(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Knighthawks embark on a season-high four-game road trip this week. Rochester travels to play the Oshawa FireWolves at 7 p.m. at the Tribute Communities Centre. The game is available on ESPN+ and NLL+.
The Knighthawks (5-8) enter the contest in 10th place after dropping their last three games. Meanwhile, Oshawa is tied for 11th with a 4-10 mark after sweeping a home-and-home series against the Philadelphia Wings.
Coaching Addition
On Monday, the Knighthawks hired 56-year-old Bobby Keast as the team’s defensive coordinator. He brings extensive playing and coaching experience to his new role in Rochester. He returns to the National Lacrosse League, where he spent eight seasons as an assistant coach. His resume includes three Minto Cup championships as a player and nine Mann Cup titles as a coach with his hometown Peterborough Lakers.
Scouting the Knighthawks
Rochester fell 17-13 to the Las Vegas Desert Dogs last Saturday night at The Blue Cross Arena. The Knighthawks were led by reigning NLL MVP Connor Fields (5+3) and Ryan Lanchbury (2+6), who each recorded eight points. Thomas McConvey had six assists, while Ryan Smith scored four goals and added one assist. Nathan Kapp tied a Knighthawks franchise record with a career-high 26 faceoff wins, while Riley Hutchcraft made 32 saves in a relief effort. Multiple Knighthawks reached milestones. Ian Llord reached 900 loose-ball recoveries while Dan Coates reached 800 in his career. Thomas McConvey notched his 100th career assist.
Knighthawks among NLL Leaders
Fields is currently fourth in the NLL in points (87) and tied for fifth in goals (36). Lanchbury is also among the league leaders, sitting tied for fifth in assists (59) and tied for 10th in points (78). Llord is tied for sixth with 16 blocked shots, while Jake Piseno is tied for first in goals among league defensemen with six.
Scouting the FireWolves
Oshawa has won two straight games, following an 11-6 victory over Philadelphia on March 13. Ryan Benesch made his Oshawa debut and provided an instant spark. The league’s fourth all-time leading scorer posted two goals and four assists. The FireWolves also received a seven-point performance (4+3) from Alex Simmons and a six-point night (1+5) from Tye Kurtz. Simmons is seventh in the NLL in goals (34) and points (83). Goalie Doug Jamieson made 39 stops and is now fourth in the NLL with 563 saves.
Knighthawks Next Game
Rochester travels to play the Halifax Thunderbirds on Saturday, April 4, at Scotiabank Centre. Faceoff is set for 6 p.m. EST.

