TONIGHT’S GAME OVERVIEW
Coming off a bounce-back effort last week, the Rochester Knighthawks (2-4) look to stay in the win column tonight as they open a home-and-home series against the Halifax Thunderbirds (1-3) at Segar & Sciortino Field at The Blue Cross Arena. Opening face-off is slated for 7:00 p.m. and will be carried live on Big 107.3 FM as well as ESPN+ and NLL+. 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.
SEASON SERIES SNAPSHOT
The head-to-head matchup over the years has historically favored the Thunderbirds, who have been victorious in six of the first seven meetings between the two teams dating back to the Knighthawks’ inaugural 2019-20 campaign, including all four meetings north of the border. Halifax comes into the matchup in search of its third straight win over Rochester earning a two-game sweep last season and each time holding the Knighthawks to fewer than 10 goals. After finishing as the top two shooting teams across the NLL last season, Rochester (83.33) and Halifax (80.50) are again at the head of the pack this season, ranking first and second in the league in shots per game, respectively. The Thunderbirds also make their lone trip to Rochester fifth in the NLL in goals-per-game (13.00) and currently own the third-best power-play in the league after converting on 10 of their 19 opportunities on the man-advantage, good for a 52.6% success rate. Connor Fields led the Knighthawks in scoring in the two games against Halifax last season, totaling five goals and seven points, including a hat trick during Rochester’s last visit to Halifax back on Jan. 27.
LAST TIME OUT
The Knighthawks snapped a four-game skid in a big way, scoring a season-high 16 goals in a dominating 16-9 win over the previously unbeaten Georgia Swarm last Saturday at Gas South Arena. With the win, Rochester’s first since its season-opener, the team has earned a victory in three straight and four of its last five games against the Swarm. Former Swarm forward Ryan Lanchbury had a more-than-impactful return to Georgia, leading all players with three goals and nine points while he and Connor Fields (2+6) both logged six assists each. Kyle Waters (2+2), Graydon Hogg (2+1), Ryan Smith (2+1) and Taylor Jensen (2+0) all recorded multi-goal efforts. Thomas McConvey (1+2) and Brad Gillies (1+1) tallied a goal while Ryland Rees (0+1) added an assist to close out the scoring. Goaltender Riley Hutchcraft drew his sixth straight start in the crease, making 43 saves of the 52 shots he faced while earning the win. The netminder also was credited with an assist on Rochester’s 14th goal of the night. Face-off specialist Mike Sisselberger, who was signed earlier in the week by the Knighthawks, made his NLL debut with Rochester, winning 20 of his 29 face-offs.
LANCHBURY NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Ryan Lanchbury was named the Gatorade Canada NLL Player of the Week following his Week 6 nine-point performance against his former team. Lanchbury scored three goals and added six assists for a team-high nine points in the 16-9 win over previously unbeaten Georgia as the Knighthawks handed the Swarm their first loss of the season while subsequently helping Rochester snap a four-game skid in the process. Lanchbury, whose led the Knighthawks in points in each of the last four games, is currently tied with Philadelphia’s Joe Resetarits for the NLL scoring lead with 34 points in six games. He’s also tied for fourth in the league in assists (22) and ninth in goals (12). Lanchbury completed his first season with the Knighthawks in 2023-24 after being acquired from the Georgia Swarm in December 2023. The Burlington, Ontario, native tallied career-highs in goals (20), assists (66) and points (86) in 17 contests with Rochester while also collecting 41 loose balls. He topped all Knighthawks in assists and ranked third and fifth in goals and points, respectively.
THE PAST MEETS THE PRESENT
Tonight may be just the eighth meeting all-time between the Knighthawks and Thunderbirds, but it’s the historical significance that runs much deeper. While Rochester is currently in its fifth season as an expansion franchise, the Thunderbirds, led by fifth-year head coach Mike Accursi, relocated to Halifax during the summer of 2019 following 25 seasons in Rochester as the original Knighthawks franchise. The previous Knighthawks joined the NLL in 1998 following three seasons in the MILL, winning 10 division titles and five NLL championships, including three straight from 2012-14 under the ownership of Curt Styres, who also serves as the team’s general manager. The Styres-led Knighthawks remains the only team in NLL history to win three consecutive championships, a team that was coached by current Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. Of the 21 players on Halifax’s current active roster, at least eight have ties to the previous Knighthawks organization. Even Accursi himself is also a former original Knighthawk, whom he led to a Champion’s Cup in 2007 as a teammate of Hasen’s before winning his second straight title the following year during his second stint with Buffalo. In addition, current Rochester defensemen Brad Gillies and Ian Llord are the only two active players on either team to have played for both the original and expansion-era Knighthawks. Gillies had a two-year stint with the Thunderbirds before returning to Rochester ahead of the 2022-23 season while Llord won his last two NLL titles with previous Knighthawks organization in 2013 and 2014.
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 in 2024-25. Through the first six games this season, Rochester is averaging an NLL-best 83.33 shots per game while also allowing the second-most shots-against per game (82.00). Coming into this weekend, Rochester has outshot the opposition in 17 of its last 24 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. Collectively, Knighthawks also have the top three shooting forwards in Connor Fields, Ryan Smith and Ryan Lanchbury, who rank first, second and third in the NLL, respectively. 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 79 shots on goal through his first six games game of the current season while Smith and Lanchbury have combined for 120 shots.
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 26-46 record with the expansion-era Knighthawks, whom he’s led to back-to-back playoff appearances, as well as a 107-121 record all-time over his 14 combined seasons in Rochester. Hasen currently ranks fourth all-time in league history in games coached (228) and sixth in career coaching wins (107). He needs just one more win to surpass Troy Cordingley for fifth all-time.
