Lamberti’s Power Rankings: A New York vs. Denver championship?

New York and Denver have established themselves as the league’s top two teams this season, but the real intrigue lies just behind them.

Utah, despite offensive struggles, remains a contender with championship experience and resilience that could pay off in the postseason. And could Maryland have a late season surge like it had last season?

Here are my power rankings heading into Salt Lake City Weekend:

1. New York Atlas (5-2)

For the third week in a row, the Atlas are in the top of the power rankings and don’t seem to be planning on leaving anytime soon.

They have the most scores and assists in the league while also operating in the top three in 32-second shot clock efficiency (26.1%).

It feels like the offense is peaking at the right time, especially Connor Shellenberger, who has solidified himself as an MVP frontrunner with back-to-back seven point outings.

The most impressive part? He’s doing it in different ways.

“We have seen him take over games with five goals and two assists. They played him as a scorer today, and he exploded for seven assists,” teammate Xander Dickson said following last Friday’s  win over the Redwoods. “His ability to not play in a box is what makes him so, so great, and I think that it’s what can be underappreciated at times.”

Having the potential 2025 MVP in Shellenberger and the ‘24 MVP in Jeff Teat on an attack line automatically makes any offense good.

But what makes the Atlas elite? They have so many other weapons that can score, as well.

Rookie midfielder Matt Traynor has 18 points (11G, 7A) and trails only Boston’s Matt Campbell for most points by a midfielder in the entire league. Dickson is averaging a hat trick over his last three games. Midfielder Reid Bowering has cemented himself as the optimal pick partner for Teat on the lefty side, which is reflected in Teat’s increased production; Teat is averaging 5 points per game when Bowering has played this season versus 2.6 points per game in the first three games when Bowering didn’t play.

It’s looking like the only thing that can stop the Atlas is themselves.

Next game: Friday, July 25 vs. Maryland Whipsnakes (10:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

2. Denver Outlaws (5-2)

The Outlaws are the hottest team in the PLL.

After dropping their first two games of the season, the Outlaws have rattled off five straight wins behind a high-powered offense that is averaging 14.2 goals per game during that stretch.

Denver is elite off the dribble; it has three players (Brennan O’Neill, Jared Bernhardt, Pat Kavanagh) in the top eight in the league in unassisted scores and has the second-highest offensive efficiency in settled offense behind New York (27.9%). There’s no team that has enough top cover poles to manage these matchups when the Outlaws are playing their best lacrosse.

But how about the offense generated in transition? Denver’s rope unit has the most points in the league by a wide margin with 18.

Jake Piseno leads all long-stick midfielders in points (seven) and is second among LSMs in caused turnovers (eight). After a solid rookie campaign last season, Piseno is starting to come into his own as a game-wrecker in the middle of the field, and right now, would win the Long Stick Midfielder of the Year Award.

But guess what? The Outlaws also have the league leader in points for short-stick defensive midfielders in Zach Geddes (five), with Ryan Terefenko right behind him (four).

When you combine an elite settled offense with the best transition unit in the league, that makes for a scary combination.

Next game: Saturday, July 26 at Utah Archers (9 p.m. ET; ESPN2)

3. Philadelphia Waterdogs (4-3)

The 10-7 loss to Maryland does not change my opinion of the Waterdogs; they still have one of the best offenses in the league.

The key reason for the loss on Saturday? Their shooting.

The Waterdogs got looks against Maryland, but not only were they not converting, they barely even tested goalkeeper Emmet Carroll. They put just 54% of their shots on net, way down from the 68.7% through their first six games.

Schematically, they still need to figure out the best spot to put top draft pick CJ Kirst offensively, but it didn’t really seem like it messed with their flow too much; it was just an off-game for Philadelphia.

Their current situation reminds me a little of Denver’s offensive woes in their first two games. Once Denver found its groove after acclimating a super talented offensive weapon (Bernhardt), its  offense looked impossible to stop with the wealth of talent it has on that end.

My hunch is Philadelphia will follow a similar course as Denver with another week of Kirst in the lineup.

Next game: Saturday, July 26 at Carolina Chaos (6:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

4. Utah Archers (3-4)

The Archers find themselves climbing in the power rankings, but it’s more of a product of other teams beginning to falter.

In my opinion, there’s a massive gap between the top three teams (New York, Denver, Philadelphia) and everyone else in the league. Anything can happen in the playoffs, but I would be shocked if one of those aforementioned teams does not win it all.

The reason Utah slots in at the No. 4 spot? They’ve been there before.

The back-to-back champions are having offensive struggles they would have never predicted at the start of the season. They’ve gone on a massive scoring drought in every game this season, plagued by poor shooting and uncharacteristic turnovers.

The Archers have the fewest scores and shots across the league, and Tom Schreiber, Mac O’Keefe and Grant Ament are having some of their worst years statistically as  pros.

Even with all the struggles, Utah still finds itself in second place in the Western Conference and continues to find ways to win.

If this offense can improve its production just a little bit, you have a team that’s been there before. And now that they are facing the adversity they are now without playing well by any means? It could harden them heading into the postseason.

Next game: Friday, July 25 vs. California Redwoods (8 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

5. Boston Cannons (3-4)

Of course when Boston gets the offensive breakout it desperately needed, its defense couldn’t step up to the task.

Colin Kirst did not have his best outing on Saturday, saving only nine shots for a 35% save percentage, and Boston now has the second worst save percentage in the league (50.2%).

Some blame can be put on Kirst, but his defense didn’t do him any favors either in the 18-17 loss to Denver.

The Cannons have let up the most scores in the league (95), a drastic decline from last season, when the Cannons gave up the second-fewest scores, trailing only Carolina.

In hindsight, maybe Boston’s defense wasn’t as stout as we thought it would be, especially at close defense.

Garrett Epple is 30 years old, and the Cannons’ top cover man, Jack Kielty, is coming off an Achilles injury that sidelined him all of last season.

It just feels like perhaps last season was a flash in the pan, with many of their players now climbing up in age and some of their top offensive weapons in Asher Nolting and Marcus Holman not having great years by their standards.

Next game: Friday, August 1 vs. California Redwoods (8 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

6. Maryland Whipsnakes (3-4)

The Whipsnakes just know how to stay alive.

At this point last season, Maryland was in an eerily similar position at 2-4 before rattling off four straight wins to end the regular season and gaining momentum heading into the playoffs.

After a comeback win on Saturday against Philadelphia to get to 3-4, could they do it again in 2025?

Although it’s a super competitive Eastern Conference, the Whips have upcoming games against New York and Boston and would be sitting pretty for a playoff berth if they win both of those.

The key? Be more efficient offensively off the faceoff win.

During their four game winning streak to end the season in ‘24, the Whipsnakes’ offensive efficiency after a faceoff win was at 27.4% after operating at 14.3% in the first six games.

Currently, the Whipsnakes are at just 21.7% through the first seven games of the season; for them to have any shot at a title run, this number needs to go up.

How does that number go up? Joe Nardella needs to start scoring. He averaged a goal a game during their winning streak last season but has yet to register a point in ‘25.

In fact, he’s the only starting faceoff man in the league (outside of recent Archers signing Jake Naso) to not have a point on the season.

I get it’s a big ask to your faceoff man to score, but when you have a game-changer at the faceoff stripe… you need him to be a game-changer.

That being said, Nardella still leads the lead in faceoff percentage (61.7%), and I liked the urgency Maryland showed on this goal in particular last week of subbing quickly and attacking even while down a man:

If the Whipsnakes can begin to up that efficiency by getting into their offense quickly with Adam Poitras and Brad Smith flying out of the box, it unlocks the part of Maryland’s offense that made them special last season.

Next game: Friday, July 25 at New York Atlas (10:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

7. Carolina Chaos (3-4)

It’s hard to sustain success when a team is so reliant on one player.

Heading into the Chaos matchup against Utah, Blaze Riorden had 64 saves in their three wins and only 40 saves in their three losses.

ESPN broadcaster Ryan Boyle said it best: “The bottom line is Blaze Riorden just has to be huge in net when they get wins.”

While Riorden had a great game against the Archers with 15 saves, it’s just too much to ask for him to have 20+ saves per game for Carolina to grind out a win.

The Chaos need more scoring pop, but they have a great foundation to build upon in rookie Owen Hiltz. He had a hand in seven of the Chaos’ 11 goals (5G, 2A) last week, including this goal of the year candidate:

“He is already a phenomenal player, and every time he steps on the field and gets a little bit more comfortable,” head coach Roy Colsey said postgame. “I think we’re in for a real treat and are really glad to have him on our offense.”

It might be tough to see a world where the Chaos make any noise in the playoffs, but when they add more offensive talent around Hiltz next season? Watch out.

Next game: Saturday, July 26 vs. Philadelphia Waterdogs (6:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+)

8. California Redwoods (2-5)

A potential season-swinging win for California was halted at halftime.

After going 15-for-19 (78.9%) at the faceoff stripe in the first half against New York, TD Ierlan missed essentially all of the second half while being assessed for a concussion.

The result? Just two second-half goals from the Redwoods after scoring 10 goals in the first half, nine of which came directly off a faceoff win.

Not only did they miss Ierlan’s performance on the field, but it felt like the Redwoods were deflated after the injury, worn down by playing a ton of defense given the possession disparity with little spark on the offensive end (they shot 11% in the second half).

The good news for the Redwoods? They have a matchup with a team they are chasing in the Western Conference in the Archers this weekend.

Having Ierlan back will be a key to jump-start the offense again, but the defense is what needs to step up in this matchup.

California’s defense has allowed 13 goals per game this season, and they are the only team saving the ball below 50%.

To win this game, goalie Chayse Ierlan needs to step up, but the defense around him needs to play inspired, as well.

Next game: Friday, July 25 at Utah Archers (8 p.m. ET; ESPN+)