(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Knighthawks will conclude their preseason schedule tonight with a 7 p.m. showdown against the Ottawa Black Bears at Brampton Memorial Arena in Brampton, Ontario. Rochester has a 1-1 record this preseason.
The Knighthawks will have multiple newcomers take the floor for the first time. Nathan Grenon, Jeremy Thompson, and Casey Rogers were all signed in the last week and hope to earn spots on the active roster. Zed Williams will make his preseason debut for the Knighthawks as well. Monday is roster cutdowns. The Knighthawks will have to reduce their roster to 21 active players and four practice squad members. Rochester currently has 28 players on its preseason roster.
Grenon is a lefty forward who was signed after moving Brad McCulley to the injured reserve list. Knighthawks President and General Manager Dan Carey brought him in within an hour of Toronto releasing him earlier this preseason. Thompson brings a veteran presence to the faceoff dot and the back end. Over his career, in the regular season, he’s tallied 2,560 faceoff wins, which is the second most all-time. He also ranks fifth in loose ball recoveries with 1,900.
Rogers is looking to make a return to lacrosse after playing Division I and NFL football. The Nebraska and Oregon product spent time with both the Buffalo Bills and New York Giants in the last two seasons. He made his return to lacrosse at the beginning of this month, playing against the Knighthawks for Philadelphia. The 6-foot-5, 305-pound former defensive lineman played attack in high school and scored 193 goals over his four-year career. He will play transition for Rochester.
Williams is prepared to play in his first game as a Knighthawk tonight. Throughout the preseason, he’s practiced with the team but has yet to play in a game. It will be his first NLL action since Feb. 2025, when he played against the Las Vegas Desert Dogs.
“Everyone here is awesome,” Williams said about his teammates. “Nothing new to me. Just try to make sure I come here in really good shape. Make sure I come in and earn my spot, and work very hard, and the rest will come. And these guys make it very easy. They’re very welcoming.”
Against Ottawa, returning players will also get their final tune-up before the season opener in San Diego on Dec. 14.
For a guy like Ryan Smith or Matt Gilray, the transition from summer box back to the NLL isn’t a crazy shift. But for guys like Thomas McConvey, Connor Fields, and Jake Piseno, coming from the field game means readjusting to the limited space in the indoor game.
“It is our last preseason game. You’ve got to work out the kinks and start to get better and better each day that you’re out on the floor,” Piseno said. “But it’s also understanding that we still have a month until our first game, so we have a lot more time after this to continue getting ready. Every time we’re out on the floor, you’ve just got to try to do the right things, try not to do the wrong things twice, and learn from your mistakes.”
“It’s always fun to be out on the floor with the squad,” he added. “I think, just being out there, having fun, leaving it all out there because it’s our last preseason game, you get all your anger and aggression out. But yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”
Ottawa comes into its last preseason game also at a 1-1 record. The Black Bears opened their preseason on Nov. 9, falling to the Georgia Swarm 11-10. A week later, they played against the Oshawa FireWolves and earned their first preseason win, 11-8.
In the win, it was Reilly O’Connor who led the stat sheet with a hat trick. Connor Kearnan, Larson Sundown, and Sam Firth each scored two goals. Ottawa captain and 2024-25 NLL goal-scoring leader Jeff Teat had one goal in the win. Zach Higgins made 49 saves on 57 shots. The Black Bears added some firepower this offseason with the acquisition of veteran Rob Hellyer.