalo Bandits at nllstats.com