TONIGHT’S GAME OVERVIEW
The Rochester Knighthawks (6-6) continue their push to the postseason tonight in Denver when they put their three-game win streak on the line against the Colorado Mammoth (4-9) in the only matchup of the season between the two teams at Ball Arena. Opening face-off from the Mile High City is slated for 9:00 p.m. ET with live coverage available on Big 107.3 FM as well as ESPN+.
HOW THE TEAMS MATCHUP
Set to be reacquainted for the first time in over four years, the Knighthawks and Mammoth will put their unfamiliarity aside as one team looks to continue their climb up the NLL standings for a chance at locking in a playoff appearance for the second straight year while the other looks to snap out of a downward slide in the hopes of salvaging its season. The streaky Knighthawks, fresh off a two-game sweep of the Albany FireWolves, have won three straight to level out their record to an even 6-6 and move up to seventh place while Colorado has dropped five of its last six coming into tonight. Making matters worse, the struggling Mammoth have been held to just seven goals in three of the five losses over their current second-half slump, resulting in a rapid plummet to the bottom of the NLL standings and a last-place tie with Vancouver and Las Vegas. Organizationally, the Knighthawks and Mammoth have endured significant change since meeting in the final game of Rochester’s inaugural campaign in 2019-20. Since then, the expansion-era Knighthawks have quite impressively evolved into an elite NLL contender seeking another postseason berth while Colorado, which is coming off back-to-back appearances in the NLL Finals and a league championship in 2022, has mustered just four wins through 13 games this season. The Mammoth have finished with five or fewer wins twice in their 21-year history. After going 10-for-16 on the power-play in its last three games, Rochester comes into the weekend ranked fifth in the league with a 51.0% conversion rate on the man-advantage, scoring 29 times on 57 power-play opportunities. Conversely, Colorado owns the top penalty kill unit in the NLL, having successfully killed off 33-of-48 shorthanded situations for a league-best 68.8% efficiency rate.
LAST TIME OUT
A back-and-forth affair came down to the final minutes of regulation as the Knighthawks survived a late-game push from the Albany FireWolves and narrowly escaped with an 11-10 win in last Saturday’s rematch between the intrastate rivals at MVP Arena. The Knighthawks also completed the season-sweep over the FireWolves and now boast a 5-1 mark all-time against Albany. Ryan Lanchbury (3+2) and Connor Fields (3+2) both registered hat tricks while Turner Evans, who returned to the lineup for the first time since Week 4, had four helpers in the team’s third straight win. Team captain and defenseman Dan Coates also made his first appearance with the Knighthawks since Dec. 23, helping the team improve to 4-0 with him in the lineup. Ryan Smith (1+3) and Curtis Knight (0+3) each had three-assist performances as Thomas McConvey (1+2), Matt Gilray (1+1), Mitch Ogilvie (1+1) and Kyle Waters (1+0) all scored in the win for Rochester, which has outscored Albany 74-55 in the five games in which they’ve been victorious dating back to the 2021-22 campaign. Goaltender Riley Hutchcraft faced 50 shots, making 40 saves, including double figures in the second and third quarters, respectively. Hutchcraft has earned each of Rochester’s six wins in the 2023-24 NLL campaign.
BACK TO WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
While this weekend’s visit to Denver will be the first for many, and the team’s first in over four years, it can also be considered a homecoming of sorts for Knighthawks general manager Dan Carey and veteran defenseman Dan Coates. Prior to joining the Knighthawks ahead of the team’s inaugural campaign in 2019-20, Carey spent three seasons in Colorado, including two as the team’s general manager where he was instrumental in assembling a Mammoth roster that posted two straight winning seasons, culminating in back-to-back postseason appearances. During the 2018 season, Colorado finished second in the Western Division with an 11-7 record, marking its second runner-up finish in three years, while advancing to the NLL’s Champion’s Cup Playoffs for an unprecedented eighth straight season. Carey, who was named the General Manager of the Year for the 2022-23 season, was the Mammoth’s first-round selection (seventh overall) in the 2005 NLL Entry Draft. He was named an NLL All-Star in each of his first three seasons in the league, and as a rookie, was instrumental in Colorado winning the Champion’s Cup in 2006. Like Carey, Coates came to Rochester by way of Colorado having spent his first nine seasons with the Mammoth, during which he compiled 75 points (15+60), 492 loose ball recoveries and 139 caused turnovers in 128 career games. A former first-round selection (8th overall) by Colorado in the 2011 NLL Entry Draft, he departed the Mammoth ranked second in franchise history in caused turnovers (139), fourth in face-off wins (477) and games played (128) and seventh in loose balls (492). A four-year captain, Coates led the team to an unprecedented eight straight playoff appearances from 2012-2019, including a pair of trips to the West Division Final over a three-year span.
SCORING IN BUNCHES
Having combined for 48 goals in their last three games, the most in franchise history over a three-game span, it should come as no surprise the Knighthawks enter Week 17 leading the NLL in goals per game with 13.33. Despite playing only 12 games, Rochester is the only team across the league averaging more than 13 goals per game while their 160 goals overall rank seventh-most. Coming into this weekend, the Knighthawks currently rank sixth in the NLL in total shots for (991) but continue to pace the league in average shots per game (82.58). The only team averaging more than 80 shots per game, Rochester has outshot the opposition in nine of its first 12 games this season, including in all but one road game. The Knighthawks have also topped the 60-shot mark on five different occasions, highlighted by a franchise-best 73 shots in the win at Panther City earlier this month. Rochester is 4-5 this season when outshooting the opponent and 5-5 when finishing with 50 or more shots.
POST TAKES CENTER STAGE
Canandaigua native Joe Post has been nearly unbeatable at the center dot this season, winning 202 face-offs on 327 attempts for a 61.8% success rate. His 202 wins, which as of March 3 are a new single-season franchise record, rank fifth in the NLL while his 115 loose ball recoveries are also 10th-most. Post’s 26 face-off wins against Panther City set the new single-game mark, besting the 24 he had earlier this season in Saskatchewan. Dating back to his rookie season, Post, who played his collegiate lacrosse at nearby St. John Fisher University, has won 265-of-458 career face-off attempts, good for a 57.9% efficiency rate.
BIRDS OF A FEATHER FLOCK TOGETHER
After emerging as one of the most dynamic and productive scoring duos in the NLL a season ago, Connor Fields and Ryan Smith have again taken the league by storm in 2023-24. The forwards have combined for 75 goals and 167 points through Rochester’s first 12 games, making them the second-best point-producing twosome in the league behind only Buffalo’s Josh Byrne and Dhane Smith, who like Fields, continue to inch closer to the 100-point mark. After combining for eight points last weekend, Fields and Smith are the only pair of teammates in the league to each have at least 37 goals, 40 assists and 75 points in the same number of games played. In addition to leading the Knighthawks in goals (38), assists (51) and points (89), Fields continues to pace all NLL forwards with 109 loose ball recoveries. Coming into the weekend just six points back of the league’s scoring lead, Fields remains well on track of shattering his previous career-high of 112 points and is on pace to finish the season with 135 points, making him a viable candidate for this year’s Most Valuable Player. Fields, who’s also tied for fourth in the NLL with a team-best nine power-play tallies, needs just 11 more points to join Joe Resetarits, a former Knighthawk in the previous organization, as the only two American-born players in league history to reach the 100-point mark in back-to-back seasons. Like Fields, Smith is also in the process of assembling a career-year following his second 10-point effort of the season on March 9, which included his 100th pro goal, 100th assist and 200th point. With six games remaining, the third-year pro has already established a new career-high for goals in a season (37), ranking fourth in the NLL behind only Fields, San Diego’s Austin Staats and New York’s Jeff Teat.
SCOUTING THE MAMMOTH
With perennial goal-scorer and franchise leader Ryan Lee forced to miss the entire 2023-24 season due to injury, the Mammoth have turned to forward Eli McLaughlin, who leads the Colorado offense in all offensive categories, including goals (32), assists (36), points (68), power-play goals (8) and shots (145) while appearing in all 13 games this season. McLaughlin has recorded at least two points in every game this season, including six hat tricks. The Mammoth, who are looking for their first win at home since Feb. 23, also have one of the NLL’s top scoring defensemen in captain Robert Hope. A nine-year veteran with the Mammoth, Hope is tied for the league lead amongst defensemen with 11 assists and is tied with fellow Colorado defender Brett Craig for eighth in points. Dillon Ward, who again has been the primary goaltender all season for the Mammoth, shares the league lead with eight losses in 11 starts.
