The wait will soon be over for Rochester Knighthawks fans. Tonight at 7:30 p.m., the Knighthawks will raise their 2012 National Lacrosse League Championship banner to the rafters of The Blue Cross Arena.

Rochester (0-1) enters the game in search of its first win after suffering a one-goal loss in Washington two weeks ago. Buffalo (1-1) also opened the 2013 season with a road loss, but responded with a come-from-behind victory last Saturday over Minnesota.

“I have some mixed emotions,” said Rochester defenseman Mike Kirk. “I think we all remember that was last year and we’ve all moved on to 2013. We’ll take the banner and have that moment, but we’re really looking forward to battling with Buffalo.”

Rochester leads the all-time regular season series versus Buffalo, owning a 26-19 record. The Knighthawks also have a 16-8 mark at home against Buffalo. The game Saturday is the first of four times the Western New York lacrosse rivals will play each other this season.

Rochester owns a 9-9 all-time record in home openers and has dropped its last two openers on home turf. Coincidently, Rochester’s last home-opening win was in 2010 against the Bandits.

Fans can catch the tonight’s game on Sportsradio 950 ESPN, online at www.sportsradio950espn.com or through a mobile device by downloading the TuneIn app. The game will also be televised on the Time Warner Cable Sports Channel and aired live on The Lacrosse Network.

“We did not play very well [in opener] and we have to be better in Week 3 against Buffalo,” said Rochester Head Coach Mike Hasen, whose team lost 13-12 on the road to the Washington Stealth in Week 1. “As [Kirk] said, we’ll take a moment to relish what we did last year, but we got a long road ahead of us.”

During tonight’s game, fans help the Knighthawks raise money for the fallen and injured West Webster firefighters. The dance team will sell raffle tickets throughout the game with the proceeds from the 50-50 drawing going to benefit the families of the firefighters affected by the tragic events on December 24th. Knighthawks forward Dan Dawson, who works as a firefighter in Brampton, Ontario, was among the three players that visited the firehouse today.

The Knighthawks will present a check to the West Webster Fire Department prior to the game on Saturday, January 26th against the Toronto Rock. That evening, the Knighthawks are also offering complimentary tickets to all first responders via The Blue Cross Arena Box Office.