The Saskatchewan Rush went on an 11-goal run in the second half of Saturday night’s game against the Ottawa Black Bears to earn a 16-7 victory in their final game of the season.
With the win, the Rush finish the season at 13-5, the same record as the Buffalo Bandits. However, the Bandits retain first place and home field advantage in the playoffs due to their win over the Rush during the regular season.
The Black Bears wrap up the season at 8-10, a game out of the playoff picture. A four-game losing streak from mid-February to mid-March may have been their undoing.
The Black Bears got off to a tremendous start, with leading scorer Jeff Teat notching a natural hat trick in the first five minutes of the game. Jake Stevens added another goal three-and-a-half minutes later to put Ottawa up by four, but the Rush finally got on the scoreboard 1:17 later when Austin Shanks got his first of the night. Saskatchewan would add two more late in the quarter to get themselves within one.
The defences tightened up in the second quarter, yielding just one goal each, with the Bears going to the locker room holding a one-goal lead, at 5-4.
The Rush tied the game less than a minute into the third quarter, but Ottawa was able to regain their lead three minutes later. That was when the Rush went on their tear—they tied the game 22 seconds later, then erupted for five unanswered goals in the quarter.
They continued their dominance going into the fourth quarter, scoring five more times, including three power play goals, running up a 16-6 advantage. The Black Bears managed to get one more goal in the final minute of play, but got no closer.
Robert Church led the way for the Rush with nine points, scoring a sock trick and adding three assists. Teat paced the Black Bears offence with his hattie and an assist.
Frankie Scigliano stopped 30 shots to earn the win while Zach Higgins made 47 saves in the loss.
While the Black Bears will be heading home to clean out their lockers, the Rush will be getting ready for their quarterfinal matchup with the Georgia Swarm (9-9)next Saturday, April 26. Saskatchewan won their only contest this year by a tight 8-7 margin.
