Following a home and home series with the Colorado Mammoth, the Edmonton Rush have taken over the lead spot in the Western Division after capturing both wins. Now sitting at a 4-2 record, the Rush will head into Week 8 of NLL league play taking yet another break. With the two losses, Colorado has fallen to second place with a 3-3 record.
The first clash that took place in Denver on Friday night proved to be a true showing of the league’s best defense matched against the league’s best offence. The Rush edged the Mammoth by a score of 11-7 in front of a crowd of 16,082 at the Pepsi Center.
At the end of the first quarter, the game was tied 3-3, including a pair of goals from Rush sniper Mark Matthews. It didn’t take long into the second half of the game for Matthews to complete his hat trick, making the score 4-4. The third and fourth quarters were all Rush, as they scored six straight. John Grant Jr. was the biggest threat for Colorado, adding five points on his night.
Aaron Bold had himself an excellent night between the pipes as he stopped 31 of 38 shots on goal, only allowing seven in. He was a key to their defensive success.
Colorado was without their team’s leading goal scorer Adam Jones on Friday night as well.
“I think they missed him big time tonight. If he’s in the lineup Sunday, we have to be a lot better,” Coach Derek Keenan stated following his team’s win.
On Sunday afternoon, the teams met for an afternoon match at Crystal Glass Field in Edmonton. The Rush continued to carry their momentum and stole another home victory by a score of 13-7. Heading into this weekend, the Mammoth were averaging 17.5 goals per game. They were held to a total of 14 over the weekend with the Rush.
Edmonton came out of the gate hot, taking an immediate 3-0 lead on the visitors. Robert Church (2 G, 4 A), Mark Matthews (3 G, 2 A) and Zack Greer (3 G, 3 A) were the strongest contributors to the Rush’s offensive success. This was Greer’s third straight game with three plus goals. Edmonton also had a lot of success on their power play, going four for six.
Colorado was riding a tough uphill climb for the entirety of the game. Heading into the fourth quarter, they looked to stop the bleeding, but the Rush kept attacking. The Mammoth pulled Dillon Ward to get an extra attacker on the floor, allowing Ryan Dilks to score an empty-netter for the Rush, extending their lead to 12-4. Finally, sniper Adam Jones, who returned to the lineup after missing Friday’s match, added one.
Mammoth Head Coach Chris Gill was none too pleased with his team’s effort after Dillion Ward played a very respectable game.
“He was our best player, and he has to be our best player every night,” Gill continued. “I kind of feel bad for Wardo because they came at him from all angles. They’re so dangerous offensively. To reward him with seven goals on the other end, it’s not very good.”
On the other end, Aaron Bold had another outstanding game allowing seven goals on 46 shots. Bold was quick to point out how well the defense played, allowing the ball to stay out of the net.
“It’s arguably the best defense in the league and everybody boasts on it. They’re always there for me, and when they are struggling, I try and pick up my game, and it’s vice versa. It’s not just the Rubisches and the Corbeils, it’s everybody. We have so much depth on the front as well as the back.”
The Rush will have to wait another week before getting back to action. The Colorado Mammoth will head to New England to battle the Black Wolves in another Sunday afternoon outing.
