TONIGHT’S GAME OVERVIEW
The Rochester Knighthawks (1-2) attempt to get back into the win column tonight as they return home to take on the undefeated Saskatchewan Rush (2-0) in the first of two meetings between the two teams at Segar & Sciortino Field at The Blue Cross Arena. Opening face-off is slated for a 7:00 p.m. start and will be carried live on Big 107.3 FM as well as ESPN+. The matchup will also be available to viewers on NLL+, a free direct-to-consumer streaming platform which provides instant global access to all 126 live regular-season games and every playoff matchup as well as increased access to highlights, full game replays and exclusive league content during the season. The service is designed to enhance fan access and engagement with box lacrosse as the league continues to expand its global reach.
HOW THE TEAMS MATCH UP
Tonight marks just the third meeting all-time between the two teams and the very first in Rochester as the Rush make their inaugural visit to the Flower City. The Knighthawks and Rush split the other two encounters, both of which came north of the border, with Rochester coming away with a 16-14 win in the most recent get together on Dec. 9 of last season. While the Knighthawks return home on the heels of back-to-back losses following a season-opening win over Las Vegas on Nov. 30, the Rush, on the other hand, are seeking their third straight victory to begin the 2024-25 campaign. Despite scoring just 19 goals through its first two games of the season, Saskatchewan is one of only four teams that has yet to fall to the opposition, joining Calgary, Georgia and the two-time defending NLL champions Buffalo Bandits in that regard.
🚨 GOALIE MATCHUP TO WATCH 🚨
Riley Hutchcraft: Leads NLL in saves.
Frank Scigliano: Leads NLL with a 7.58 GAA.@SaskRushLAX | @RocKnighthawks pic.twitter.com/RY4BYjf37j
— NLL (@NLL) December 21, 2024
Goaltending will be at the forefront of tonight’s contest, which features the top two shooting teams in the NLL go up against one another. Entering Week 4, Rochester currently leads the league in shots on goal (182) and total shots for (253) while averaging an NLL-best 84.33 shots per game. The Knighthawks are also the only NLL team currently averaging more than 80 shots per game through the first two games of the season. Saskatchewan, meanwhile, remains at a close second, averaging 78 shots per game despite playing only two games. Conversely, Rochester is allowing the most shots against in the league with 256, good for an average of 85.33 per game this season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Knighthawks built a two-goal lead through 30 minutes but failed to carry their momentum into the second half as they dropped a 10-7 final to the Vancouver Warriors last Friday night at Rogers Arena. Ryan Lanchbury (3+0) and Ryan Smith (3+0) carried the offense for Rochester, each scoring hat tricks. Josh Medeiros scored the other goal for his first as a Knighthawk, while Turner Evans (0+1), Connor Fields (0+2), Thomas McConvey (0+3), Brandon Slade (0+1), and Matt Gilray (0+1) all posted assists. Goaltender Riley Hutchcraft made his third start of the season, stopping 46 of the 55 shots he faced. Rookie defenseman Graydon Hogg, whom the Knighthawks selected in the first round (15th overall) in the 2023 NLL Entry Draft, made his highly anticipated pro debut, recording an assist and three shots to go along with four loose ball recoveries. Hogg is the first player from Rochester’s two most recent draft years to make his professional debut and the first draft pick since McConvey to crack the 19-man lineup.
‘HAWKS TO HONOR NATIONAL CHAMPION HAWKEYES TONIGHT
The Knighthawks will honor the 2024 NCBS champion Hawkeyes during halftime tonight. Operated by the Knighthawks in partnership with the Buffalo Bandits, the Hawkeyes are one of four teams representing the Upstate Collegiate Box Lacrosse League. The Rochester-based team is coached by current Knighthawks players, including Dan Coates, Ryland Rees, Thomas McConvey, and equipment manager Brenden Dobbins. The 2024 version of the Hawkeyes was a dominant team, going 14-0 this season. The Hawkeyes won the league championship for the third straight season and advanced to the National Championships. After finishing as the runner-up in 2023, the Hawkeyes finally raised the Cup, earning a thrilling 14-13 overtime win over the three-time defending NCBS champion Royals on August 10. Matthew Blythe, who scored the game-winning goal 35 seconds into overtime to secure the Hawkeyes the NCBS title, will be in attendance tonight along with 10 others who helped bring a championship back to Rochester.
COMING IN HUTCH
Knighthawks goaltender Riley Hutchcraft has emerged as the NLL’s early leader in saves through his first three games of the season. The veteran netminder has stopped 141 of the 175 shots he’s faced, good for a .806 save percentage that ranks eighth in the NLL. Hutchcraft, who’s one of only five goaltenders with more than 100 saves this season, also ranks fifth with an 11.40 goals-against average. Dating back to last season, Hutchcraft has made 40-plus saves in his nine of his last 18 starts, including three straight to open the second half of the 2023-24 season. He also has two games of 50 or more saves over that same span, including in Week 1 of this season as well as 52-save performance in the 18-12 win over Albany back on March 9, which remains a career-high for the seventh-year netminder.
SHOOTING GALLERY
The Knighthawks, who closed out the 2023-24 regular season leading the NLL in shots per game with 81.44 and were the only team that averaged more than 80 per contest, are again at the top of the league in terms of shooting efficiency again this season. Coming into this weekend, Rochester has outshot the opposition in 15 of its last 21 games going back to last season, including all but three on the road. The Knighthawks have also topped the 70-shot mark twice over that span, the most recent of which came in the season-opening win over Las Vegas back on Nov. 30 when they came within a shot of matching their single-game franchise record of 73. Individually, Knighthawks forward Connor Fields, who averaged nearly 15 shots per game last season on his way to establishing a new league record (267), is already on pace to duplicate the effort with an NLL-best 45 shots on goal through his first three games game of the season.
HASEN ON THE MOVE
Leading the Knighthawks into their fifth season of the expansion-era is an all-too-familiar face in head coach Mike Hasen. Last season, Hasen became just the sixth head coach in NLL history to reach 100 career wins, doing so by way of a 13-11 win over Vancouver on Dec. 23. The year prior, Hasen, a 2023 Coach of the Year candidate, coached his 200th regular-season game in Las Vegas, a feat only five others in league history have accomplished before him. He became just the sixth head coach – and third that season behind Georgia’s Ed Comeau and Calgary’s Troy Cordingley – to have coached 200 National Lacrosse League games. Hasen also owns the distinction of being the only member of the prestigious group, which also includes Paul Day, Darris Kilgour and Derek Keenan, to reach the mark having spent his entire career in the same city. One of the most decorated coaches in league history, Hasen is certainly no stranger to Rochester, having previously served as head coach of the former Knighthawks franchise from 2011 to 2019. In nine seasons behind the bench with the original Knighthawks, Hasen guided Rochester to an 81-75 regular season record while leading the team to six playoff appearances. The Knighthawks also finished among the top two teams in the East Division six different times under Hasen, including each of the first five seasons (2011-2015). Hasen’s most successful run at the helm of the Knighthawks came from 2012-14 when he made National Lacrosse League history by leading Rochester to an unprecedented three straight Champion’s Cups. He remains the only NLL bench boss to accomplish the feat. Hasen, who was named the NLL’s Coach of the Year in 2011 following his first season behind the bench, boasts a 25-44 record with the expansion-era Knighthawks, whom he’s led to back-to-back playoff appearances, as well as a 106-119 record all-time over his 14 combined seasons in Rochester. Hasen currently ranks fourth all-time in league history in games coached (225) and sixth in career coaching wins (106). He needs just two more wins to surpass Troy Cordingley for fifth all-time.
KNIGHTHAWKS ADD DEFENSIVE DEPTH
The Knighthawks reinforced their back end on Thursday with the addition of free agent defenseman Ethan Riggs, who signed a one-year deal with Rochester for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. Riggs, who has been assigned to the practice squad, joins the Knighthawks after spending the last three seasons with the NLL’s Georgia Swarm. In 47 career games with Georgia since joining the Swarm prior to the 2021-22 campaign, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound defenseman has gathered 49 loose ball recoveries and seven caused turnovers while piling up 28 penalty minutes. Prior to making the jump the NLL, Riggs played parts of three seasons in the Arena Lacrosse League with the Peterborough Timbermen.
SCOUTING THE RUSH
The Rush arrive in Rochester in search of their third straight win after pulling off a wild fourth-quarter rally and stealing a 9-8 overtime win over Halifax in their home opener last Saturday at Sasktel Centre. Facing an 8-3 deficit early in the fourth quarter, Saskatchewan rattled off five straight unanswered goals over the final 11:29 of regulation before Zach Manns completed the improbable comeback midway through overtime to keep the Rush unbeaten on the season. Manns, who returns for his second season with the Rush, single-handedly engineered the fourth-quarter comeback, scoring five of the Rush’s six goals, including the eventual overtime winner. Coming off his team-high eight-point performance in last week’s win over Halifax, Manns leads the Rush in scoring with 13 points while his 10 goals rank second in the league behind only Calgary’s Dane Dobbie. More impressively, Manns has individually accounted for more than half of Saskatchewan’s 19 goals as a team so far this season. Defensively, the Rush have arguably the top goaltender in the NLL currently in veteran Frank Scigliano, who’s tied for league lead with two wins and owns the best goals-against average with a 7.58 mark through his first two appearances. Scigliano, a former Rookie of the Year and top goaltender in the Western Lacrosse Association, anchors a Saskatchewan defense that has allowed the second-fewest goals-against in the NLL. Only Matt Vinc and the Buffalo Bandits have performed better in that regard this season.
