2020 Halifax Thunderbirds season
The Halifax Thunderbirds are a lacrosse team based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, that plays in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). the 2020 NLL season is their first season the NLL. They were formerly the Rochester Knighthawks but moved to Halifax, as Rochester gained an expansion franchise. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season was suspended on March 12, 2020.[1] On April 8, the league made a further public statement announcing the cancellation of the remaining games of the 2020 season and that they would be exploring options for playoffs once it was safe to resume play.[2][3]
2020 Halifax Thunderbirds | |
---|---|
League | NLL |
Division | North |
2020 record | 8-4 |
Home record | 6-1 |
Road record | 2-3 |
Goals for | 139 |
Goals against | 126 |
General Manager | Curt Styres |
Coach | Mike Accursi |
Arena | Scotiabank Centre |
← - 2021 → |
Regular season
Final standings
Reference: [4]
P | Team | GP | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | GF | GA | Diff | GF/GP | GA/GP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Halifax Thunderbirds | 12 | 8 | 4 | .667 | 0.0 | 6–1 | 2–3 | 139 | 126 | +13 | 11.58 | 10.50 |
2 | Toronto Rock | 11 | 7 | 4 | .636 | 0.5 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 122 | 106 | +16 | 11.09 | 9.64 |
3 | Buffalo Bandits | 11 | 7 | 4 | .636 | 0.5 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 130 | 118 | +12 | 11.82 | 10.73 |
4 | Rochester Knighthawks | 12 | 2 | 10 | .167 | 6.0 | 2–3 | 0–7 | 115 | 165 | -50 | 9.58 | 13.75 |
P | Team | GP | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | GF | GA | Diff | GF/GP | GA/GP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New England Black Wolves | 11 | 8 | 3 | .727 | 0.0 | 4–3 | 4–0 | 135 | 101 | +34 | 12.27 | 9.18 |
2 | Georgia Swarm | 12 | 7 | 5 | .583 | 1.5 | 2–4 | 5–1 | 149 | 126 | +23 | 12.42 | 10.50 |
3 | Philadelphia Wings | 14 | 8 | 6 | .571 | 1.5 | 3–3 | 5–3 | 151 | 134 | +17 | 10.79 | 9.57 |
4 | New York Riptide | 13 | 1 | 12 | .077 | 8.0 | 1–5 | 0–7 | 116 | 177 | -61 | 8.92 | 13.62 |
P | Team | GP | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | GF | GA | Diff | GF/GP | GA/GP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Saskatchewan Rush | 10 | 7 | 3 | .700 | 0.0 | 2–3 | 5–0 | 111 | 93 | +18 | 11.10 | 9.30 |
2 | Colorado Mammoth | 13 | 7 | 6 | .538 | 1.5 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 128 | 125 | +3 | 9.85 | 9.62 |
3 | San Diego Seals | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 | 2.0 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 138 | 131 | +7 | 11.50 | 10.92 |
4 | Calgary Roughnecks | 10 | 5 | 5 | .500 | 2.0 | 1–4 | 4–1 | 122 | 111 | +11 | 12.20 | 11.10 |
5 | Vancouver Warriors | 13 | 4 | 9 | .308 | 4.5 | 2–4 | 2–5 | 117 | 160 | -43 | 9.00 | 12.31 |
x: Clinched playoff berth; c: Clinched playoff berth by crossing over to another division; y: Clinched division; z: Clinched best regular season record; GP: Games Played
W: Wins; L: Losses; GB: Games back; PCT: Win percentage; Home: Record at Home; Road: Record on the Road; GF: Goals scored; GA: Goals allowed
Differential: Difference between goals scored and allowed; GF/GP: Average number of goals scored per game; GA/GP: Average number of goals allowed per game
Game log
Game | Date | Opponent | Location | Score | OT | Attendance | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | December 7, 2019 | New York Riptide | Scotiabank Centre | W 12–4 | 6,847 | 1–0 | |
2 | December 21, 2019 | Rochester Knighthawks | Scotiabank Centre | W 14–12 | 5,278 | 2–0 | |
3 | December 28, 2019 | @ Buffalo Bandits | KeyBank Center | W 15–10 | 13,576 | 3–0 | |
4 | January 11, 2020 | Colorado Mammoth | Scotiabank Centre | W 12–9 | 7,623 | 4–0 | |
5 | January 18, 2020 | San Diego Seals | Scotiabank Centre | W 8–5 | 7,219 | 5–0 | |
6 | January 25, 2020 | @ Calgary Roughnecks | Scotiabank Saddledome | W 15–12 | 15,362 | 6–0 | |
7 | January 31, 2020 | @ Toronto Rock | Scotiabank Arena | L 9–12 | 10,946 | 6–1 | |
8 | February 15, 2020 | Saskatchewan Rush | Scotiabank Centre | L 15–16 | OT | 8,833 | 6–2 |
9 | February 21, 2020 | Toronto Rock | Scotiabank Centre | W 9–8 | 9,337 | 7–2 | |
10 | February 29, 2020 | @ Buffalo Bandits | KeyBank Center | L 9–13 | 12,813 | 7–3 | |
11 | March 1, 2020 | @ New England Black Wolves | Mohegan Sun Arena | L 10–16 | 5,502 | 7–4 | |
12 | March 8, 2020 | Buffalo Bandits | Scotiabank Centre | W 11–9 | 8,359 | 8–4 |
Cancelled games
Game | Date | Opponent | Location | Score | OT | Attendance | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
13 | March 14, 2020 | @ Rochester Knighthawks | Blue Cross Arena | ||||
14 | March 28, 2020 | @ Rochester Knighthawks | Blue Cross Arena | ||||
15 | April 3, 2020 | @ Vancouver Warriors | Rogers Arena | ||||
16 | April 18, 2020 | Philadelphia Wings (2018–) | Scotiabank Centre | ||||
17 | April 19, 2020 | @ Georgia Swarm | Infinite Energy Arena | ||||
18 | April 25, 2020 | Toronto Rock | Scotiabank Centre |
Roster
2019-2020 Halifax Thunderbirds Roster - Website: https://www.halifaxthunderbirds.com/news/detail/thunderbirds-announce-inaugural-21-man-roster
Goaltenders
Defenseman
Forwards
- 17
Ryan Benesch
Transition
Practice
Injured
Head Coach
Assistant Coaches
- Chad Culp
- Jason Johnson
- Roger Chrysler
- Billy Dee Smith
Athletic Performance Coach
- Dan Noble
Equipment Manager
- Dave Sowden
Entry Draft
The 2019 NLL Entry Draft took place on September 17, 2019.[5] The Thunderbirds made the following selections:
Round | Overall | Player | College/Club |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 5 | Clarke Petterson | Cornell University (NCAA D1) |
1 | 14 | Trevor Smyth | Rochester Institute of Technology (NCAA D1) |
2 | 30 | Clay Scanlan | Six Nations Arrows (OJALL) |
3 | 38 | Nonkon Thompson | Akwesasne Indians (OJBLL) |
5 | 68 | Matt Dziama | Virginia University (NCAA D1) |
6 | 81 | Brad Fannell | St. Catharines Athletics (OJALL) |
References
- "NLL Statement on game play (March 12, 2020)". NLL.com. March 12, 2020. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
- "National Lacrosse League cancels remainder of season due to COVID-19". Sportsnet. Sportsnet.
- "National Lacrosse League announces cancellation of remaining regular season games". NLL.com. April 8, 2020. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
- "2020 National Lacrosse League Standings". Pointstreak Stats.
- "2019 NLL Draft Results". NLL.com. September 17, 2019. Retrieved February 1, 2017.