Face Stealth Friday, Swarm Saturday

Story By John Korobanik, Edmonton Journal

Members of the Edmonton Rush (back row) and minor lacrosse players whoop it up for the camera at a spring break camp at the Edmonton South Soccer Centre on Wednesday. Photograph by: Chris Schwarz, The Journal, Edmonton Journal

Edmonton, AB -- Talk about a conflicting weekend for the Edmonton Rush. First they have a chance to rein in the National Lacrosse League West Division-leading Washington Stealth on Friday night at Rexall Place.

But then, depending on what happens in that game, they may have to start looking over their shoulders when they travel to Minnesota on Saturday to meet the fourth-place Swarm.

If ever there's a time when the Rush have to keep their minds focused on the immediate task ahead, this would be the weekend. The last time they had thoughts of catching Washington, two weeks ago, they got smacked 12-5 at home by the Boston Blazers.

Washington sits at 9-3 but an Edmonton win would pull the Rush, 7-4, to within one game of the Stealth. It would leave the teams 1-1 in their season series with a third meeting In Washington on April 17.

"There's a lot on the line in terms of first place in the division, so it's a very important game for both teams," acknowledged Washington head coach Chris Hall.

A loss would leave Edmonton in a scramble for second place with the 6-5 Calgary Roughnecks and the 5-6 Swarm, who will be looking for revenge on their home floor for the 16-14 loss to the Rush last weekend.

That result left Edmonton head coach Derek Keenan "happy but certainly not satisfied."

Against the Stealth, who beat Edmonton 15-7 in the season opener and are the highest-scoring team in the league, the Rush will have to be better defensively than they were against Minnesota.

"We have to be more consistant with how we play in our end," said Keenan. "Minnesota is a top-notch offence as well; they were a bit of a handful. We didn't execute our game plan the way we wanted to; that was part of it."

The Stealth, with six-foot-six Peter Morgan and six-foot-five Ben Hunt, boast a big, physical attack.

"But we're pretty big on the back end, so we can match up pretty well that way," said Keenan. "But it does present a different challenge."

Another challenge for the Rush will be hopping on a plane after their Friday home game to travel to Minnesota to meet the rested Swarm, a reverse of the situation from last weekend when Edmonton had Friday off and the Swarm played in Calgary.

"They'll be rested," said Keenan, who was more concerned with his club playing better than he was with the back-to-back games.

"We definitely need to make some adjustments. They're a handful offensively; they have skilled guys and athletic guys, and they can shoot."