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NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Knighthawks Re-Sign Macdonnell, Orleman to Multi-Year Deals

July 24, 2024 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


(Rochester, NY) - Rochester Knighthawks General Manager and Vice President of Lacrosse Operations Dan Carey announced today that the team has re-signed defenseman Ben Macdonell and goaltender Kevin Orleman both to two-year contracts, pending league approval.

Macdonnell, 23, appeared in four games with the Knighthawks as a rookie during the 2023-24 season, scoring one goal and adding 15 loose ball recoveries. He made his NLL debut at Halifax on Jan. 27, 2024, scoring his first career goal during the fourth quarter.

The Oshawa, Ontario, native led the Whitby Warriors to a Minto Cup championship in 2022 in addition to putting up seven goals and 18 points while appearing in all 14 games for the Oshawa Outlaws of the Arena Lacrosse League. Macdonnell earned All-Rookie First Team defender honors before emerging as one of the top rookies in Major Series Lacrosse with the Brooklin Lacrosse Club.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pound forward played in one game at Robert Morris University during his sophomore season after not playing as a freshman.

Macdonnell was an accomplished two-sport athlete in both hockey and lacrosse at Maxwell Heights high school. As a senior in 2019, he captured a pair of titles with the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championship and the U18 National Championship.

Macdonnell was selected by the Knighthawks in the first-round selection (16th overall) of the 2023 NLL Entry Draft.

Acquired by Rochester from the New York Riptide on Dec. 28, 2023, Orleman, 28, made four saves in one game with New York to start the 2023-24 campaign before finishing the season on Rochester's IR list.

Since the start of 2018, Orleman, who made his first start and earned his first win on Feb. 2, 2019 against the previous Knighthawks franchise, has a 2-5 career record. In 58 games for New York, Panther City and Georgia, the Kitchener, Ontario, native shows a 12.94 goals-against average and a .731 save percentage.

Originally a second-round selection (18th overall) of the Buffalo Bandits in the 2016 NLL Entry Draft, the 5-foot-9, 190-pound netminder spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons with the Cobourg Kodiaks of the Major Series Lacrosse. In 2019, he logged 990:46 minutes of action as the team's primary netminder earning a 10.05 goals-against average while also recording 20 assists.

He also played two seasons for the Paris RiverWolves of the Arena Lacrosse League from 2017-18, notching a 4-3 record, a 12.58 goals-against average and a .710 save percentage.

Prior to turning pro, Orleman played his collegiate lacrosse as a midfielder at the University of Guelph.

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