The Rochester Knighthawks: Generous Early Returns

By Josh Blumenthal

The 2000 NLL Championship featured the same teams as the 1999 NLL title game, and, to the dismay of the Rochester Knighthawks, the same outcome. Rochester overcame countless scoring deficits during the action packed contest but had no time to make up Toronto's final lead. The Rock led by two goals at two different times in the fourth quarter, but Casey Powell and John Grant led the Khawks persistent comebacks and tied the game in the last minute on consecutive goals by the duo.

    


    
With 30 seconds left in regulation, Rochester veteran Tim Soudan took a potentially championship-winning shot. Bob Watson made the save and Toronto held the ball for a last second shot, literally. With one second left, Kaleb Toth scored the game-winning goal to kill the Rochester comeback and give Toronto back-to-back NLL titles. The Knighthawks players were dejected by the loss, but the young and talented squad will likely have many opportunities to play for Championships in the future.




In 1995, Gary Gait's overtime goal for Philadelphia in the league's first championship broke the hearts of a young Rochester team. Two years later they won a championship. The 2001 team is, once again, young and coming off of a Championship loss, or two. After choosing 1st in both the 1998 and 1999 drafts, the Knighthawks fielded a team with less experience as an investment in future years. The team overachieved in the eyes of many and made it to the last two championships in what were supposed to be "building years". How's that for early return on investment? Add that the 1999 pick, Casey Powell, is a two-year veteran, having led all NLL rookies in 1999 scoring and was the team's sixth leading scorer in 2000. And factor in that the 2000 pick, John Grant Jr. earned Rookie of the Year honors and led the team with 37 goals and 40 assists as well as scoring 15 points in two playoff games, and you can easily understand why General Manager Jody Gage and Coach Paul Day felt confident enough to take some risks in this year's draft.


Gage and Day made selections that may land them with talent beyond their place in the draft hierarchy, but could also leave them empty handed. While not blessed with another number 1 pick this year, the Knighthawks may still have gotten lucky in this year's draft. But they won't know for a year.

Their top choice, Lindsay Pucket won't deliver until next season if he delivers at all. Josh Sims, the number two choice, is likely to be traded for logistical reasons.

With the 8th overall pick in this year's draft Rochester chose the 6'3" Peterborough, Ontario native, Lindsay Plunkett. Plunkett was third in the Western Lacrosse Association Jr. A League with 48 goals and 41 assists and his team won the Minto Cup, awarded to the best junior lacrosse team in Canada. "Lindsay might have been a much higher pick, but he is also a hockey star with the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League and may never play a game in the NLL," Gage says "We were very surprised that Lindsay was still around when we picked." He supposed that the chances of Plunkett choosing hockey over lacrosse may have inhibited earlier selectors but "with his great size and abilities, we took a gamble, but it was worth it." Plunkett still has another year in the junior league and won't be with the Knighthawks this winter. He will be making his decision in the spring and the Knighthawks hope he chooses lacrosse.


     
Josh Sims

Sims, the second draft choice for the Knighthawks, may not play in Rochester this year either. Gage says "Josh Sims was the next best player in the draft so we chose him. He will likely be dealt to a team like Washington so that he can play where he lives."

The Princeton star and 11th overall pick is from the Washington, DC area and would be a nice draw for the Power, who may have players that live in Canada and would prefer to play up north. "Josh was rated in the first round by our staff, so when he was left for us in the second, we had to take him. It was a great pick, but we expect that he'll never play in a Knighthawk uniform." Gage admits, though no specific trade talk information is available at this time.



The 'Hawks followed up the Sims pick with another Ivy League selection. They took Sean Steinwald from Cornell with their 2nd pick of the 2nd round. Steinwald, the 17th overall pick, scored 44 goals and collected 16 assists for the Big Red last season. Brian Barkow, who runs the Knighthawks Fan Central web site, thinks highly of Steinwald. "Look for Sean to get some significant playing time this year. After last year's heart breaking defeat, the 'Hawks are looking for a little more speed to counter against the run & gun style of the Toronto Rock."



Gage likes Stienwald too. "He has an unbelievable shot and grew up in Ottawa, so he has box experience. He could crack the lineup this year."


     
Scott Urick

The Khawks had two third round picks also. The took Marc Landriault from Burlington, of the OHA Jr. A League, with the 23rd overall pick and followed up three picks later with Georgetown's Scott Urick. Gage thinks both have a chance in the NLL, "Urick was a hockey player so he will adjust to the indoor game well.

Our coach, Paul Day, likes Scott's game and thinks he'll be a contributor. Landriault is a good scorer and and a good-sized lefty."

A few local players were drafted by the Knighthawks, as well. Jeff Franey from Elmira was taken in the fourth round. He was a four-year all-league selection for the ECAC Division III Upstate New York Runner-Up Soaring Eagles and he's a coveted left-hander. In the 5th round they drafted R.I.T.'s Craig Whipple, a native of Irondequoit and the brother of University of Maryland ('98) and Albany Attack star, Andrew Whipple.


John Grant

The Knighthawks showed their resurgent nature, not only in the Championship game, but also throughout last season, having made the playoffs at all after a 3-4 start. They reeled off six wins in a row to earn their spot in the final. If not for Toth's last second goal, the Knighthawks momentum going into this year would be immense. And unless that one precious goal did unseen emotional damage to some of the players, they should be a confident and determined team coming into this season.

Offensively the team has parity, but is quarterbacked by Grant, the only 2000 All-Pro. Curt Malawsky, Tim Soudan, Cory Bomberry and Duane Jacobs all had over 35 points last season and four others, including Casey Powell and Randy Mearns had 25 or more. Much of this is due to the bounty of distribution John Grant brings to a team. Passes that might not be assists to other players become assists once received by grant. Needle threaded feeds from nowhere find their way into teammates sticks for great chances every night on this team. Grant, whose father is a legend in the box game, is that special. Gage extols the talents of his star, "Grant is the ultimate box player. He shoots and passes as accurately behind his back as he does overhand. He had nine or more behind-the-back goals last year. Where Casey is speed, Johnny is power."



Along with being named the NLL Rookie of the Year and an NLL First Team All-Pro, Grant, who was E-Lacrosse's 1999 College Player of the year, set a new single-season franchise scoring record with 77 points, breaking Paul Gait's record of 65 set during the 1997 season. The Peterborough, Ontario native was twice awarded the Rookie of the Month, twice as the NLL Player of the Week and finished third in the NLL in points. This investment has already paid off for the Knighthawks as Grant will, in all likelihood, compete this year for NLL Player of the Year.

  
Casey Powell

Powell, while not in Grant's statistical stratosphere, was a huge factor for the Khawks at critical points in the 2000 season and has the skills to compete for a slot on the All-Pro team, as well.

"Casey is by far the most athletic player in the game. He can stop on a dime and change direction better than anyone. He is just so explosive," GM Gage says of Powell, whose brother Ryan was drafted in this year's 1st round by the Buffalo Bandits. "Casey's great when killing penalties or when you need the ball. Each year he's getting better and better at the indoor game. He has incredible fakes."

Jody Gage believes in the old saying "Defense wins championships," but he adds "and in box lacrosse, defense comes down to goaltending." The Knighthawks have two of the best keepers in the game with Pat O`Toole and Steve "Chugger" Dietrich. Dietrich was the starter in 1999, but was injured and O'Toole stepped in and performed well enough to earn the starting spot in 2000. Only Toronto's Bob Watson, ironically, was better last year and by the most slender of margins with a save average of 77.15% to O'Toole's 77.12%.


Pat O'Toole

"Steve Dietrich has been playing strong in the summer, and now the Knighthawks might have the best goalie combination with O'Toole and Chugger." Brian Barkow says. And Gage agrees, "Chugger had a great summer and is a great goaltender." The spot is O'Toole's to lose, according to Gage, but either way they have the best back-up in the league. The Khawks love their keeper tandem so much that they protected both in the recent expansion draft, which, by the NLL rules, left them only ten protected "runners". As a result Rochester lost a great two-way player and penalty killer, Dan Teat, to the Columbus Landsharks. Teat is the only real loss from last year's squad. In front of O'Toole and Dietrich are strong defenders Mike Hasen, Regy Thorpe, Brad MacArthur and Jeremy Hollenbeck. Each of these four defenders scored 11 or 12 goals last year to lend tremendous scoring support in the transition game.

Third year head coach Paul Day, who grew up in St. Catherine's and is a police officer during the week, doesn't want to change much this year - just the score of the final game. And the investment might just pay the ultimate dividend given the Khawks big-game experience level. Almost the entire team has one or two years of Championship experience while Soudan, Mearns, Jacobs and Dietrich have each played in 4. In such a highly competitive league this year, the Knighthawks should have what it takes to make it to the final game again in 2001. Not surprisingly, so do the Toronto Rock. Rochester, who opens camp on November 12, will be coming out hungry early in the season, knowing that the home rink advantage might be critical again this season. They will have to get a better start than in 2000 if this year's final is to be played at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester.



The Official Rochester Knighthawks web site


11/7/00

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