Rochester hosts the Wings on December 27th

(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Knighthawks open their historic 10th
season of professional lacrosse against a longtime rival, the
Philadelphia Wings. Rochester plays its National Lacrosse League home
and season opener on Saturday, December 27th at 7:35 p.m. at the Blue
Cross Arena at the Rochester War Memorial.

The game is one of two during the opening weekend of the National
Lacrosse League. The night before, Arizona hosts Vancouver in the
season opener on Friday, December 26th.

The K-Hawks enter the 2003-04 season as one of four teams remaining
in the East. Rochester will join the Philadelphia Wings, Buffalo
Bandits and the two-time defending NLL champion Toronto Rock in the
East Division. Rochester will play each divisional opponent four
times – twice at home and twice on the road – with the rest of the
schedule based on the previous season's record.

The remaining six teams will form the West Division. This season, the
NLL has franchises in Anaheim, Arizona, Calgary, Colorado, San Jose
and Vancouver. Three of the franchises are relocated teams from last
season. The New Jersey Storm moved to Anaheim; Albany relocated to
San Jose; and Columbus headed to Arizona.

Last season, the K-Hawks (12-4) won the Central Division and regular
season title and advanced to the NLL Finals. But the road to the
finals this season will be arduous for the Knighthawks, who are
trying to make the playoffs for the 10th time in franchise history.

Rochester plays the nine games against teams that advanced to the NLL
Playoffs (four against Buffalo, four against Toronto and one against
Colorado). In addition, the Knighthawks' schedule includes 15 of 16
games against teams that had a record of .500 or better last year.

Rochester also added some new stops for its eight-game road schedule.
The K-Hawks fly to Anaheim and Arizona this season as part of a two-
game Western road trip in March. The Knighthawks open trip with a
10:30 p.m. start at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim on Friday, March
5th and conclude the two-game stretch at the new Glendale Arena in
Arizona on March 6th.

The K-Hawks conclude their season-high three-game road trip the
following week in Toronto on Friday, March 12th at 7:30 p.m. at the
Air Canada Centre.

After spending two weeks away from The Blue Cross Arena, Rochester
returns home for its longest homestand of the season. The Knighthawks
host the Colorado Mammoth on Saturday, March 13th and battle the
Buffalo Bandits on Saturday, March 20th.

For further information, call the Knighthawks Communications Office
at (585) 454-5335, ext. 3008.