Knighthawks to Battle Stealth for Champion's Cup
Published on May 10, 2013 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release
The Rochester Knighthawks (10-8) will travel to the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C. to take on the Washington Stealth (11-7) for the 2013 Champion's Cup on Saturday, May 11th at 7:00 p.m.
Head-to-Head: The Knighthawks lead the all-time series with the Washington franchise 11-4. Since the Stealth have relocated to Washington, Rochester owns a 3-2 record. The only postseason meeting between the two franchises was on April 6, 2002, when the Albany Attack defeated Rochester 14-10 in the Divisional Finals round. The teams split a pair of one-goal games in 2013 with the Stealth taking a 13-12 victory on January 5th and the Knighthawks winning 7-6 on February 2nd.
Defending the Cup: The Knighthawks are looking to become the first team to win back-to-back Champion's Cups since the Toronto Rock did so in 2002 and 2003. The last time the Knighthawks qualified for consecutive championship games was in 1999 and 2000, losing both to Toronto.
Live from Langley: The 2013 National Lacrosse League Championship will be held at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, British Columbia due to a scheduling conflict at the Comcast Arena in Everett, Washington. The game will be aired live exclusively on the CBS Sports Network at 7:00 p.m.
Last Game: Rochester defeated the Minnesota Swarm 12-10 for the East Division crown on Saturday, May 4th. The Swarm gained their only lead of the game with four consecutive goals bridging the third and fourth quarters. Up 9-7, a goal from Matt Gibson gave them a three-goal lead, but the ruling was overturned after Mike Hasen successfully challenged the goal due to a crease violation. With the shift in momentum, the Knighthawks responded with five straight goals of their own in a span of 5:24 to take an insurmountable 12-9 lead. After Cody Jamieson put the Knighthawks up 10-9, Craig Point scored his team-high fourth goal. Only 26 seconds later, Jimmy Purves scored Rochester's 12th goal unassisted. Jamieson scored a team-high five points (1+4). Point (4+0) and Johnny Powless (3+1) each scored four. Matt Vinc made 25 saves on 35 shots, which is tied for the fewest he has faced all season.
Knighthawks notes: The Knighthawks have reached the NLL Championship game for the eighth time in franchise history, which ties them with Buffalo and Toronto for second-most behind Philadelphia (9). They are 3-4 in the previous title games, winning in 1997, 2007 and 2012. Mike Accursi is on the verge of winning his fourth championship, and his second pair of back-to-back titles. Accursi won the championship in 2007 with Rochester and 2008 with Buffalo. Craig Point has nine goals in the past three weeks, including four-goal efforts in the regular season finale and the division final. In his first eight games, he only scored five goals. The Knighthawks have had one runner score four goals in each of the last three games. The Rochester defense did not surrender a goal in the first quarter of either playoff game, denying Philadelphia and Minnesota on a combined 17 shots in the opening quarter. The defense has also played well when down a man. They have killed 71.4 percent of their penalties in the postseason.
Feels like the first time: Forward Dan Dawson and defenseman Scott Self are seeking their first Champion's Cup. The duo were on the losing end of the 2005 and 2007 title games with the Arizona Sting. Both were acquired via trade this season. Self has played 189 regular season games and Dawson 187 without a championship.
The following Knighthawks are nearing career milestones:
- Mike Accursi (97) two points away from surpassing John Grant, Jr. (98) for fifth all-time in posteason points and three points shy of 100th-career playoff point;
- Accursi (57) needs one goal to pass John Grant, Jr. (57) for third all-time in postseason goals;
- Dan Dawson (69) needs four assists to pass Colin Doyle (72) for second all-time in postseason assists;
- Dawson (15) needs one assist to take sole possession of fourth place in all-time assists in championship games.
Washington notes: The Washington Stealth have reached their third title game in the last four years. They split the 2010 and 2011 Champion's Cup with the Toronto Rock, winning the 2010 title 15-11 at home and losing the 2011 championship 8-7 in Toronto. They entered the postseason as the third overall seed. In the first round of the playoffs, the Stealth defeated the Edmonton Rush 12-11 despite trailing 6-0 less than two minutes into the second quarter. In the West Division Finals, Washington topped the Calgary Roughnecks 14-13. Rhys Duch finished the regular season third in the league with 96 points with a league-high 45 goals. Bob Snider was second with 262 faceoff wins and fourth with 169 loose balls. Tyler Richards was fourth with 579 saves and fifth with a 10.92 goals-against average. Duch leads the team in postseason scoring with 13 points (7+6), followed by Athan Iannucci with 10 (5+5).
National Lacrosse League Stories from May 10, 2013
- 2013 NLL Championship Post-Game Press Conference Streaming Live on TLN - NLL
- Knighthawks to Battle Stealth for Champion's Cup - Rochester Knighthawks
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