Rochester needs a victory to retain a portion of first place.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Knighthawks will try to earn their seventh win in their last eight games when they head to the Air Canada Centre on Friday, April 13 to play the Toronto Rock. Faceoff is set for 7:30 pm.
Rochester (8-7) enters the game in a three-way tie for first place in the East Division with just three games to play. All three playoff berths in the division have still yet to be decided. The Knighthawks control their own playoff fate as they play three divisional games to end the 2017-18 season.
Friday night’s contest is the third and final regular season meeting with the Rock. Rochester is attempting to win their first game of the 3-game series.
The Rock (7-8) fell into a tie for fourth place in the East Division, following Sunday’s 11-10 loss to the Georgia Swarm. The setback was the second straight for Toronto.
Scouting the Knighthawks: Rochester enters the game after rallying to defeat the Colorado Mammoth 16-14 on March 31 at Connors & Ferris Field at The Blue Cross Arena. The Knighthawks were led by Joe Resetarits’ three goals and three assists. Cody Jamieson (2+4) and Austin Shanks (2+4) also posted six-points efforts. Cory Vitarelli (3+2) and Eric Fannell (2+3) were close behind with five-point nights. Angus Goodleaf was spectacular in goal, stopping 31 of 37 shots to earn the win. Rochester was nearly perfect on the power play, going 4-for-5 against the Mammoth. By scoring 16 goals the Knighthawks now lead the East Division with 201 goals this season. Prior to the game, the organization inducted Mike Accursi into the team’s Hall of Fame as its 17th member.
Broadcast Information: The game will be broadcast on WHAM 1180 and the iHeartRadio app. Fans can also watch on NLL TV (NLLTV.com).
Team Scoring Mark: Since the NLL expanded to an 18-game schedule, the most goals scored in a season by the Knighthawks was 210 back in 2014. Rochester can surpass that team mark with just 10 goals.
Withers Closing in on History: Jake Withers is 20 faceoff wins away from breaking Stephen Hoar’s 2007 team single-season faceoff wins record of 240. Withers also needs 19 more faceoff victories to break Stephen Peyser’s 2009 NLL rookie record.
Resetarits shooting for U.S. Record: Joe Resetarits needs just 10 points to break Tom Schreiber’s record for points in a season by a U.S.-born player. Last season, the Toronto forward posted 94 points.
Young Guns: Austin Shanks is second in the league in points among rookies with 44, while Eric Fannell is third with 31.
Milestone Watch:
• Sid Smith has tied his career high in assists and points with five.
• Graeme Hossack, who has six goals, is one away from setting a career high.
• Scott Campbell is two games away from 200 in his career.
• Matt Vinc is four wins away 100 career victories.
• Head coach Mike Hasen is three wins away from passing Paul Day for the most victories in franchise history with 76.
Scouting the Rock: Friday’s game is the regular season home finale for Toronto. The Rock will wrap up the 2017-18 season with road games at Buffalo and Colorado. Rob Hellyer leads the team with 78 points (27+51), while Adam Jones is second with 75 (29+46). Forward Dan Lintner is coming off a career-high five-goal effort in the one-goal loss to Georgia. Goalie Nick Rose is fourth in the league in saves (554), goals-against average (11.10) and save percentage (.780).
Next Game: The Knighthawks play host to the New England Black Wolves in their regular season home finale on Saturday, April 21 at Connors & Ferris Field at the Blue Cross Arena. The Knighthawks are hosting their first Play Like a Girl! (PLAG) Night, as the organization offers a PLAG pack for just $20, which includes a T-shirt and a 100-end ticket. From each sale, the Knighthawks will donate $5 back to Play Like a Girl to be reinvested in girls’ sports in Rochester. Additional tickets can be purchased at $15.
Awards Night: Prior to the game, the Knighthawks will recognize players for their outstanding efforts during the 2017-18 season. The team will name its Offensive and Defense MVPs, along with the Team MVP. The Knighthawks will also hand out the Rookie of Year award, the Wolf Pack award and the Seventh Man award. The latter two honors recognize players and/or staff who have demonstrated exemplary dedication to the team. The Knighthawks will also present the Community Service Award to the player who has excelled off the field.