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Breaking: League Adopts Unified Standings Format & Updated Playoff Structure for 2023-24 Season

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WK
1
Fri, Dec 1
19:00:00
Saskatchewan
Halifax
Fri, Dec 1
22:00:00
Albany
Las Vegas
Fri, Dec 1
22:00:00
Panther City
Vancouver
Sat, Dec 2
19:00:00
Calgary
Rochester
Sat, Dec 2
19:30:00
Philadelphia
New York
WK
2
Sat, Dec 9
19:00:00
Philadelphia
Toronto
Sat, Dec 9
19:00:00
Buffalo
Albany
Sat, Dec 9
19:30:00
Colorado
Georgia
Sat, Dec 9
20:00:00
Rochester
Saskatchewan
Sat, Dec 9
22:00:00
Calgary
San Diego
Sun, Dec 10
16:00:00
Las Vegas
Panther City
WK
3
Fri, Dec 15
22:00:00
Saskatchewan
Las Vegas
Sat, Dec 16
13:00:00
Albany
Philadelphia
Sat, Dec 16
19:30:00
Halifax
New York
Sat, Dec 16
19:30:00
San Diego
Buffalo
Sat, Dec 16
22:00:00
Georgia
Vancouver
WK
4
Fri, Dec 22
20:00:00
Toronto
Panther City
Fri, Dec 22
21:00:00
Georgia
Colorado
Sat, Dec 23
19:00:00
Vancouver
Rochester
WK
5
Fri, Dec 29
18:30:00
Philadelphia
Halifax
Fri, Dec 29
19:30:00
Georgia
Buffalo
Fri, Dec 29
22:00:00
Rochester
San Diego
Sat, Dec 30
16:00:00
New York
Toronto
Sat, Dec 30
21:00:00
Las Vegas
Calgary
Sat, Dec 30
21:00:00
Vancouver
Colorado
Sun, Dec 31
20:00:00
Albany
Saskatchewan
WK
6
Sat, Jan 6
19:00:00
Halifax
Albany
Sat, Jan 6
19:30:00
Panther City
Georgia
Sat, Jan 6
19:30:00
Colorado
Buffalo
Sun, Jan 7
15:00:00
New York
Philadelphia
WK
7
Fri, Jan 12
18:30:00
Toronto
Halifax
Fri, Jan 12
22:00:00
San Diego
Las Vegas
Sat, Jan 13
19:00:00
Buffalo
Rochester
Sat, Jan 13
19:00:00
Saskatchewan
Philadelphia
Sat, Jan 13
19:30:00
Panther City
New York
Sat, Jan 13
19:30:00
Albany
Georgia
Sat, Jan 13
21:00:00
San Diego
Colorado
Sat, Jan 13
22:00:00
Calgary
Vancouver
WK
8
Fri, Jan 19
19:30:00
New York
Buffalo
Sat, Jan 20
19:00:00
Georgia
Toronto
Sat, Jan 20
19:00:00
San Diego
Albany
Sat, Jan 20
20:00:00
Vancouver
Saskatchewan
Sat, Jan 20
21:00:00
Calgary
Colorado
WK
9
Fri, Jan 26
22:00:00
Colorado
Vancouver
Sat, Jan 27
18:00:00
Rochester
Halifax
Sat, Jan 27
19:00:00
Buffalo
Toronto
Sat, Jan 27
19:30:00
Georgia
New York
Sat, Jan 27
19:30:00
San Diego
Philadelphia
Sat, Jan 27
22:00:00
Panther City
Las Vegas
WK
10
Fri, Feb 2
19:00:00
Halifax
Philadelphia
Fri, Feb 2
19:30:00
Vancouver
Georgia
Fri, Feb 2
21:00:00
New York
Calgary
Sat, Feb 3
19:00:00
Las Vegas
Albany
Sat, Feb 3
19:30:00
Rochester
Buffalo
Sat, Feb 3
20:00:00
Panther City
Saskatchewan
Sat, Feb 3
21:00:00
Toronto
Calgary
Sun, Feb 4
18:00:00
Colorado
San Diego
WK
11
Fri, Feb 9
18:30:00
Las Vegas
Halifax
Fri, Feb 9
20:00:00
Colorado
Panther City
Sat, Feb 10
19:00:00
Georgia
Rochester
Sat, Feb 10
19:00:00
Calgary
Toronto
Sat, Feb 10
19:30:00
San Diego
New York
Sat, Feb 10
22:00:00
Saskatchewan
Vancouver
WK
12
Fri, Feb 16
18:30:00
Buffalo
Halifax
Fri, Feb 16
22:00:00
Philadelphia
Las Vegas
Sat, Feb 17
19:00:00
Colorado
Albany
Sun, Feb 18
19:00:00
Halifax
Calgary
WK
13
Fri, Feb 23
21:00:00
New York
Colorado
Fri, Feb 23
22:00:00
Georgia
San Diego
Sat, Feb 24
19:00:00
Las Vegas
Rochester
Sat, Feb 24
19:00:00
Vancouver
Toronto
Sat, Feb 24
19:30:00
Albany
Buffalo
Sat, Feb 24
20:00:00
Halifax
Saskatchewan
Sat, Feb 24
21:00:00
Philadelphia
Calgary
Sun, Feb 25
16:00:00
Georgia
Panther City
WK
14
Fri, Mar 1
19:00:00
Georgia
Halifax
Fri, Mar 1
20:00:00
San Diego
Panther City
Fri, Mar 1
22:00:00
Toronto
Las Vegas
Fri, Mar 1
22:00:00
Buffalo
Vancouver
Sat, Mar 2
13:00:00
Calgary
Philadelphia
Sat, Mar 2
19:00:00
New York
Albany
Sat, Mar 2
21:00:00
Saskatchewan
Colorado
Sat, Mar 2
22:00:00
Toronto
San Diego
Sun, Mar 3
16:00:00
Rochester
Panther City
WK
15
Fri, Mar 8
19:00:00
Vancouver
Albany
Fri, Mar 8
19:30:00
Calgary
Georgia
Fri, Mar 8
19:30:00
Saskatchewan
Buffalo
Sat, Mar 9
17:00:00
Colorado
Toronto
Sat, Mar 9
19:00:00
Albany
Rochester
Sat, Mar 9
19:30:00
Las Vegas
New York
Sat, Mar 9
22:00:00
Halifax
San Diego
Sun, Mar 10
15:00:00
Panther City
Philadelphia
WK
16
Fri, Mar 15
18:30:00
Panther City
Halifax
Fri, Mar 15
21:00:00
San Diego
Calgary
Fri, Mar 15
22:00:00
Las Vegas
Vancouver
Sat, Mar 16
19:00:00
Rochester
Albany
Sat, Mar 16
19:00:00
Toronto
Buffalo
Sat, Mar 16
19:30:00
Philadelphia
Georgia
Sat, Mar 16
20:30:00
New York
Saskatchewan
WK
17
Fri, Mar 22
20:00:00
Buffalo
Panther City
Fri, Mar 22
21:00:00
Albany
Calgary
Sat, Mar 23
19:00:00
Halifax
Toronto
Sat, Mar 23
19:00:00
Vancouver
Philadelphia
Sat, Mar 23
19:30:00
Saskatchewan
New York
Sat, Mar 23
21:00:00
Rochester
Colorado
Sat, Mar 23
22:00:00
Las Vegas
San Diego
Sun, Mar 24
17:30:00
Saskatchewan
Georgia
WK
18
Sat, Mar 30
13:00:00
Buffalo
Philadelphia
Sat, Mar 30
19:00:00
Halifax
Rochester
Sat, Mar 30
19:30:00
Toronto
New York
Sat, Mar 30
22:00:00
Vancouver
Las Vegas
WK
19
Fri, Apr 5
21:00:00
Saskatchewan
Calgary
Fri, Apr 5
21:00:00
Buffalo
Colorado
Fri, Apr 5
22:00:00
Panther City
San Diego
Fri, Apr 5
22:00:00
Halifax
Vancouver
Sat, Apr 6
19:00:00
New York
Rochester
Sat, Apr 6
19:00:00
Toronto
Albany
Sat, Apr 6
19:30:00
Las Vegas
Georgia
Sat, Apr 6
20:00:00
Calgary
Saskatchewan
Sun, Apr 7
16:00:00
Philadelphia
Panther City
WK
20
Fri, Apr 12
21:00:00
Philadelphia
Colorado
Sat, Apr 13
19:00:00
Rochester
Toronto
Sat, Apr 13
19:30:00
Calgary
Buffalo
Sat, Apr 13
20:00:00
San Diego
Saskatchewan
Sat, Apr 13
22:00:00
Colorado
Las Vegas
Sat, Apr 13
22:00:00
New York
Vancouver
Sun, Apr 14
16:00:00
Albany
Panther City
WK
21
Fri, Apr 19
19:30:00
Rochester
Georgia
Fri, Apr 19
22:00:00
Vancouver
San Diego
Sat, Apr 20
18:00:00
Colorado
Halifax
Sat, Apr 20
19:30:00
Albany
New York
Sat, Apr 20
20:00:00
Toronto
Saskatchewan
Sat, Apr 20
21:00:00
Panther City
Calgary
Sat, Apr 20
22:00:00
Buffalo
Las Vegas
Sun, Apr 21
15:00:00
Philadelphia
Rochester
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Game Recaps

Recap: Knighthawks Drop Season Opener

By Jeremy Pike / NLL.com Correspondent 

Photo by Micheline V / Rochester Knighthawks

In a battle of new-look rosters to open the 2017 National Lacrosse League season, the Toronto Rock defeated the Rochester Knighthawks 12-5 in front of 8,137 fans at the Blue Cross Arena Thursday night. Forward Brett Hickey led all scorers with five points (3+2). Josh Currier (1+1) and Quinn Powless (2+0) led the Knighthawks with two points apiece.

New Toronto head coach Matt Sawyer was understandably pleased with his team’s performance against the rival Knighthawks.

“It’s obviously a nice win to start the season for us,” said Sawyer. “It’s every team’s goal in their first game. We put a lot of work into this the last six weeks, and that’s why we have the commitment we have. You put the work into it the way you do, and it’s good for the guys to be rewarded with a win here tonight.”

The first quarter could have been a commercial for what makes box lacrosse amazing as both teams flew up and down the BCA turf creating havoc with hits and scoring chances. The quarter fittingly ended in a 3-3 tie in what was an evenly-matched battle.

However, the second quarter was decidedly one-sided as Toronto picked apart the Knighthawks in transition en route to six goals in the quarter. Rochester was unable to slow down the Rock and was only able to muster one goal, entering halftime down 9-4.

“It was great,” said Rochester forward Dan Dawson. “They got 3-1, got 3-3. Then all of a sudden, we have a lull of 15 minutes and we’re behind 9-4. That’s the way lacrosse is.”

“It’s tough, right?” said Knighthawks defender Joel Matthews. “You also don’t want to put blame on anyone, because every loss is a team thing. I just think it comes down to little things like competing. I don’t think we were running to the bench hard enough. Offense off, defense off. So they were catching us in transition that way. Loose balls, I think we just got out-worked. Honestly, it sounds bad to say, but at the end of the day, I think they just out-worked us. They earned this one.”

“In the second quarter, our compete level we kind of dropped that a little bit,” said Rochester head coach Mike Hasen. “We left a lot of loose balls on the floor. That’s the game of lacrosse and it nipped us in the (butt) tonight.”

“We feel that’s the way the game of lacrosse is supposed to be played,” Sawyer said. “We want to play an up-tempo style. We expect everyone on the floor to contribute on offense. Just because you’re a defender and coming out the backdoor, doesn’t mean they’re not expected to be in the offense. You saw that tonight. A lot of times it’s just somebody committing to get to the bench hard or making the proper read, and that can be just as important as putting the ball in the net.”

“We know we have speedy guys on the backend of our defense to push the ball the ball in transition,” said Rock forward Brett Hickey. “That’s what won us the game. I think in the first half there, we had six or seven of our goals were in transition.”

“Tonight was one of those nights where you got outworked,” Dawson said. “That’s inexcusable. It showed with the score. If you look at the stat line, I guarantee you they out loose-balled us. They outshot us. They killed us in transition. Their special teams were better than us. You aren’t winning any games in this league no matter who you are if you’re behind in every stat line.”

Just as Dawson guaranteed, Toronto did win on the stat sheet. The Rock claimed 79 loose balls to Rochester’s 62. Goalie Nick Rose faced 48 shots while the Knighthawks goalies (Matt Vinc was briefly pulled for Angus Goodleaf for the final 1:31 of the first half) faced 56 shots. On offense, Hickey and Kasey Beirnes played a large role in the domination.

“They’re big keys, especially tonight without Stephan Leblanc,” Sawyer said. “The three of them are what we call our ‘returning veterans.’ Brett, Kasey, and Steph when he’s healthy back there are guys we’re going to lean on, and they’re expected to contribute and put the ball in the net every night. We need that from them. Tonight was a good start.”

“It feels good to be back,” Hickey said about missing time at the end of the 2016 season. “I know what I bring to the team is goal scoring. There’s a few chances I probably want back, but I was happy I was able to contribute to the win, help out, and get a few on the board. Kasey’s done it for his whole career, getting the ball in the dirty areas and putting it in the net. He’s a leader and a voice on this team.”

Toronto locked down the Knighthawks’ offense who were without star forward and 2014 Most Valuable Player Cody Jamieson, along with Cory Vitarelli and Stephen Keogh. Rochester only had three returning offensive players on the floor against the Rock in Dan Dawson, Joe Resetarits, and Powless. Dawson and Resetarits were held to one assist each.

However, Rochester feels like the issues that manifested in the loss are correctable.

“We say in the room ‘everything is correctable’,” Dawson said. “It’s things that we can control. They deserved to win tonight. They were the better team, but a lot of that was on us. Getting beat to the bench, getting beat in transition, not finishing our chances, not making saves, not executing on the power play. Those are correctable things in the game, and that’s the positive side of tonight. You do have to take positives away from it. We still got chances. But we have to correct these things real quick. It’s 18 games, now it’s 17 and you’re 0-1. You’ve got to get back to 1-1 next week.”

The Knighthawks return to the turf at the Blue Cross Arena Saturday January 7 at 7:30 pm to host the New England Black Wolves. The Rock get a week off then host the defending Champion’s Cup winner Saskatchewan Rush on Saturday January 14 at 7:30 pm. 

NLL