Rochester remains winless as the Hawks fall to the Rock, 14-11.
By CRAIG POTTER / C&C Worldwide Sports Director
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — For the second consecutive game, the Rochester Knighthawks started off the third quarter slowly and it proved costly in the 14-11 loss to the Toronto Rock on Saturday night before 5,036 fans at the Blue Cross Arena.
The defeat kept the expansion Knighthawks winless in 3 games.
“That’s two games in a row we’ve come out slow in the second half so that’s something we gotta fix obviously,” said Knighthawks assistant captain Curtis Knight. “We have a young team and one thing we need to learn is how to bounce back after letting a couple goals in.”
The Dawson brothers, Paul and Dan, were squaring off against one another for the first time this season as both were teammates with the former Knighthawks franchise.
Defenseman Paul is captain of the new Knighthawks while forward Dan leads the Rock in goals with 6, including 1 goal and 6 assists against the Hawks, to move into a 3-way tie for the overall points lead for Toronto with 13.
Assistant captain Shawn Evans asserted himself as the team points leader with a hat trick in goals and assists for 6 points. He leads the Hawks in goals (6) and points (11). The 15-year veteran originally was selected by the previous franchise in the first round (second overall) in the 2005 NLL Entry Draft. Last season he played for the Buffalo Bandits.
“We started finding some chemistry there, but it was a little late in the game,” said Evans. “Hopefully we can build off of that for next game. We’ve got to continue to find chemistry and get our chances.”
Shawn’s cousin, Turner Evans, contributed 2 goals and 1 assist.
Knight, a 7th-year pro, also scored a pair of tallies for Rochester.
Completing the Hawks scoring were Holden Cattoni, Pat Saunders, Phil Caputo, and Cory Highfield with 1 goal apiece.
Steve Fryer started in goal for the Hawks but left in the third quarter with a cramp and the team trailing 10-5. He made 27 saves on 37 shots.
Craig Wende came on in relief, and after giving up 2 goals on the Rock’s first 2 shots, settled down and made several outstanding saves to keep the game close. He ended taking the loss despite making 16 saves on 20 shots.
“That’s one of the things we’re trying to evaluate right now,” said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. “Who can be that starter for us that’s going to give us consistent minutes, and who’s going to be able to come off the bench and stop those runs.”
After falling behind 2-0 in the first quarter, the Knighthawks battled back to tie teh game 3-3 on Caputo’s tally early in period two. However, the Rock responded by scoring the next 3 goals in the half for pull ahead, 6-3 and take control of the match.
Toronto outscored Rochester, 6-4, in the third quarter as the Hawks attempted a rally in the fourth, but came up short.
“I think tonight we got a little away from the game plan early in the third quarter and they took advantage of us,” said Hasen. “It’s just finding that consistency and learning to stick with it.”
Rochester’s next game is Jan. 11 against the Rock in Toronto.
“The good thing about the upcoming bye week is that we have them (Toronto) again coming out of it, so we’ll have an opportunity to evaluate and regroup,” said Knight.
*NOTES — Two Rock players played for the former Knighthawks franchise: Dan Dawson and Johnny Powless. Dawson became just the third player in NLL history to surpass the 1,400-point plateau in Toronto’s 13-6 win over San Diego on Dec. 14. He has 5 goals and 1 assist in the Rock’s previous 2 games…The expansion Knighthawks have a trio of players who suited for the Rock last season: Dan Lintner, Phil Caputo, and Jay Thorimbert. Three other Knighthawks also played for Toronto in previous years: Pat Saunders, Steve Fryer, and Turner Evans.