Knighthawks Need Win Saturday To Make Playoffs
Published on April 15, 2009 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release
(Rochester, NY)... The Rochester Knighthawks battle the rival Philadelphia Wings on Saturday, April 18th with the final playoff spot on the line in the East Division. A win this weekend and the Knighthawks will advance to the Champion's Cup playoffs for the 14th time in the team's 15-year history.
The game on Saturday is a 7:35 p.m. start at The Blue Cross Arena. That night the team will hold its Annual Awards Night, as the Knighthawks honor the most outstanding performances of the season. The first 5,000 fans will receive a Knighthawks team photo, courtesy of Connors & Ferris. After the contest, the team will hold a full-team autograph session on the turf. 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.
The Knighthawks (6-9) enter the week in fifth place in the East and trail the Wings (7-8) by one game. The game is the second and final game of the season between the two teams. Philadelphia downed the Knighthawks 16-13 on January 10th. Rochester still leads the all-time series with a record of 17-15. Rochester would advance with a win due to the second tiebreaker. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head record, which would be even 1-1 with a Knighthawks win. The second determining factor is divisional record. Rochester is 5-7 in the East and the Wings are 4-6.
Rochester brings a five-game home winning streak into the game against Philadelphia. The Knighthawks are trying to avoid missing the postseason for the second time in two seasons. The Hawks have lost three straight road games after reaching the .500 mark for the only time all season on April 3rd. That streak includes a 13-9 loss at Buffalo on April 10th and a 10-5 setback at Boston on April 11th.
Despite the two loses last weekend, Pat O'Toole was still impressive in goal, allowing 21 goals in two games against the top two teams in the East Division. On Saturday, he made a season-high 52 saves and limited Boston to just nine goals. That night, he also became only the second goalie in NLL history to record 6,000 saves. On offense, Shawn Williams recorded eight points in the back-to-back road games. On Saturday, he collected four assists to tie John Grant's team single-season assist record of 60. Williams leads the Knighthawks with 86 points (26+60), which is tied for sixth best in the National Lacrosse League. Shawn Evans is second on the team with 75 points, which is a career high for the fourth-year pro. Defenseman Steve Toll is third in the league with 162 loose balls.
The Wings just defeated the Toronto Rock Saturday night, 16-14, to win for the third time in their last four games. Philadelphia netted the last three goals to defeat the Rock and end their playoff chances. Merrick Thomson led the Wings with eight points (3+5) and Drew Westervelt added six points (4+2). Thomson leads Philadelphia with 67 points (39+28) and has 23 points in his last four games (12+11). Former Knighthawk Mat Giles is close behind with 65 points (20+45). Transition man Geoff Snider had 19 faceoff wins against Toronto to give him a league-leading 245 faceoff wins. Rob Blasdell got the win in goal, making 47 saves.
After missing the playoffs for five straight seasons from 2002-03 to 2007, the Wings are gunning for a second straight trip to the postseason. Last season, the Wings lost in the first round of the East Division Playoffs, 14-12, to the eventual champion Buffalo Bandits.
The Champion's Cup Playoffs open on the weekend of Friday, May 1st. Fans can catch all of the action of an exciting final weekend of the regular season live on the NLL Network at NLL.com.
KNIGHTHAWKS NEWS AND NOTES:
Thorpe on Di Tullio Show Friday: Rochester Knighthawks defenseman/general manager Regy Thorpe will be a guest on the John Di Tullio Show on Friday, April 17th at 10:45 a.m. on SportsTalk Radio WHTK 1280-AM and whtk.com.
Laverty New Penalty Minutes King: Defenseman Kyle Laverty has 81 penalty minutes this season, smashing Scott Ditzell's team single-season record of 68 set in 2007.
Williams assist streak continues: Shawn Williams has recorded an assist in 34 straight games. The Rochester forward has 126 assists since March 25, 2006.
National Lacrosse League Stories from April 15, 2009
- NLL Single-Season Points and Assists Records could fall this weekend - NLL
- Wings Forward Merrick Thomson Named NLL Offensive Player of the Week - Philadelphia Wings
- Do or die in Colorado - Edmonton Rush
- Buffalo Bandits To Set League Attendance Record - Buffalo Bandits
- Knighthawks Need Win Saturday To Make Playoffs - Rochester Knighthawks
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