Knighthawks Get a Bandit Beating

It almost wasn't fair...almost...

The Rochester Knighthawks were dominated in every possible way by the Buffalo Bandits tonight at the HSBC Arena. There are those games where people are prone to say "Well, the score didn't indicate how the game was played." This was not one of them. With a final score of 23-6, this was one of those games where a team smelled blood at the start and didn't let up the whole night. It was a truly exhilarating thing to see.

I've never been to the arena for a blowout. The only hockey wins I've seen have been close ones, the majority in overtime. It was so great to feel comfortable for a whole game, to see HSBC rocking like that. I think the crowd covered every chant - "It's all over!", the Habs "Ole" chant, the goal count, singing "Sweet Caroline." I haven't lost my voice at a sporting event in a long time, and I've missed that.

Looking at the shots on goal was a humorous experience. The Bandits were actually outshot 55-54, showing just how good goalie Ken Montour was tonight.

Offensively, the Bandits used speed and great long passes to gain a number of breakaways. Mark Steenhuis scored eight goals in the win. Yes, I said eight goals, two more than Rochester had as a team. There is a reason this team won the NLL title last season; they are able to crush the other team's will to compete. After the third quarter, I was actually starting to wonder if a team could just forfeit; it was that painfully one-sided.

Not only did Buffalo dominate offensively and defensively, they pounded Rochester into submission physically. Brandon Francis picked up a well-earned game misconduct after the absolute demolition of a Knighthawk behind the Buffalo net, leaving to a standing ovation. Ian Llord got into another good scrap, throwing punches over the referee to get to the Rochester player. Steenhuis even got in on the action, landing a great punch for a skilled player during a little scrum while Llord was fighting.

Banditland was a great place to be tonight, and, for those of you who haven't gone to a game yet, you need to go as soon as you can (the next home game is on Valentine's Day).

Tomorrow night the Sabres can pick up another two points on Carolina with a win at the arena. I'll be at Shea's to see the final tour of RENT, so, unfortunately, I will not be able to jeer the 'Canes like I so love to do. Look for a post tomorrow spreading some more Paul Gaustad love, but, for now, anyone who hasn't read it should go check out Ryan from The Roost's tribute to Goose's leadership.