Yesterday afternoon, the Syracuse Silver Knights released their schedule for the 2016-17 season. It features big match-ups with Harrisburg, Florida, and Baltimore as part of the new MASL Eastern Division along with fixtures against Milwaukee, Kansas City (formerly Missouri,) and Chicago. This afternoon, I talked with Silver Knight’s Head Coach Tommy Tanner about the new schedule and the upcoming season.
One of the bigger issues the Knights have encountered in the past few seasons has been travel and the expenses that come with it. However, Coach Tanner was pleased with the balance of the schedule, especially in the first few games. “We are going to be home from the middle of November all the way to December 3rd , so it will be good for the guys to get acclimated back to Syracuse and not have to worry about any travel until Game four.” With the way the season is laid out, Tanner noted they only have to fly three times, while games in Harrisburg and Baltimore will be reached by driving. One of the most critical parts of the schedule concerns facing off with the Baltimore Blast, the reigning Ron Newman Cup champions and the team who temporarily left the MASL in favor of their own new league. The Knights do not play Baltimore until the middle part of the season on December 29. After that, is not until the very last part of the season do the teams face off three games in a row, starting on February 19. An advantage or disadvantage for the Knights? “I would rather not want to play Baltimore in Game 17, 18, and 19 because those are normally so pretty important games at the end of the season,” Coach Tanner noted. “With only two teams from each division making the playoffs, it puts a big presence on winning games this year.” However, he also made a point to mention the league did a great job with the fact they were forced to work around conflicts with multiple teams sharing their arenas with other teams. “There are some new American Hockey League teams and some decent basketball teams in our buildings, so the schedules were tighter, I think that’s the way it worked out.” Another part of the schedule Coach Tanner was pleased with was the out of conference schedule. “I’m sure we have the toughest non-conference schedule in the league. The Midwest Division is a very strong division, it’s where out of conference games are. There are no easy teams in this league.” Aside from the schedule, I had to bring up free agency and the roster. The Knights have been rather quiet about transactions and roster moves while other teams are announcing them left and right. The only insight into this came this past week when JerJer Gibson made reference to himself and a couple other players (specifically Nate Bourdeau) getting ready for the upcoming season. Coach Tanner kept this quiet theme going today, not offering much concerning the roster. “We are going to have a bunch of announcements coming out this week and next week. We have 8-9 players signed already,” he reveled. “Hopefully we will be bringing in a couple of new players and signing the majority we have.” The home of the Silver Knights, the Onondaga County War Memorial, has been a topic in the news lately over renovations being brought on by the Syracuse Crunch. One of the Crunch’s changes is the addition of a party area in the stage end of the arena. Coach Tanner joked about this addition, having the stage end function as a party area since the Knights started using the War Memorial in 2011. However, he sees any improvements made by the Crunch as a positive for his team. Lastly, the Knights have been known for having several promotional nights and special jersey nights over the years. I asked Coach Tanner about what promotional plans are in store for this year. “I know for the home opener we have a special jersey, which is really cool,” he said enthusiastically. “It’s a wild one. We will also have three charity jerseys this years.” He also mentioned that fan created jerseys are going to hit the team website soon where fans can vote on which one the Knights will wear throughout the year. The Knights begin their season on Novemeber 18th when they host the Harrisburg Heat at the War Memorial. Game time is set for 7:30pm. Check in with the latest news on the Syracuse Silver Knights leading up to opening night at their website, their social media sources, and right here at The Fair Cuse Sports Report. Syracuse Silver Knights 2016-17 Schedule November 18: vs. Harrisburg Heat 7:30pm November 26: vs. Florida Tropics 7pm December 2: vs. Cedar Rapids Rampage 7pm December 10: at Harrisburg Heat 7:05pm December 17: at Milwaukee Wave 6:05pm December 18: at Chicago Mustangs 3:05pm December 23: vs. Harrisburg Heat 7:30pm December 29: vs. Baltimore Blast 7:00pm January 6: vs. Harrisburg Heat 7:30pm January 20: at Kansas City Comets 7:35pm January 21: at Cedar Rapids Rampage 7:05pm January 27: at Harrisburg Heat 7:35pm January 29: vs. Chicago Mustangs 1:00pm February 3: vs. Milwaukee Wave 7:30pm February 11: at Florida Tropics 7:05pm February 12: at Florida Tropics 5:35pm February 17: at Baltimore Blast 7:35pm February 19: at Baltimore Blast 4:05pm February 24: vs. Baltimore Blast 7:30pm February 26: vs. Florida Tropics 4:00pm Thanks/Credit: Tommy Tanner- Syracuse Silver Knights Head Coach syracusesilverknights.com: Home of the Syracuse Silver Knights maslsoccer.com- Home of the Major Arena Soccer League |
Nicholas Episcopo
Broadcasting Graduate Archives
November 2018
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