By the Numbers: Crawford is Back

Happy New Year, everybody! It’s obvious that the only number that really matters heading into Week Six of the 2024-25 NLL Season is 2025. But once the celebratory cheeriness of the new year begins to fade and reality starts to set back in, you’ll want to be prepared for this weekend’s NLL games. I’ve got you covered. Here are some interesting statistical nuggets in this week’s By The Numbers.

14 – Points Tallied By Callum Crawford in His Last Game vs. Desert Dogs

2024 was a rollercoaster of a year for Callum Crawford. Last NLL season, at 39 years old, Crawford turned back the clock and posted 42 goals and 51 assists for 93 points with Panther City Lacrosse Club (this was only his second 40+ goal and 50+ assist season of his career).

14 of those points, including eight goals and six assists, came all in one game against the Las Vegas Desert Dogs. The 14 points tied a single-game career-high for Crawford, which was pretty impressive since he’d in the NLL since 2006.

Over the summer, Panther City folded. Crawford was picked up by the San Diego Seals in the dispersal draft, but decided he wasn’t going to play for them. As the regular season was closing in, he signed with the Philadelphia Wings (only to be released after the first game). Then, on the final day of 2024, Crawford was signed by the FireWolves. Wouldn’t you believe it, his first game with his new team is going to be against the Desert Dogs.

The FireWolves could use a big performance from Crawford. The offensive production is in the middle of the pack right now, and they’ve struggled to score during long, key stretches late in games. This is ultimately the reason they’ve had heartbreaking losses back-to-back. 

Crawford’s veteran experience and innate ability to place the ball in the back of the net (after all, he is one of the greatest goal-scorers in NLL) should likely put them in a better place to wrack up more goals.

17 – Years Since Swarm Started A Season 5-0

Since Lyle Thompson swarmed onto the NLL scene in 2016, the Swarm have been pretty good. Over those eight years, the Swarm have only had a losing record twice, and both of those times were 8-10 seasons. But, even though they’ve been very good, including winning the NLL championship in 2017 and having two other 11+ win seasons, the Swarm are on the precipice of doing something they haven’t achieved in more than a decade and a half.

The Swarm have been a part of some close, gritty games this season, but they’ve found a way to come out on top in every contest. Three of their wins were one-goal games, including their season-opener against the Seals. Brett Dobson and the Swarm defence has been consistent and reliable, while Lyle Thompson is once again off to another one of his complete great years. 

If the Swarm beat the Desert Dogs on Saturday night in Georgia, they will move to 5-0 on the season. This would not just keep them in first place of the NLL’s unified standings, but it will give them their first 5-0 start since the 2008 season, all the way back when they were the Minnesota Swarm.

Now, for context, that 2008 team finished their season 10-6 and lost in the first round of the playoffs, but what matters, is that they put themselves in a great position to make a long playoff run. It’s too early in this season to get a real sense of what this year’s Swarm team might accomplish, but they are looking better than they have in recent seasons.

1,128 – Days Since Seals Last Had A Losing Record (If They Lose In Week Six)

We all know the San Diego Seals have been a very good team over the last few years, but they truly have been one of the best teams in the NLL in the post-COVID era (starting in the 2021-2022 season). In that span, the team has a combined record of 39-19. 

During that time, they’ve started seasons out strong, so it’s rare that they’ve had a losing record at any point of the season. In fact, the last time the Seals had a losing record in the NLL was when they were 0-1 after an 8-7 loss to the Vancouver Warriors in their season-opening game of the 2021-22 season.

It’s pretty wild to think that if the Seals lose at home this weekend to the Ottawa Black Bears, they will once again have a losing record (2-3) for the first time in a little over three years – Of course, if that were to happen, being 2-3 is not the end of the world – far from it. But, if the team’s record remains close to .500% or below, there is not a high probability they will make the playoffs.

123 – Wes Berg’s Points Streak

Sticking in San Diego and taking a more positive view on the team, Wes Berg has been Mr. Consistency for the Seals since joining the team prior to the 2019-20 COVID-shortened season.

Berg is already the franchise’s leader in points and assists (and he could potentially pass Austin Staats for the franchise lead in goals scored this season), but did you also know that Berg has tallied at least one point in every single one of the 69 regular season games he’s played, and, beyond that, he’s tallied a point in each of his 123 career regular season games? 

You might have expected that from a guy who has averaged around 4.9 points per game in his regular season career, but when you think he’s never been held pointless, it’s even more impressive.

Looking ahead to his and the team’s matchup with the Black Bears this weekend, in these team’s three previous matchups where Berg played (this was when the Black Bears were the New York Riptide), Berg scored and assisted in each of those games, including posting multiple goals and multiple assists in two of those games.