The Charlotte Hounds will be taking on the Rochester Rattlers for the first time this season and both will be looking to bounce back. This game comes after the Hounds defeated the Chesapeake Bayhawks two weeks ago and after the Rattlers fell to the Bayhawks last weekend. Charlotte was annihilated by the Denver Outlaws 21-7 last weekend in Colorado and need to regain some dignity. Rochester held their own but fell to the Bayhawks 13-7. Each team needs the win, especially Rochester to keep their playoff hopes alive after Boston fell to Denver last night.
Key’s to this game will be Rochester’s success to transition. They failed twice in a row last weekend, along with other times, and will need to pick it up against Charlotte. Roy Lang and Joel White will be the go to guys to clear the ball. John Galloway will need to be himself and make those ridiculous saves that he always makes. They will have to shut down Stephen Berger at the midfield and Matt Danowski on attack and once again guard the two-point arc.
Ned Crotty will need to play midfield if things start to go haywire for Rochester as he did against Chesapeake. Kevin Leveille will need to play like he did against Chesapeake and Steven Boyle will have to step up, along with Jordan MacIntosh and Rob Rotanz. Matt Striebel needs to attack the two-point arc and shoot constantly.
Charlotte will have to ride hard and force bad passes, while not making bad passes themselves. A huge aspect of the game will be goalie play. Adam Ghitelman has been good between the pipes for Charlotte as a first year starter. However, he has been inconsistent. If he plays like he did against Chesapeake, they will get the win. The Hounds defense will also need to step it up after leaving Adam out to dry a bunch of times against Denver.
On offense, the Hounds need the midfield and attack units to click. Dodge the shorties and go to the net. Tire out Galloway with lots of shots and make the defense work. Charlotte has lots of dodgers on the field and it may work to their advantage this game. Billy Bitter will need to come out of his shell tonight, with Berger, Josh Amidon and Jovan Miller dodging their defenders. Jerry Ragonese will be making his debut with the Hounds and it will be an interesting welcome home for him as he returns to Rochester. Look for him to play his best tonight.
The faceoff X is at the top of the list for both teams. Tim Fallon has done pretty well this season as Charlotte has struggled to find their faceoff guy. Geoff Snider may be able to help the Hounds get on track. He’s one of the best in the league and can help the Charlotte organization turn it around in the last few games of the season.
Both these teams can run and gun if they click. This will be a very well played game with, hopefully, lots of action in it.
Game will be aired on ESPN3 starting at 7 p.m. It will also be shown on local television on myTV12-WMYT.
