Playoff Series Preview: Long Island Empire Snipers vs. Champion Impact

The Metropolitan Division Semifinals will see the Long Island Empire Snipers take on the Champion Impact in a best-of-three battle on February 8, 2025. With a ticket to the Metropolitan Division Final on the line, both teams will need to be at their best. The winner of this series will face either the Suffolk Sting or East Coast Rebellion on February 9.

Regular Season Head-to-Head

• Jan 18: Champion Impact 2 - 4 Long Island Empire Snipers
• Oct 5: Long Island Empire Snipers 4 - 3 Champion Impact

The Snipers took both regular-season meetings, but both were hard-fought games. Can Champion Impact turn the tide in the playoffs?

Team Breakdown

Long Island Empire Snipers

The Snipers have been among the Metropolitan Division’s top teams all season and appear destined for a deep playoff run. However, they must first get through a Champion Impact squad looking for an upset.

Leading the way for Long Island is Will Lalor, who had a career season with 41 points (25G, 16A) in 20 games. He stepped up in a big way when Daniel Nelson, the reigning league MVP, missed time this season. Nelson still managed 25 points in 14 games, making him a key player to watch. James Rieger (17 points) and Nick Casazza (15 points) add depth to a well-balanced attack.

In net, Dan Peterson (9-0-0, 2.23 GAA, .825 SV%) has been rock solid, while Conor O'Leary (4-0-1, 2.73 GAA, .860 SV%) has provided strong backup play. The Snipers have the clear goaltending edge in this series.

Key Players to Watch:
✅ Will Lalor – Can he keep up his MVP-level production?
✅ Daniel Nelson – If he’s there the Snipers are a different team.
✅ Dan Peterson – The top netminder in this series, will he continue his dominance?

Champion Impact

Champion Impact enters this series as the underdog, but they have the pieces to pull off an upset if they execute well.

Their leading scorer, Greg Kubrak (24 points in 20 games), has been the team’s most consistent offensive threat, but John Ninivaggi (14 points), James Kelly (12 points), and Logan Cain (11 points) will all need to step up for Impact to match the Snipers’ firepower.

Goaltending is a concern for Impact, as John Kaminsky (4-7-0, 3.60 GAA, .791 SV%) has struggled at times this season. He will need to elevate his game for Impact to have a chance.

Key Players to Watch:
✅ Greg Kubrak – Will need a huge series to keep Impact in contention.
✅ John Kaminsky – The biggest X-factor in the series. Can he steal a game?
✅ James Kelly – Solid two-way play will be crucial to shutting down the Snipers’ offense.

Keys to Victory

Long Island Empire Snipers:

✅ Control the pace – The Snipers need to dictate the tempo with their deep attack.
✅ Stay disciplined – Champion Impact will look to capitalize on any mistakes.
✅ Get Nelson rolling – If Daniel Nelson is back to MVP form, the Snipers will be hard to stop.

Champion Impact:

✅ Goaltending must be elite – John Kaminsky needs his best performance of the season.
✅ Find secondary scoring – Greg Kubrak can’t do it alone; the supporting cast needs to step up.
✅ Start fast – If Impact can grab an early lead, they can put pressure on the Snipers.

Prediction

The Snipers have been one of the strongest teams all season, and with a deeper roster, stronger goaltending, and more offensive firepower, they enter this series as the clear favorites. However, Champion Impact is scrappy and could make things interesting if they get strong goaltending from Kaminsky.