Saturday night the Edmonton Rush (5-4) hosted the Vancouver Stealth (4-5) in a game that would separate the two teams for first place in the NLL’s Western Division. The winner would walk away with the 1 game lead amongst the top three in an already tight race towards the top playoff spot.
The Rush came out of the gate on fire getting the first three goals of the game. Tyler Melnyk put the first one in the back of the net, followed by 2 consecutive goals from Mark Mathews for the quick lead. It would take over 8:00 for the Stealth to get on the board, as Joel McCready would put a stop to the Rush run. Ben McIntosh would score for the Rush to end the quarter 4-1, off an assist from whom else but Mark Mathews and Tyler Melnyk.
Stealth star Rhys Duch would get things started in the second quarter to close gap to 2. Edmonton would respond strongly with the games second 3 goal run with goals from Jeremy Thompson, Chris Corbeil, and Zack Greer. Tyler Digby and Ilija Gajic would stop the bleeding and close the gap of the ever-growing Rush lead. Robert Church would get on the board for the Rush, as Tyler Melnyk would score his second on the night as the Rush would head to the locker room with the impressive 9-4 first half.
Going into halftime it would be interesting to see if the Stealth would come out after getting punched in the mouth the first half, and counter back. The Rush answered those questions quickly as they would go on yet another 3-goal run to start the second half. Tyler Melnyk would get his hat trick to ignite the offense, followed by Mark Mathews and his hat-trick as well. Jeremy Thompson would respond with his second on the night. Justin Salt for Vancouver would finally put the Stealth on the board at the 8:58 mark. Edmonton would finally assert its dominance and score the final 4 goals of the 3rd quarter. Church would get his second, Cory Conway would get into the action, Mathews would get his fourth, and Corbeil would finish things off with his second on the night.
Down 16-4 entering the final frame the Stealth would need more than a miracle to pull off the win on the road. Just like the previous quarters Edmonton would win the board, their first goal from Melnyk with his fourth. Former Rush player Corey Small would score for Vancouver, followed by Rhys Duch with his second, then Small again to match Duch on the night in goals scored. Ben McIntosh would get his second for the Rush, as Church would score for the hat trick to end the action, Edmonton 19- Stealth 7.
Vancouver will host Colorado next week at the Langley Events center; they will also be hosting an online/in person jersey auction to support Lacrosse On The Move. Edmonton will head east to face the Toronto Rock in a preview of what could be the Championship Series, as both teams sit atop their divisions.
