NLL Finals MVP Ian MacKay Joins Sabres Live! | Buffalo Bandits

NLL Finals MVP Ian MacKay Joins Sabres Live! | Buffalo Bandits

The easy transition is backto backto back. But we also should preface this segment by saying we should have seen this part of it coming. In two of the Bandits first four games this year, there was a fivegoal scorer. His name Ian McKay. And from that point on, it just continued to the point where we welcome in the NLLL Finals MVP. Ian, congratulations. How are you? Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Doing well. Getting back to reality here a little bit. So, it’s been good. Is reality good or different uh from the other two championships? Because I mean feel the first one it feel like you guys for a week were like celebrating then the second one it’s like and then third it’s okay we’ve done it now. So is the reality different? Yeah I think I think reality hit a little quicker on this one than than the previous ones. like you said, we uh the first one it was like we finally got over the hump and that that party went on for for quite a while and then um you know this one we we went pretty hard after the game and and Sunday and we got a little break here until uh until our uh our parade on Friday and we’ll do it all again. So, it’s been good. Yeah, I mean can’t wait to remind people and uh look forward to seeing them all at Key Bank Center at 5:00 pm on Friday to celebrate the back to back to back. uh head down to Ticket Master Alumni Plaza at 5:00 p.m. Ian and company will be uh arriving around the stage uh roughly 5:30. Celebration includes everything you would expect it to include. And boy, have they been good parties the last couple of years. Ian, how did it unfold this time around from an in-game standpoint based on the nature of the series and just how it seemingly snapped right back into bandit place in the second half on Saturday? Yeah, I think you know what I think we were a little bit overdue for that. We obviously in the playoffs every team’s good and I mean every team in the whole league is good but especially when you get to the playoffs and if you look at kind of how our our playoff run went, onegoal games, lowscoring games, you know, not kind of our our typical uh expectation for our team and and game one and two is uh essentially onegoal games. Obviously game one there’s an empty netter at the end there and then and then losing by one in Saskatchewan. And um you know, if you look at like a guy like Josh who’s arguably the best player in the league and and he’s going into the final series with only two goals, you’re kind of just waiting and expecting for him to go off eventually. And you know, luckily for us, him and and Clooch and and the whole offense kind of really went off in the second second half of that game. And um we had a good run in the second quarter. Um, Sass kind of came back a little bit going into halftime and and then we were able to kind of run away with it at the second half there. So, uh, it was just pretty unbelievable feeling. Was there a little speech action in uh, at halftime by coach John Tiveras or was it some of you guys leaders that were like, “Hey, we’re up 73 with 10 minutes left, you know, in second quarter and now all of a sudden it’s 76 and this is a completely different feeling.” Um, you know, you hear of the Herb Brooks, you know, speeches or whatever. This is a big moment for you guys at halftime there. Yeah, there was nothing too crazy. It kind of was, you know, reminiscent of the first two games with with being tied going into halftime. So, it was just, you know, I think it was a quiet confidence in our group. And um you know, Dane, credit to Dane, he sent us a our offense, a big group uh text before the game, just kind of highlighting one or two things that each guy’s really good at and and what we need out of them um going into that game. And then he mentioned, you know, we haven’t really gone off and I think it’s going to be 15 plus goals to to win us this thing. And we were able to get to that. So, it’s just kind of reminding ourselves of that. um you know and just kind of hitting on the things that we’ve done really well all year and you know Saskatchewan is a team that pushes transition really well and they kind of exposed us in game two and uh that was something that we really wanted to focus on and not give them opportunities and um in the first half we gave them one or two too many than we would have liked. So, um, that was kind of one of the bigger focuses going into halftime, especially going into the fourth quarter was like, you know, they’re really going to be pushing now. So, so we got to make sure we’re doing doing a good job of taking that away. And I I think we were able to do that. 53 goals for you this season, 37 in the regular season, 16 more in the playoffs, including seven in the finals win over Saskatchewan. Can you take yourself out of the team equation for a mix for a minute and just talk about maybe the pride that you’re feeling in your individual game and how it came to be this way this year? Yeah, I mean it it’s hard for me to take it out of the team setting because it’s just it’s awkward for me to to talk about myself, but um ultimately it was um you know just doing whatever I could to to help us win. And you know, this year it was is playing offense. And um obviously, like you mentioned early on, I had a couple good games early on, but you know, it was a little awkward for me at first kind of coming into a stacked offense and trying to find my place a little bit and credit to everyone on the offense and JT for making me feel like home there. And, you know, and reaffirming that like I belong up there and trying to put me into good spots. And um as games went on, I got more and more comfortable. And um you know, I’ll uh I’ll give my fiance some credit going into game three before the game. She was like, you know, like when you really like kind of took off and started playing well was was after you proposed, right? So, uh she likes she likes to take the credit for it. And it’s uh it’s funny though. It’s true. Like I really did start to kind of take off there. um you know, middle to end of March going into playoffs. So, um it it was obviously really cool and I’m just happy that you know, it was uh I could do something to help us win and um you know, blind squirrel finds a net every now and again. So, it was pretty cool. You were probably preoccupied and nervous about what was going to happen. And when it happened, the proposal, it’s like, okay, now I can relax and play. So, there you go. Okay. So, your teammate Chase Frasier scored the behind the back goal uh in game three. He had that beautiful between the leg goal against Vancouver in game two. Um this or that, which one did you like better, the between the legs or the one behind the back? Because the behind the back was a big goal making it 86 early in the second half. Yeah, I mean both of them just incredible. I I would say probably game three just um you know where we were in the game and and kind of what we needed there. It was also a little a little less risky and a little bit more him. So seeing seeing the one in Saskatchewan, it was like one of those no no and then celebrate moments and and happy it went in. But I mean he’s just such an incredible player and you see him do these kind of shots in practice and in practice you’re like please do not ever do that in a game or think about it. and he he finds a way and and finds the right time to do it and it makes sense and somehow he pulls these things off and you know those are big momentum ones like in a game three imagine that happening against you like that’s got to be pretty deflating right like especially as a goalie like you try to wash it quick but I mean to have like another highlight reel goal scored on you it’s it’s uh it must be tough so uh credit credit to him to to have the guts to be able to throw that I I would never do do that. But, uh, pretty impressive all around. Well, I you may be minimizing some of your spectacular goals this year, but that’s understandable. I’m glad you mentioned right off the top in in the realm of Josh having nine points, Dne having eight points, which you almost come to expect. There was a lot of uncertainty as to whether Chris Cluche could play, and he had a massive final game with three goals. Um, I feel like many of you can get lost in the team success sometimes. Can you say a word or two about cluche? Yeah, I don’t know if I I can say enough about how hard he worked to be able to play in game three and I was doing media after after the game and JT was talking about, you know, how he was a question mark and going into game day probably wasn’t in the lineup and and then that obviously changed and um seeing seeing how banged up he was and and the state of his ankle, I don’t know how he did it, but he worked so hard all week was in PT. te every day, the cryo, doing everything he could to to get it right. And um like I said, to see where it was and to see the guts he had in game three and um to be able to play and you know, he if you ask him, he he probably didn’t have the the season and and the series that he wanted statistically, but you know, he he stepped up in in the biggest moment and and put three big goals in for us to obviously help us get our end goal there. So, um, I can’t say enough good things about Klooch and how hard he worked to to be ready and I’m just so happy for him. You know, I I’m used to hockey with my advantage and last change and the matchups and all of it and it’s obviously much different in in lacrosse because you got your offense, your defense, you’re switching all the time, but one thing that if any team has Bandit land and that support and the the building and all of it. Um, did you have goosebumps going into game three knowing that it was going to be one of those all time the fans were going to show up and it feels like it surprises everybody all the time, but it it reaches new levels every year. Yeah. I mean, they’re our backbone no matter what. I mean, to have five sellouts in the regular season is unheard of in the NLL. And um you know, like you said, it it it shouldn’t come to us as a as a surprise, but they show up all the time for us. And I get goosebumps every game after the national anthem and they start the let’s go bandits chant. Like you just can’t help it. Like it’s just unreal. And um you know, it’s they every goal, you know, all the chants, everything. It’s it’s unbelievable. And obviously there was some some some talk going into game three on the other side about, you know, that they’re going to try and quiet out the crowd and everything and that no one from the crowds coming out to set a pick on them or anything. But um it’s I mean it’s it’s undeniable that you can’t not feel the Bandit Land’s presence and um we’re fortunate to to have ended in first place and and got the home field advantage and it was definitely huge for us for sure. necessary. Do 20,000 Bandits fans need to text Matt Vince to convince him to come back? Uh, I mean, probably. I I’m I’m hoping and I’m going to be texting him a lot this summer to to be on him and might be making trips up to St. Catherine’s to to babysit the kids and, you know, give them give him some uh brownie points to be able to come back. But I mean, no matter what happens with with Veno, it’s to to start my career the same time that he came into Buffalo and to be on this run with him and I joked I call him, you know, my lacrosse dad and we have a really good relationship there and and to like be close with his family and his kids. It’s it’s pretty cool and it’s easy to look up to him and and and try to follow his lead. And um I mean if if he does end up retiring that the goalie of the year award should be the Matt Vince award for sure with with how he’s he’s played and the career he’s had. So it’s been been pretty cool to be a small part of it. Do you uh do you score on him when you guys have the shootarounds and all of it? Because there’s guys like when Dominic Hashik was in Buffalo they like it’s easy to score. I score on him in practice all the time. Like they would like that was a feather in their cap, right? to say I can score on hashik in in in warm-ups or in practice, but in games it’s obviously different. Um, when you guys do shoot arounds and whatever, do you find it that you have a a spot or is it still pretty tough? I’m too scared to like actually shoot on them. There’s no way I’ll I would never like early on in my career, it was he would in practice or whatever, he would make a save and he would just stare me down and he’d always just say yes. like a very like affirmative yes, like to let let me know that he saved it. And now I just throw lob shots at him just to like not even give it a chance. So, um if I do in practice, like in like we’re doing five on fives and that kind of thing, I’ll I’ll go a little bit harder, but um it’s it’s rare to get one. So, we joke that we should we should grab the ball in practice and and put that one on the the mantle because doesn’t happen often. It’s like a saying from Miracle there when they score on Creak. Exactly. The la last one for me. Who has partied the hardest so far? Oh man, I don’t know. It’s It’s pretty even between I mean all the guys in Buffalo living here. We’re fortunate that we got a good crew here and we’ve we’ve been able to party together. I’d probably have to give it to Dane as much as I don’t want to. He’s uh it’s been impressive. There there might have been a Snapchat of him leaving the bar, sleeping in uh his fiance’s car on the way home. So, uh he he he put in a pretty good shift for sure. I love it. I I listen, there’s going to be a good shift on Friday, too. I would anticipate that it’s uh it’s it’s going to start with the parade and all of the party in the plaza, but I would think that some establishments will say open a little later to Friday evening into Saturday night to make sure that everybody gets to celebrate. So that will be awesome. Congratulations. That was that was fantastic. I don’t have any more questions uper because I’m just in awe that they were able to get the three Pete and you’ve been to five finals. It’s just it’s amazing. Like I mean, you can’t make that stuff up. Yeah. Yeah. It’s been uh been pretty cool and hopefully hopefully we can keep this run going, but like you said, Friday will be a fun night. It’s my birthday Saturday, so it’s going to be a double whammy weekend for me. So, it’ll be fun to continue the celebration. All right, everybody’s ready to wish you a happy birthday on Friday. Ian, thank you. Congratulations and uh amazing memories made once again this year in Bandit Land. Thank you. Thank you guys. Appreciate it. Ian McKay, NLLL Finals MVP. See him and his mates celebrate backto backto back. Alumni Plaza this Friday, 5:00 PM. Players will take the stage soon after. Live music, entertainment, you name it, photo ops, everything you’ve come to expect when the Bandits win, as they often do. Seven NL titles, most in league history. [Music]

Buffalo Bandits forward Ian MacKay joins Brian Duff and Marty Biron on Sabres Live following the team’s 2025 NLL Cup Championship win. MacKay was named MVP of the Finals and talked about what that achievement meant to he and the team. He also discussed what the team had to do to complete the impressive feat of winning three straight championships.

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