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NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Knighthawks at Buffalo tonight

April 1, 2005 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


Game Notes: The Rochester Knighthawks travel to play the Buffalo Bandits tonight at 7:30 p.m. at HSBC Arena in Buffalo. The game is the third and final meeting of the season between the two teams. The season series is tied 1-1. The contest will be broadcast on News Talk 950 WROC and knighthawks.net.

Head-to-Head: The teams come into the contest tied for second place in the Eastern Division with identical 8-5 records. The winner will take over sole possession of second and own the tiebreaker. Rochester won the last meeting, 12-11 in overtime, on March 19th.

Playoff scenarios: Rochester can clinch a playoff berth this weekend a win over Buffalo and a Calgary win over the Toronto Rock. The Roughnecks play the Rock at 7:30 p.m. at the Air Canada Centre. The Bandits can clinch a playoff berth with a win over Rochester and a Toronto victory over the Philadelphia Wings on Saturday.

Knighthawks Notes: The Knighthawks come into the contest after scoring a season-high 20 goals in a 20-11 win over the Minnesota Swarm Saturday night. Mike Accursi led the way with three goals and seven assists, as 10 members of the K-Hawks scored. Accursi is now only one goal shy of 200 goals as a professional. Casey Zaph also moved within four penalty minutes of setting a single-season franchise record. The current mark is 59, set by Zaph during the 2002-03 season. Goaltender Pat O'Toole is 7-4 and leads the league in minutes played (728:41) and saves (486).

Player Moves: The K-Hawks re-signed forward Brian Croswell, placed Dennis Juleff on the practice squad, and released Nazareth College grad T.J. Rogers. Croswell rejoins the team after being released on Friday. The Peterborough, Ontario, native signed a two-year deal. This season, he has played in four games and has two goals, one assist and 11 penalty minutes. The 22-year-old forward won the Mann Cup in the summer of 2004 and was originally a first-round selection (10th overall) of the Toronto Rock in the 2002 National Lacrosse League Entry Draft.

Toll makes immediate impact: Steve Toll has four goals and one assist in his first two games with the Knighthawks. In his Rochester debut, he recorded a hat trick on 3/25 at Minnesota. Toll was acquired from the San Jose Stealth for a first and second-round pick in the 2005 National Lacrosse League Draft.

Bandits Notes: Buffalo is smarting from a 12-8 loss to the Toronto Rock last Saturday night at HSBC Arena. The Bandits are now 3-3 at home this season and have lost two straight games. Billy Dee Smith is tied for first place in the NLL with Rochester's Casey Zaph with 56 penalty minutes. Goaltender Steve Dietrich is third in the NLL with an 11.42 goals-against average. Buffalo leads the league in goals scored with 179.

Top Guns: The contest is a meeting of the top two scorers in the NLL. Buffalo's John Tavares leads the league with 88 points (37+51) in 13 games. He also leads the NLL with 51 assists. Knighthawk John Grant is second with 87 points (40+47) in 12 games and leads the league with 40 goals.

Next Game: Rochester makes its first-ever trip to San Jose to battle the Stealth on Friday, April 8th. The contest is an 11:00 p.m. ET start and will be carried on News Talk 950 WROC and knighthawks.net.

Next Home Game: Rochester ends its regular season home schedule against Paul and Gary Gait, and the Colorado Mammoth on Friday, April 15th. The game is a 7:35 p.m. start at The Blue Cross Arena. The first 10,000 fans will receive a team photo courtesy of Connors and Ferris. That evening, Rochester will honor its best players on Awards Night.

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