[MEDIA RELEASE]
UNCASVILLE, CT. (February 21, 2020) – The New England Black Wolves take on the Rochester Knighthawks at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 7pm. The Black Wolves are looking to grab their first win since defeating the Philadelphia Wings 8-7 in overtime on Jan. 26.
The Pack is also partnering with Fox61 for Hometown Heroes night to honor local heroes. With proper ID, military personnel and first responders can purchase a $16 ticket with a $5 food voucher at the box office. There will also be a food drive in partnership with United Way of Southeastern Connecticut. Fans are encouraged to donate non-perishable items to help fight hunger. Also, as a season-long Saturday special beer can be purchased for $5.
History: The Rochester Knighthawks are one of two teams in the 2019 NLL expansion. This will mark the first all-time matchup between the two opponents under the new ownership. Both teams are looking to get out of a three-game losing streak.
New England: The Black Wolves are looking to get back in the win column after suffering from three straight losses at the hands of Georgia, Vancouver and Philadelphia. Most recently, the team fell to the Wings 14-11 in an East Division rival on Sunday, Feb. 16.
Offense: Over the last few games, the Black Wolves offense has been struggling to produce. Joe Resetarits has been one Black Wolf to show up consistently. Resetarits, second on the team in scoring (15), has had seven goals in the last two games. Callum Crawford still leads the team with 19 goals and 24 assists and ranks sixth in the league in goals.
Defense: The defense has been the strongest component of the Black Wolves so far this season, including the team’s transition play. Greg Downing leads the defense with seven caused turnovers and Tony Malcom leads the team on transition with eight. He also has a team-high 57 goals and faceoff specialist Joe Nardella follows with 51. Nardella is currently is 64% on the mark after going 93-146.
Doug Jamieson has also held strong in the net early on this season. The fourth year goalkeeper has 296 saves in seven games and a .820 save percentage.
Rochester: The Knighthawks are currently 1-7 overall but have had four games come within a point including their sole win against reigning NLL Champions, the Calgary Roughnecks. Rochester is led offensively by Holden Cattoni (15), Shawn Evans (14), Phil Caputo (13) and Curtis Knight (12). Cattoni and Evans also lead the team in assists with 33 and 26, respectively.
On the other end of the floor, Matthew Bennett causes the most trouble for opponents. He leads the team with 10 caused turnovers, Ryland Rees and Darryl Robertson follow behind with six apiece.
Rochester’s Jay Thorimbert and Chris Willman have been the go-to guys on the X. Thorimbert has won 50-96 faceoffs while Willman is 36-90.
Craig Wende and Steve Fryer have split most of the time in the net for the Knighthawks. Wende has seen 219 minutes of action and has made 164 saves for a .744 save percentage. Fryer is close behind with 197 minutes, 136 saves and has a .747 save percentage.
Looking Ahead: New England will hit the road on Friday, Feb. 28 for the first time since Dec. 14. The Black Wolves will face the New York Riptide at 7:30pm at Nassau Coliseum. Then they will return home for Faceoff Against Cancer night on Mar. 1 at 5pm against Halifax.