K-hawks try to silence Wings' offense again

Knighthawks hope to bounce back vs. Philadelphia after last week's loss

K-hawks at Wings Where: First Union Center. When: 7:30 p.m. Radio: WYSL-AM (1040). Knighthawks update: Offense tied for second in NLL at 16.6 goals per game, defense is second at 12.2... . K-hawks are 2-5 all-time in Philly, and 5-8 overall record against Wings is their only losing mark against an active NLL franchise... . John Grant leads team in scoring and is tied for fourth in league (24-31--55). Derek Malawsky (16-36--52) and Shawn Williams (20-24--44) are next on team... . Goalie Pat O'Toole is second in NLL goals-against (12.74). Wings update: Defending NLL champs have won three in a row to rebound from 1-3 start... . Wings tied for seventh in offense (14.0) and tied for sixth in defense (14.6)... . Tom Marechek leads team in scoring (20-23--43), followed by Kevin Finneran (18-18--36), Jeff Ratcliffe (21-8--29) and Jake Bergey (13-15--28)... . Goalie Dallas Eliuk has an unusually high (for him) GAA of 14.49 but is coming off a 43-save effort vs. Buffalo.

By Sal Maiorana
Democrat and Chronicle

(Friday, February 1, 2002) -- It's The Sopranos night at the First Union Center in Philadelphia as the Wings will be showing clips of the hit HBO organized crime series on the scoreboard throughout their National Lacrosse League game against the Rochester Knighthawks.

The last time these two teams met -- on Dec. 15 in Rochester -- the Knighthawks did a rather impressive impersonation of the hit men in The Sopranos as they silenced the Wings' offense.

Philadelphia's leading scorers, Tom Marechek and Jake Bergey, fired a combined 42 shots at the Rochester net but scored a mere two goals during the Knighthawks' 15-10 victory.

"They were awfully good against us the first time," first-year Wings coach Adam Mueller said of the Rochester defense.

"Jake and Tom went 2-for-42 shooting, and I don't think those guys have been held to 2-for-42 shooting ever.

"They definitely did a great job on them."

As the Knighthawks (7-2) look to bounce back from a 14-9 loss in Toronto last week which snapped their franchise record-tying six-game winning streak, defense will again be their main focus against the Wings (4-3).

All season Rochester's defense has been stellar, ranking second only to perennial defensive powerhouse Toronto.

Perhaps the Knighthawks' signature game was the throttling of the defending NLL champion Wings.

Philadelphia had just three goals at the half.

"They have basically three or four set plays and you can kind of tell what they're going to do," said Knighthawks defender Casey Zaph.

"We sat at practice for half an hour before that game and were saying 'If he comes this way, this is what you do.' When you can anticipate the play, the help side can come over and hit them."

That night at Blue Cross Arena, Marshall Abrams had a particularly effective game for Rochester, using his size and agility to prevent Marechek and Bergey from getting into a flow.

"Marshall's big enough to handle Bergey and Marechek," Zaph said.

"He did a great job."

Mueller said his team's ball movement will have to improve if the Wings are going to crack Rochester's defensive shell. Also, other players will have to be get involved in the offense. In the first meeting Jeff Ratcliffe picked up some of the slack with four goals while veteran Kevin Finneran had three goals and three assists.

"We just need to move the ball, get them moving their feet a little more," he said.

The Wings were idle nearly a month after the Rochester game. Their only scheduled game in a four-week span was postponed in Buffalo because of the holiday snowstorm.

Since their return to action, the Wings lost a shootout to New York, 21-18, but have since won three in a row over New York, New Jersey and Buffalo to get back into the playoff hunt. Against the high-scoring Bandits, the Wings allowed only seven goals.

"That was a great defensive effort by our team and our goalie (Dallas Eliuk, who did not play against the Knighthawks)," Mueller said.

"To hold that offense to seven goals, that's not going to happen very often."

Now the Wings have another big challenge as Rochester's offense ranks tied for second in the NLL at 16.6 goals per game.

"We need to stay out of the penalty box, try not to let them run and not let them get rebounds," Mueller said. "That will be the key for us."

The Knighthawks last week faced the Rock in front of more than 18,000 rowdies in Toronto. Tonight, a crowd in the 14,000 range will be on hand in Philadelphia.

"This is a team that's very capable of that," Rochester assistant coach Guy Van Arsdale said of the Knighthawks' ability to bounce back from the disappointment in Toronto.

"We have guys with tons of experience and they've been used to taking one on the chin and getting back up and swinging the next weekend. This is not the kind of team that gets its lunch taken away and doesn't fight back."