This is an installment in the 13-part, 2020 NLL season recap series.
Season Summary
2019-20 NLL Season Record: 2-10 (.167 win percentage)
You have to feel for the Rochester Knighthawks fanbase. Their original franchise moved to Halifax and finished the shortened 2020 season with the third best win percentage in the league and first place in the North Division. In turn, they inherited an expansion team that under performed for a better part of the season, and may not be trending upward next season.
Although on paper, picking up players the likes of Holden Cattoni, Shawn Evans and Curtis Knight were all great moves, the chemistry did not show on the floor. The team was also plagued by inconsistent goaltending from Craig Wende, Steve Fryer and Rylan Hartley, giving up an average of 13.75 goals per game. Unlike the Riptide, Rochester took the route of trying to build a competitor year one. Although some of the young defenders and transition players received really good, solid playing time during their rookie years, none of their top five scorers on offense are under the age of 25 (four are 26 or older). Although this is not exactly old, outside of a couple elite performances at the end of the season by Cattoni, this unit didn’t gel together during most of the season.
While this doesn’t mean the younger players they have on offense didn’t develop, we just didn’t get a sense of that this season as outsiders looking in. Another plus from this season, outside of the emergence of Cattoni as a true building block, was the second overall pick in the 2019 draft, Ryland Rees. As the top transition player on the team, Rees looks to be a key piece of their future, at one of the most important positions in the NLL.
Offensive Player of the Year
Cattoni proved to be able to make the move from a high performing, secondary option in Georgia and Calgary, to the number one man, fairly easily. There were certainly some speed bumps, but even during the bad offensive games, he was still producing big numbers. Finishing sixth in the league in scoring, ahead of former MVPs Mark Matthews and Lyle Thompson, is certainly a great start to his tenure in Rochester.
Defensive/Transition Player of the Year
For a rookie, even a highly touted one like Ryland Rees, to lead your team in loose balls and be second in caused turnovers, is really incredible. Going into the draft, I had Rees pegged as the second pick, although like a lot of people I had him behind Andrew Kew. It must have been really hard for Dan Carey and Mike Hasen to pass up on Kew, but being able to grab a talent as good as Rees at the transition position should help set the team up for success in the future.
Best Team Transaction
An underrated transaction this year was picking up Cam Milligan on waivers during the season. With all the criticism given to the team for earlier in this article, the former Peterborough Laker has the potential to be a very good NLL starter. He gives them the much needed flexibility to move on from a player such as Shawn Evans this offseason. This move could be even more important if the Knighthawks decide to use their draft picks on players who decide to go back to the NCAA for their extra year of eligibility. While Rochester will maintain those players’ rights, they won’t get an immediate impact out of them.
Biggest question entering the offseason
What will the team do with Shawn Evans? The two-time NLL MVP certainly had a good individual year, with 43 points in only 9 games. Carey has his first real tough decision to make as general manager. Trading Evans could land them a good haul if they find the right trading partner. For example, would Georgia be willing to part with a package centered around Zed Williams and/or Zach Miller for a player the caliber of Evans. Or, do they think he is worth keeping around to help work with Cattoni and whoever else they add to the mix as they seek to build a contender.
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