TORONTO — After winning three consecutive National Lacrosse League championships, the Rochester Knighthawks got bounced in the division final in 2015 and missed the playoffs in 2016, and that downward trajectory induced so many changes that only nine men remain from the group that last hoisted the Champion’s Cup.

Now, after a 9-8 victory over the Toronto Rock, the rebuilt Knighthawks are confident they are on the way back up.

 “We’ve made a lot of changes,” head coach Mike Hasen said outside the visitors’ dressing room Saturday night. “We’ve turned the page. We know the embarrassment we felt in our room last year. We’re going to feed off that and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Having one of the best goaltenders in pro indoor lacrosse history makes a return to the playoffs possible. Toronto outshot Rochester 57-32. Matt Vinc, the NLL Goaltender of the Year five of the last seven years, became the sixth player to reach 6,000 career saves. He joined Anthony Cosmo (6,821), Bob Watson (6,471), Pat O’Toole (6,464) and Dallas Eliuk (6,356).

Vinc, with 6,041, was asked what it signified to enter such a select circle.

 “It signifies that I am getting older,” he said with a laugh. “To do it with Rochester in front of a lot of family members is definitely special. At the end of the game, it means a lot more that we got the win. We’re just happy to walk away with a 2-2 record.”

Vinc, 34, is a high school teacher in St. Catharines, which is a 90-minute drive around the west end of Lake Ontario from Air Canada Centre. The Canisius College grad has won world championship gold as the Canadian indoor goalie and as a long-pole defenseman outdoors. He was busy Sunday marking exams while content in the knowledge his Knighthawks atoned for a 12-5 home loss to the Rock in the league’s curtain raiser Dec. 29.

Rochester led 8-4 in the third quarter and fended off a Toronto rally.

 “As a veteran player, you try to have a lot of self-talk and make one save at a time,” Vinc said. “I liked our pushback. When they got on a run, we got a huge timely goal from a young kid, Kyle Jackson. That was a big goal for us.”

Jackson’s goal at 6:10 of the fourth quarter was the winner. He now has four goals and 13 assists for a team-best 17 points. When Jackson, 23, was drafted seventh overall last September, he became the first University of Michigan player selected in an NLL entry draft. He’s from Sarnia, Ontario, which is across the Bluewater Bridge from Port Huron, Michigan.

Dan Dawson returned to the lineup after a three-week absence and Cody Jamieson and Andrew Suitor dressed for their first games of the season, and the rookie was thrilled about the experience of being on the floor with the accomplished veterans.

 “It was awesome, a dream come true, to get to play with those three guys,” Jackson said. “And it was awesome to get into my first game in the ACC. I came to a fair amount of Rock games when I was younger. Family and friends were here. I like the chemistry we have as a team. There’s no one guy we focus on to do the dirty work or to get the goals. It’s a team effort day in and day out and that’s something I definitely cherish on this team.”

Dawson, 36, a firefighter in his other life, shed light on being away from the team.

 “My wife gave birth to twins and I just needed to be with family,” he said. “They came a little bit early, so we were in the hospital for a little bit.”

Welcome to the world, Kai and Brooks. Dawson was holding their big brother in his arms when he was asked about the win.

 “That’s on the defense and Vno (Vinc),” he replied. “We know one of the keys to stopping Toronto is shutting down transition. We did an OK job, and the defense and Vno bailed us out a lot.”

Jamieson, 29, a two-time Champion’s Cup MVP and former NCAA star at Syracuse, assisted on his team’s first two goals and left the game. He tore up his left knee in summer ball and the leg wasn’t feeling quite right after his first game action since helping Six Nations win a Canadian amateur title in September.

 “He felt a twinge and wasn’t going to push it any further,” Hasen said.

The presence of Dawson and Jamieson helped the offense jump to a 3-0 lead in the first seven minutes.

 “Cody and Daws are our leaders on the front end and in our room, so it was great to have that emotional boost to get us started,” Hasen said.

Suitor, 27, also had a long road back after a second serious knee injury last April.

 “It’s been a long time,” he said of the wait for the green light from team doctors. “My plan is to stay back in. It was a great crowd out there and we were playing a great team, so it was fun battling out there. I feel healthy. I feel like I’m back to both legs being strong. I have to take my hat off to Stephen Lobsinger, Dave Sowden, Dan Noble and our entire training staff. Their commitment to success and the way they push you and drive you is remarkable. They’re cautious with you while still being motivational. I really can’t say enough about them. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.”

Veteran defenseman Paul Dawson can see things coming together.

 “We’ve injected some new blood,” he said. “From an organizational standpoint, they wanted to get a little bit younger and that’s what we did. We’re still kind of gelling. We’re not done yet. And it’s nice to get big brother back in the lineup. He’s got to take care of his family first, but now everything is good and we can go forward with a steady lineup.

 “The first time we played Toronto, maybe that was rust. This game, this is how we’re going to win — by being gritty and by giving 110 percent the whole time. That was a big focus right from the morning shoot-around. It’s something we’ve got to focus on for the rest of the year.”

 “It was huge,” Joe Resetarits said after his four-goal contribution. “We’ve split with [Toronto] now and games within the division are huge, especially going into their barn. They’re playing well. We went in with a great attitude. We knew it was a must-win game.”

Added defenseman Scott Campbell: “That’s the hustle that we need as a group to win games. We’re not that three-championship team anymore. We’ve moved on from that. We’ve retooled. We’re younger and faster. Hopefully, we’ll have success with these guys. We’re moving in the right direction, for sure.”