Tonight the Edmonton Rush, 8-5 and second place in the West division, host the 5-8 Colorado Mammoth. The Rush are trying to extend a 5 game win streak, all of which being on the road.
They have been lead on this win streak by Ryan Ward (64pts, 19g, 46a) and rookie sensation Mark Matthews (59pts, 35g, 24a). Matthews is part of a 3-way tie for second in the league in goals scored this season, behind Colorado’s John Grant Jr.
The Rush also have a strong defense this season, Kyle Rubish leads the league in forced turnovers with 35 and Brett Mydske comes in at fourth on the list with 19. Goaltender
Aaron Bold is strong between the pipes with a 10.51 goals against average, which puts him third in the league.
The Mammoth will have to have a great game on the road tonight to knock off the strong Rush and end their 5 game win streak. Last weekend John Grant Jr surpassed Hall of Famer and lacrosse legend Gary Gait, whose jersey hangs in the rafters of the Pepsi Center for third all time in points (1,167). He is also sixth all time in assists and third all time in goals.
Cameron Holding and Joey Cupido lead the Mammoth in forced turnovers each with 17 and
Tye Belanger boasts a .772 save percentage. All three will have to have great games to give the Mammoth offense a change to score more that the Rush.
Belanger has not faced Mark Matthews yet in his career, he will do his best to try to keep him from matching the 5 goals and 1 assist he put up the last time these two teams played and keep the Mammoth’s playoff hopes alive.
