NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Knighthawks Need A Win Saturday To Advance To Playoffs

April 23, 2008 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


(Rochester, NY)... The Rochester Knighthawks end the regular season in New York on Saturday, April 26th at 8:00 p.m. against the Titans at Madison Square Garden. The game will be broadcast live on WYSL 1040-AM, wysl1040.com and B2 Networks.

Rochester needs a win to advance to the playoffs for the 14th time in the team's 14-year history. The Knighthawks will then have a chance to defend their 2007 league title.

The game is the second and final meeting of the season between the two East Division teams. In the first contest, New York defeated Rochester 14-11 on February 23rd at the Blue Cross Arena. The Titans (4-4) used Casey Powell's nine points and a 9-5 halftime lead to hold onto a critical Eastern Division win. Despite the loss, Rochester leads the all-time series with a 2-1 record.

The Knighthawks enter the game in fifth place in the East Division with an 8-7 mark. Rochester has won four of its last five and three straight to move within one win of a playoff berth. Rochester, however, not only can clinch a playoff spot, but also can still win the East Division and lock up a home playoff game. The Knighthawks can clinch a home playoff game with a win over New York and a Buffalo loss to Portland and either a Philadelphia loss to Toronto or two Minnesota losses to Chicago. The K-Hawks can clinch the East Division title with a win over New York and a Buffalo loss to Portland and a Philadelphia loss to Toronto and two Minnesota losses to Chicago.

Knighthawks are coming off an 11-8 road win over the first-place Minnesota Swarm on April 19th. The victory allowed Rochester to move above .500 for only the second time this season. Pat O'Toole and the 'Hawks defense limited their opponent to single-digit goals for the third straight game. Shawn Williams led the way with six assists.

John Grant enters the final weekend of the season in third place in the scoring race with 89 points (46+43). He trails Philadelphia's Athan Iannucci by six points. Grant is trying to become the first Knighthawk to repeat as league scoring champion. Bill Greer and Scott Evans can also reach personal milestones. Greer has eight goals and needs just three to break his single-season record. Evans currently has 42 goals, which is four shy of his all-time high. Evans has 12 goals and three assists in his last three games.

Rochester brings the league's best penalty-killing unit into the crucial contest. Rochester has killed off 69.81 percent of their opponents' chances and has scored a league-best 19 shorthanded goals. This Saturday, the Knighthawks face the team with the most power-play goals in the league (57).

New York is led by Casey Powell (83) and Pat Maddalena (80), who rank sixth and seventh in the league in scoring. The Titans (9-6) are currently in a three-way tie for second place in the East Division. New York has won three straight and has gone 8-2 since February 10th. The Titans can clinch a playoff berth with a win over Rochester or a Philadelphia loss to Toronto. New York can also clinch the East Division title, top overall seed and home-field advantage throughout playoffs with a win over Rochester and two Minnesota losses to Chicago.

The 2008 Champion's Cup Playoffs will begin on the weekend of May 2-4, and play out over three consecutive weekends. The single-elimination playoffs will consist of seven games; four divisional semifinal games (weekend of May 2-4), two Divisional Finals (weekend of May 9-11) and the Edge NLL Championship Game on the weekend of May 16-18.

Check out the Rochester Knighthawks Statistics



National Lacrosse League Stories from April 23, 2008


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central