The Giants took a difficult path to a championship this past season, winning all of their playoff games on the road. Portland is attempting something similar, trying to claim the National Lacrosse League title by winning all of its playoff games on the road.

In the championship game, New York beat New England, a team the Giants played in the final game of the regular season. In Saturday’s NLL title game, the LumberJax face Buffalo, a team they played in the final game of the regular season.

“Wow, I never thought of that. That’s pretty ironic. That’s awesome, actually,” Portland goalie Joel Weber said. “Hopefully, we have the same result.”

Just like the Giants left many scratching their heads over the end result, Portland has stunned the lacrosse world with its breathtaking turnaround in the playoffs.

At 6-10, the LumberJax had the worst record of the NLL’s eight playoff teams. The odds of a good outcome were not in Portland’s favor; In the league’s 22-year history, only two teams previously with a sub-.500 regular season record reached the championship game.

Make it three.

“We’ve had a belief we could do it all year,” forward Matt Holman said. “The coaches have been telling us since the first game that we have a team in the locker room to win it all.”

What coach in professional sports doesn’t tell his or her team that? Yet for some reason, the LumberJax believed their coaches’ hyperbole, even when the team got off to a 1-5 start.

“I’ve been on a lot of teams, that once they start losing, they fold up, play awful and start arguing with each other,” Holman said. “Our locker room, we haven’t had one argument all season. We’ve always been behind each other.”

It ultimately paid off during the postseason. The third-year LumberJax opened the playoffs with a franchise record for goals in an 18-16 win at San Jose. Last Saturday, they won the West by beating Calgary 16-12.

It’s helped that Portland’s best player is performing out of his mind. Forward Dan Dawson, the LumberJax goals and points leader during the regular season, scored seven goals against San Jose, then added five goals and five assists in the win over Calgary.

Coach Derek Keenan, noting that this will be Dawson’s third NLL championship game appearance in four years — he played for Arizona in the 2005 and 2007 finals — said he’s seen an uptick in his star’s determination.

“He’s been a focus guy all year, but the last two weeks his focus level has just been amazing,” Keenan said.

What this playoff run means to Portland’s franchise is unclear, because the LumberJax have had little fan interaction during the postseason.

Portland hasn’t played at home in more than a month, and neither of its playoff games have been televised. Even Saturday’s title game will not be televised live in Portland; ESPN2 will show a tape-delayed telecast at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

“I think the fans appreciate this, but we’re not too sure,” Weber said.

In Buffalo, the LumberJax play in arena that Holman says is “the loudest I’ve played at.” At least what could be a crowd of 18,000 at HSBC Arena won’t come as a surprise to Portland. The LumberJax played Buffalo in the regular season finale on Apr. 26, losing to the Bandits 14-10.

In that game, Portland was without several regulars, as the LumberJax already had a playoff position clinched. Buffalo, meanwhile, needed a win to wrap up home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Shorthanded Portland tied the game at 9-9 late in the third quarter, and was within 11-9 with five minutes to play.

Though the game was three weeks ago, both teams say it has little bearing on Saturday’s final.

“A non issue,” Holman said.

Keenan said special teams and scoring are the most important factors for the LumberJax. Buffalo led the NLL in power play scoring percentage, and ranked second in killing penalties. Portland has proven it can score in bunches during the playoffs, but in facing the high-powered Bandits, Keenan said “the lower scoring the game, the better for us.”

Hmmm. A low scoring game. That seemed to work out well for the Giants in the Super Bowl.