COLORADO MAMMOTH (3-2) VS. ALBANY FIREWOLVES (1-4)
SAT. JAN. 11 | 7 P.M. MT | BALL ARENA
ALTITUDE TV 2 | ESPN+ | NLL+
Fresh off a holiday bye week as the clock shifted to 2025, the Colorado Mammoth enter its approaching Week 7 showdown against the Albany FireWolves with a 3-2 record after most recently dropping a tight 13-12 contest to the Georgia Swarm. Representing the team’s final game of the 2024 calendar year, Colorado battled back and forth with a competitive Swarm squad which brought a 3-0 record into the battle and exited undefeated at 4-0.
RELATED: Colorado Drops Tight 13-12 Final to Georgia Swarm Sunday
Seeing former Mammoth defenseman Joey Cupido start the game’s scoring in the opening moments was a bit of salt in the wound of Colorado fans who remain supportive of the productive veteran. Knowing his Swarm won by just one goal made No. 82’s early goal that much more impactful, too. Throw in the fact that the kid who’s set to replace Mammoth goaltender Dillon Ward on several international stages in representing Team Canada and there were a lot of feelings on the floor and in the stands alike.
But that wouldn’t stop the teams from putting on a show – exactly what fans inside the LOUD HOUSE witnessed during the ebbing and flowing contest. And supporters of the burgundy boys had to be happy to see rookie defenseman Owen Rahn light the lamp twice, which served as the youngster’s first two NLL goals to date.
It sure felt like the Mammoth were in control more often than the Swarm, ripping off a four-goal run in the first quarter before retaliating to several of Georgia’s goals throughout the sixty-minute showcase. However, the Swarm captured the final two scores of the game, including a conversion from forward Andrew Kew with just 53 seconds remaining.
Colorado had four different players with two or more goals, including Rahn (2g, 0a), Will Malcom (2g, 3a), Connor Kelly (3g, 2a) and Connor Robinson (3g, 1a). Add in some helpers from Eli McLaughlin (0g, 3a) and Zed Williams (0g, 2a) and that pretty much sums up the team’s scoring. The biggest difference compared to other games was that both Williams and McLaughlin were both held scoreless, the first time that’s occurred this season.
It’s been good to see Connor Kelly build on his team-leading figures, including goals (15), assists (15) and points (30) – as well as Will Malcom continuing to settle into his new role with his fresh squad, now up to 27 points (13g, 14a) of his own as the team’s next leading producer.
And while the Mammoth remain the league’s leader when it comes to team goals scored so far, with 68 on the board through the team’s first five games, it’s odd to see guys like Connor Robinson (8g, 15a) and Eli McLaughlin (7g, 15a) occupying the No. 3 and No. 4 spots in the squad’s scoring ranks entering Week 7.
Thankfully, the team has been able to spread offensive efforts around pretty well, with six different scorers having recorded at least 20 points so far, including Kelly, Malcom, Robinson, McLaughlin, Ryan Lee (7g, 14a) and Zed Williams (10g, 10a). It’s obviously good to see Lee out there running the show and having excelled through Colorado’s first quarter of the season. And when you combine his lacrosse IQ with the physical abilities of guys like Zed Williams and finishing talents of Connor Kelly, it’s easy to see why the right side has been on fire once again now that the gang is all back and flowing.
Which is nothing against the left side, who’s been taking advantage of some extra eyes allotted to the opposite side of the field. Then again, with Malcom coming alive these past few games with a sock trick and five-point outing in his past two performances, the left is attracting plenty of attention. Not to mention Connor Robinson, who just logged another hat trick of his own one game after notching eight points (1g, 7a) in the team’s win over the Halifax Thunderbirds.
Up to 68 goals on the season, Colorado’s netminder Dillon Ward and company have allowed just 57 goals against through the Mammoth’s first five contests, as the All-World netminder has allowed roughly 11 goals against per game. Which means Colorado is +11 in the big picture, ranking them third in the NLL in overall goal differential, trailing only the Buffalo Bandits (+26) and Philadelphia Wings (+13) , whom currently occupy the No. 1 and No. 3 spot in the league standings, respectively, as just seven of the league’s 14 squads have scored more goals than they’ve allowed,
Oddly enough, the Albany FireWolves, who bring a 1-4 record into Ball Arena after granting the Las Vegas Desert Dogs their first win of the season last weekend, are also ahead of the pack when it comes to the goals for/against algorithm. With 56 goals for and just 52 against, they’re technically +4 when it comes to the big board, yet have only outscored one of their first five opponents in head-to-head competition.
When it comes to league standings, the FireWolves are ahead of only the No. 14 Toronto Rock, who have yet to collect a win this season. Now 1-4 overall, Albany defeated Toronto, who’s pretty banged up this year, earlier this season, which represents the team’s lone win of the season. Having dropped decisions to quality opponents in the Saskatchewan Rush, Calgary Roughnecks and Las Vegas Desert Dogs, the team will likely be fired up and ready to roll after their lengthy trip from the northeast. However, a heavy dosage of altitude will be waiting for them, alongside a 3-2 Mammoth squad which is sitting in the No. 8 spot heading into the weekend.
As will Connor Kelly, who remains tied with Dane Dobbie with the most goals in the NLL at 15. Also sitting at No. 5 overall in league scoring with his 30 points, the right-handed finisher was acquired from the very team who prepares to travel to the LOUD HOUSE this weekend, so Saturday’s showdown will feature a little bit of a revenge narrative, if you will. Not that Kelly is worried about who he’s scoring against on any given weekend. But we believe he’ll be fired up to not only continue his fiery campaign for Colorado, but remind Albany what they lost when trading away the American talent.
Joining Kelly with fellow league-leading figures is Mammoth captain Robert Hope, who continues to set the tone on the back end. Trailing only Connor Fields (who’s recorded 61 loose balls in six games), Hope’s 56 loose balls represent the second-most in the league and most recorded in five games so far. Bringing a team-leading 10 caused turnovers into Colorado’s three-game homestand finale, Hope remains ranked tied for fourth overall in CTOs, while his eight blocked shots are still good for a second-place tie with Owen Grant and fellow veteran Paul Dawson.
Of course, there could be a few lingering feelings on the other side of the floor as well, knowing former Mammoth draft selection Sam Firth has been enjoying another fine year after posting a career-high 47 points (20g, 27a) last season with Albany, later adding 15 points (8g, 7a) during the squad’s postseason run. The third-year producer is now up to 13 points (7g, 6a) this season as one of the FireWolves’ secondary scorers.
Not to skip past the team’s leading scorer in Alex Simmons, who’s managed 27 points (9g, 18a) in Albany’s first five outings. Remaining tied with teammate Ethan Walker for a squad-high nine goals while dominating the assist category with a whopping 18, the youngster continues to figure things out with the FireWolves during his second NLL season after recording a monstrous 96 points (38g, 58a) during his rookie campaign. Flanked by Tye Kurtz (7g, 13a) and DU product Ethan Walker (9g, 10a), the team’s only other scorers above the 15-point mark thus far, it’s easy to see why folks around the lacrosse community see this trio as one of the potential highlight reel-producing groups of the future. Yet, after duking it out with the Buffalo Bandits during last year’s NLL Finals, it’s clear they don’t need much of a runway to spread their wings.
Dyson Williams, son of former Mammoth Offensive Coordinator Shawn Williams, represents the team’s No. 4 scorer to date, up to 16 points (7g, 9a) after notching a solid five points (3g, 2a) last weekend against Las Vegas, while Firth rounds out the team’s Top 5 with 13 points.
For as unfortunate of a start that Albany has experienced this season, it appears the team’s goaltender has been giving his all despite his 1-4 record. Bringing the fifth-lowest goals-against average amongst netminders to record at least 20 minutes on the floor, Doug Jamieson’s 9.82 GAA is quite impressive considering the team’s effort thus far. Named as a finalist for the NLL’s 2024 Goaltender of the Year Award, the big-bodied talent knows what he’s doing. Potentially even more impressive, Jamieson has logged the second-most saves on the season (222) en route to racking up the second-highest save percentage (.816) amongst starting goaltenders. He’s going to be on his game and will force Colorado’s finishers to get creative. The biggest question that remains is what his defensive unit in front of him will be able to put on tape.
After seeing the FireWolves go toe-to-toe with the league’s best squads last season en route to punching a ticket to the NLL Finals, we know the team has the coaching background and on-turf presence to make another run this time around. However, at 1-4, Albany needs to piece some things together here over the course of its final 13 games if they hope to qualify for this year’s postseason slate. Coming off a nasty loss to Las Vegas, we have a feeling they’re going to put their best foot forward Saturday as they attempt to turn their campaign around in Denver.
Colorado and Albany have only battled once before, with the Mammoth dropping a 13-11 decision to the FireWolves last season inside MVP Arena. Now set to duke it out in consecutive weeks, Albany will embrace the LOUD HOUSE energy for the first time Saturday night before inviting Colorado out east in Week 8 to finish the home-and-home series.
Get in the Game
Mammoth games can be viewed on Altitude TV and streamed live via ESPN+ and NLL+. Saturday’s Jan. 11 showdown against the Albany FireWolves can be viewed on Altitude TV 2 and streamed live on ESPN+ and NLL+. Mammoth fans can keep an eye on the team’s social media channels and coloradomammoth.com for the latest news, transactions and organizational updates throughout the 2024-25 NLL season.
Limited tickets for Colorado’s Country Night matchup against the Albany FireWolves Jan. 11 at Ball Arena remain available.
