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NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Knighthawks Acquire 2008 NLL Rookie of the Year Craig Point

February 19, 2009 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


(Rochester, NY)... Rochester Knighthawks General Manager Regy Thorpe announced today that the team has acquired 2008 National Lacrosse League Rookie of the Year Craig Point and forward Dean Hill from the Minnesota Swarm. In return, Rochester sends forward Aaron Wilson and a conditional draft pick to the Swarm.

"We were offered an opportunity to get Craig and we felt we had to take advantage of the opportunity. Craig is a young, strong and versatile player that has a huge future in this league," said Thorpe. "We were lacking some punch on our right side and we felt Craig would give that to us. He has played with Shawn Evans in juniors and those guys should be able to work really well together. We are excited to have him here in Rochester."

Thorpe also commented on the acquisition of Hill from the Swarm. "He has a lot of games under his belt and he will give us depth at the lefty position," he said. "He's a great pick and roll guy that has good hands.

Rochester also made five other moves, including putting Gary Gait on hold out list for the weekend due to work commitments. The team also released defenseman Regy Thorpe and Dan Elliott. In a related move, the Knighthawks activated forward Pat Saunders and transition man Bobby McBride.

Point joins the Knighthawks this weekend. This season, he has played in four of the Swarms' five games and has recorded two goals and six assists. Last year he won league Rookie of the Year honors after leading all rookies in scoring with 27 goals. The 23-year-old right-hander, who was selected third overall out of Onondaga Community College and Six Nations, was named Rookie of the Week four times. In his NLL career, he has 29 goals and 40 assists in 20 games.

In the summer of 2007, he helped the Six Nations Arrows of the Ontario Lacrosse Association win the Junior "A" Minto Cup. Point was also a member of four straight Ontario Championship teams (2004-07). He also played on the Iroquois Nationals team in the 2007 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship, leading the team in scoring and the team to a silver medal. In 2006, Point led OCC to a National Championship. Point was originally drafted by the Boston Blazers in the First Round (3rd overall) in the in the 2007 NLL Entry Draft. Point was then traded to Minnesota prior to the 2008 NLL season.

Rochester also received 24-year-old Dean Hill in the deal. This season, he is fourth on the Swarm in points with 11 (2+9) in four games. He has played in Minnesota since the 2006 season and has collected 49 goals and 41 assists in 27 games. The Scarborough, Ontario, native was selected by Minnesota in the fifth round (48th overall) of the 2005 NLL Entry Draft. In 2005, he tallied 80 points (41+39) in 20 games with the Spartan Warrior's Junior "B" team in the Ontario Lacrosse Association. His 80 points were good for seventh in the league in scoring. Hill was the OLA Junior "B" leading scorer in 2003.

Saunders joins the active roster after signing a two-year deal. He was acquired by the Knighthawks in the fourth round (25th overall) of the 2008 Dispersal Draft. He was originally selected in the sixth round (76th overall) of the 2008 NLL Entry Draft by Chicago. The forward played for the OLA Junior "B" Halton Hills Bulldogs in 2008 and played in the Junior "B" Ontario Championships. This summer, he led Junior "B" lacrosse with 102 points (57+45) in just 19 games.

McBride is added to the active roster this week. He was acquired with the 16th overall selection in the 2008 Dispersal Draft. He completed his rookie season in the NLL in 2008 and collected eight goals, 13 assists and 73 loose balls in 13 games with the Shamrox. He has played in the Ontario Lacrosse Major Series with teams in Brampton and Brooklin. This summer with Brooklin, he netted 12 goals and added five assists in nine games.

Gait will not play this weekend because he is coaching the Syracuse University women's lacrosse team. He currently leads the Knighthawks with 13 goals and is second on the team with 19 points in six games. Thorpe is in his 15th season and has played in all six games this season. He is Rochester's all-time leader in penalty minutes (373), loose balls (943) and games played (187). Elliott played in one game this season and goes back on the practice squad. Wilson heads to Minnesota after recording nine goals and six assists in six games with the Knighthawks. He was fourth on the team in points.

This weekend, Rochester will host the New York Titans on Saturday, February 21st at 7:35 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena. That night one randomly selected fan will have the chance to shoot for a house. The fan will have to sink three of four shots, on the fly, from the far end of the field (some restrictions apply). The game will be broadcast live on WYSL 1040-AM and wysl1040.com. Fans can watch the game live online via the NLL Network at NLL.com and on knighthawks.net.

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