One of the perennial questions regarding lawn health is should lawns be rolled in Spring?
In short, NOOOOOOO!!!!
In WNY, most soil is a clay composite, with little natural organic matter. Spring brings rain and since clay does not drain very well naturally, you will usually see large ponds of water puddling all over.
If you were to press the upper layer of lawn with a heavy lawn 
roller, you actually cause unnatural compression that not only slows or stops natural water percolation but it will also make root hairs and earthworm passage harder.
What should you do instead?
When the lawn is drier, usually in Mid-May, hire or rent a coring 
machine. These will open cores of soil as they move across the lawn, creating openings for organic matter to fill in, thereby increasing the tilth and composition of the soil.