Rochester seeks a return trip to the Champion’s Cup series for the first time 4 years.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Knighthawks will continue their quest for a sixth championship when they travel to play the defending champion Georgia Swarm in the East Division Final on Saturday at 7:05 pm.
The top two teams in the East Division will meet in Duluth, GA. with a berth in the NLL Finals at stake. The Knighthawks will attempt to reach the finals for the first time in 4 years while denying Georgia the opportunity to defend its title.
“I am one step closer to making my childhood dream come true,” said Knighthawks second-year forward Kyle Jackson. “I cannot wait to lay it all on the line.”
Rochester was 2-1 against Georgia during the regular season, which included an 11-10 overtime win the last time the two teams met on March 10. The Knighthawks also won the previous meeting, 17-10, in Georgia on Feb. 11. That win sparked the current 9-2 run by the Knighthawks. Conversely, the setback was the Swarm’s last loss of the season. Georgia responded by stringing together 6 straight wins to clinch the first seed in the East Division Playoffs with an 11-7 record.
Rochester, who is the second seed in the East, advanced to the East Division Final after defeating the New England Black Wolves 15-11 Friday in the East Division Semifinal. The victory was Rochester’s 14th straight home playoff win, dating back to the 2006 season.
The Knighthawks are now one game away from playing in the NLL Final for a league-record 10th time after overcoming a 2-6 start to the season.
“I don’t think anybody else thought we could do this, but the guys in that dressing room and our coaching staff believed it,” said Knighthawks transition man Brad Gillies.
Playoff History: The game is the second-ever playoff meeting between the two franchises. On May 4, 2013, Rochester rallied to defeat the Swarm, who were then based in Minnesota, by a score of 12-10 in the East Division Finals. The Knighthawks, who were led by 5 points (1+4) from Cody Jamieson, would go on to win their second straight championship.
Broadcast Information: The game will be broadcast on 107.3 The Bull and the iHeartRadio app. The contest will also be streamed on Twitter at live.twitter.com/nll and simulcast on NLLTV.com.
Scouting the Knighthawks: Rochester is back in the postseason for the first time since the 2015 season. The Knighthawks got major contributions in their opening-round victory from their young forwards, as Kyle Jackson registered a 3-point night (2+1) and rookie Austin Shanks scored 4 times. Third-year pro Brad Gillies provided a big boost with 3 transition goals and one assist in his playoff debut. Veteran Joe Resetarits picked up where he left off in the regular season, leading Rochester in points with 6 (2+4). In goal, Matt Vinc made 49 stops to get within two of passing Pat O’Toole (802) for the most postseason saves in NLL history. Head coach Mike Hasen passed Darris Kilgour for fourth place in league history in postseason wins with the 13th of his career.
Captain America: Joe Resetarits set the NLL single-season record for points by a U.S.-born player with 100. The Hamburg, N.Y. native finished fourth in the league in points and tied for third in assists (63) with teammate Cody Jamieson and Toronto’s Rob Hellyer.
Holy Hossack: Defenseman Graeme Hossack ended the regular season tied for the league lead with 34 caused turnovers and was third with a career-best 163 loose balls.
Milestone Watch:
Matt Vinc needs two stops to pass Pat O’Toole (802) for first all-time in NLL postseason saves.
Vinc needs 33 saves to become the Knighthawks all-time postseason saves leader, passing O’Toole’s mark of 687.
Mike Hasen needs one more win to tie Troy Cordingley and Derek Keenan for second in NLL postseason victories with 14.
Cody Jamieson (24) needs five goals to move into second place in franchise playoff history.
Cory Vitarelli is two goals away from passing Duane Jacobs and moving into a tie for fifth place on the team’s all-time postseason list with 21.
Scouting the Swarm: Georgia has won six straight games, which helped it turn around a 5-7 season. The Swarm are trying to become the eighth team to repeat as NLL champions. During the regular season, Lyle Thompson led Georgia with 86 points and finished fourth in the league with 46 goals. Mike Poulin was second in the NLL with a career-high 692 saves.
NLL Final: The winner of the East Division Final will earn the right to play for the 2018 National Lacrosse League Cup. The Saskatchewan Rush will host the Calgary Roughnecks on Sunday, May 13 in the West Division Final. The team with the better regular season record will have the home field advantage in the Best-of-3 series.