The Halifax Thunderbirds have qualified for the 2026 National Lacrosse League Cup Finals. On Sunday, the Thunderbirds defeated the Georgia Swarm 15-11 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia in game three of the NLL semifinals. As a result, the Thunderbirds won the best out of three series two games to one.
The Thunderbirds received unexpected home floor advantage in the game. That is because there was a scheduling conflict in Duluth, Georgia which prevented game three of the series to be played in Georgia.
Clarke Petterson of Toronto, Ontario led the Thunderbirds in scoring as he had two goals and seven assists for nine points. Meanwhile, Jason Knox of Williams Lake, British Columbia had three goals and three assists for six points. Three more Thunderbirds had a two goal game. They were Wake:Riat BowHunter, Cody Jamieson, and Brendan Bomberry. Meanwhile, four Thunderbirds players had one goal. They were Casey Wilson of Victoria, British Columbia, Mike Robinson of Peterborough, Ontario, Randy Staats and Ryan Terefenko. Jake Withers of Peterborough led the Thunderbirds by collecting 29 loose balls. Knox led the Thunderbirds with 12 shots on goal.
This is the second time in NLL history, that there is an all-Canadian finals matchup. The Thunderbirds will now face the Toronto Rock in Hamilton starting Friday in a best out of three series. The only other time there was an all-Canadian NLL Final was in 2015, as the Edmonton Rush defeated the Toronto Rock two games to none.
