City: Rochester, New York
Head Coach: Tim Soudan (Fifth Year)
Stadium: Wegmans Stadium
Returning Top Scorer: Jordan Wolf
2015 Record: 8 – 6
For the past two seasons, the Rochester Rattlers have made it to the Final Game just to come up short. Fighting tooth and nail last season and being the favorite in the season prior, the team from the Flower City, who last hoisted the Cup in 2008 before being repackaged, relocated, and eventually resurrected, have come up just short in two, equally contested contests amongst the Denver Outlaws in 2014, and the New York Lizards in 2015. As the 2016 Major League Lacrosse season is set to begin, third time’s hopefully the charm as Head Coach Tim Soudan has made serious moves and acquisitions to ensure that simply reaching the Final Game and putting on a show, a feat alone more valuable than personal accolades and performance achievements, isn’t the only thing Rochester can do.
And it ALL starts with the O, or should I say the X? The biggest move of the 2016 season so far has got to be the return of Former Duke Star and Tewaaraton Award Winner Ned Crotty. The best player for Rochester in 2011, Crotty was an integral part of New York’s run to the Championship last season, and his return to the Rochester lineup gives some serious matchup scenarios for Tim Soudan to exploit. Losing some key players in the latter half of 2015 to the newly formed Atlanta Blaze, Rochester has shored up its defenses by drafting defenesemen Matt Dunn from Maryland and Hometown Hero Blaze Riorden from UAlbany.
Along with two other defensemen, one other goal keeper, and the return of veteran Matt Streibel, plus others from both the college and supplemental draft, Rochester is looking to have one thing it didn’t have last year: options.
Shoring up the defense that was hammered by the loss of 2014 MLL Defensemen of the Year Mike Manley, Rochester’s move to acquire more defensemen and more midfielders whilst still boasting an incredible attack that is not only a way to amplify the team without losing their playing style, but making sure that the team is ready to go from the first whistle to the end of the regular season. In seasons prior, the box-heavy lineup of the Rattlers had them weakened in earlier parts of the season, (which makes their dominating run in 2014 all the more incredible).
With that in mind, the coaching staff’s moves are indicative of one thing; the Rattlers much rather start the season off as strong as everyone else, and with teams doing whatever they can to become stronger than the season prior, if the 2015, and even the 2014 version of the Rattlers are not strong enough to win the cup, there has to be serious changes, which is possibly the impetus behind the decision to trade off players like Mark Matthews, Mark Cockerton, and Randy Staats. The message is clear: Tim Soudan will not allow anymore badly-dealt hands to seriously affect his team. For this prideful team who has been to the summit before, reaching the Final Game to lose is not a disappointing but hard-fought game, but an embarrassment that should not happen again. It is Championship or nothing this time for the team from Flower City.
The season will kick off on April 23rd with what is possibly one of the more important games of this upcoming season, a rematch with the reigning champions from New York. The Season Home Opener is set for May 28th, where the Rattlers will host the Chesapeake Bayhawks.
