Alright people. The Premiere Lacrosse League 2021 Playoffs are here and I am nervous, excited, and all around pumped for Playoffs to get going. The 2021 Playoff bracket looks like this.
The Waterdogs have secured a first round bye and the Chrome were eliminated in a do or die game with the Cannons in Week 8. The First round of playoffs will feature a rematch of the Friday Night games in Week 8 which were a ton of fun to watch, and was 100% worth waiting 3 hours in the parking lot and getting home at 3am on Saturday morning. With that being said lets dive in to this weeks games.
The Archers take on the Chaos on Friday night for the first game of the 2021 Playoffs. The Archers and Chaos played each other last Friday Night, or technically Saturday morning since the game started at midnight. It was a back and forth battle between the two and the Chaos ended up taking an 11-9 lead with 4 mins left in the 4th after Ian McKay hit a 2 pointer and that would end up being the game winner. The Archers defeated the Chaos earlier in the season 12-8 in Week 2, but that honestly feels so long ago. Honestly my head is about to explode thinking about this game. The obvious choice feels like the Archers, especially with the news that Chris Cloutier will not be suiting up.
But since when has the obvious choice been right in the PLL? Like never. Blaze is red hot and is creating great transition opportunities for the Chaos, so I could see them going on another playoff run like last year. I would love to see it happen because I really enjoy their box style of play, but I think the Archers will win this in a close one.
Official Pick: Chaos +1.5
The first blog I wrote was taking the Cannons at +2000 in the beginning of the season and I am sticking to it. I am actually glad that the Cannons are playing the Atlas, because the last two times these two teams have faced off the Cannons lost by one. It is tough to beat a team 3 times in a row in the PLL and I really think the Cannons could make the big underdog run. It also would fit perfectly into the narrative that Paul Rabil is pulling strings on the league. You know it is also just a coincidence that Rabil's team defeated the team that picked up Molloy and eliminated them from playoffs..... But in all seriousness I do think the Cannons will win and am extremely excited for this game.
Official Pick: Cannons ML
As a Redwoods fan there is only one way to describe playing the Whipsnakes in the playoffs
In the short history of the PLL, the Whips and Woods already have a history and some beef in the playoffs. The Whips defeated the Woods in the 2019 season in the Championship game in OT after the Woods made a huge in game comeback to force said overtime. Then in 2020 the Whips again defeated the Woods in OT, but this time it was in the Semi-Finals. The Whips have Rambo back and he is happy to be playing, and a well rested Rambo is a dangerous Rambo. The Woods will also be without Sergio Perkovic due to "Medical Reasons" (sus), but I really think that can help the Woods. We will see K18, and Bertrand get more involved and all being lead by a pissed off Myles Jones who feels like he got snubbed on the MVP nominee and rightfully so as he is tied for 2nd most points.
The only thing I am really worried about if Face offs where the Whips have a clear advantage as the Woods will also be without TD Irelan. I can't pick against the Woods in the Playoffs, and I can't wait to see the Woods get their revenge and knock out the Whips!