We were promised that anything could happen in the Premier Lacrosse League Championship Series.

There’s been plenty of drama, guest appearances and unexpected happenings on the field. Something else that few predicted happened Tuesday, as Chaos LC — winless entering the elimination round — blitzed upstart Chrome LC in a 19-14 win.

PLL SEMIFINAL SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, ALL TIMES EASTERN

8 p.m. — (7) Chaos vs. (3) Archers, NBC Sports Gold
10:30 p.m. — (4) Redwoods vs. (1) Whipsnakes, NBC Sports Gold

Now the Chaos are on to the semifinals, attempting to go from the first seed last summer to the worst team in group play to champions of the 2020 season.

How did Andy Towers’ club do it? With a balanced offensive attack. One that notably didn’t include star player Connor Fields, who didn’t play for unspecified reasons.

“We are more concerned with how we are playing than who we are playing,” Towers said in his postgame interview.

Josh Byrne, who led the offense with four goals and three assists, said the key to the league’s season-high in goals was about the team’s unselfish play.

“It’s just moving the ball,” Byrne said. “Whenever we share the ball and we have a lot of fun doing it and nobody knows where that ball’s going, it’s extremely hard to defend.”

The Chaos’ offense resembled more of a box lacrosse strategy than a field one. The ball was flying around from stick to stick Tuesday night. Austin Staats, Curtis Dickson, Dhane Smith and Byrne all have considerable National Lacrosse League experience, so that’s not surprising.

So, was Fields’ absence part of the effort to move the ball more? Will we see Fields again this season? Those are obvious questions to ask heading into the semifinals against Archers LC.

Much of the talk around the Archers is their star-studded offense, and for good reason. Grant Ament has only added to a unit featuring Tom Schreiber, Will Manny, Marcus Holman, Ryan Ambler and Christian Mazzone.

Schreiber is second in the league in goals (10), and the Archers are third in the league in scores (55). What’s somewhat overlooked is a defense that allowed the fewest goals last summer.

Much of the defense remains intact. This year, Matt McMahon, Scott Ratliff and Eli Gobrecht have performed well. Outside of allowing 17 goals in a loss to Whipsnakes LC, this unit has been steady.

Something to monitor here is the status of Adam Ghitelman, who suited up but didn’t play in the team’s elimination-round win against Atlas LC. Ghitelman and Drew Adams did split time last season and during group play, but he played the entirety of the elimination game.

Whipsnakes vs. Redwoods

A rematch of last year’s championship game and the first game of the 2020 Championship Series features familiar mascots but different players.

Sure, league MVP Matt Rambo is still dominating for the Whips and Sergio Perkovic is still ripping shots from deep (though he’s converting more consistently), but both of these teams are different than 2019.

Joe Nardella has emerged as the league’s top faceoff man in 2020. He’s won 75 percent of his draws, 13 percent better than Connor Farrell’s second-place mark. Nardella was hardly a non-factor in 2019, but his 55 percent mark made him less impactful than he is now.

The obvious differences come on offense for both teams. Selected by the Whips in the Entry Draft, Zed Williams is leading the league with 14 goals. He and Rambo are up there with Ament and Schreiber for the top 1-2 punches in the league right now.

The Woods look drastically different. Perkovic upped his game down the stretch in 2019 and has maintained his pace as the Woods have adjusted to life without Jules Heningburg, who exited the PLL Island before any games were played after testing revealed he was at high risk for cardiac arrest under intense training.

Myles Jones, acquired in the offseason, has since stepped up his play, and Brent Adams has shifted from the midfield to attack. The new-look offense worked in an 11-8 win over the Waterdogs in the elimination round.

If you let the Redwoods get hot from deep, look out. The Whipsnakes play defense as good (if not better) than every team in the league, so they should be well-equipped to combat the long-range assault.