Since moving to Saskatchewan, the Rush have had their arch-rivals’ number and that continued on Saturday.

For the 10th time in the last 11 games, the Rush knocked off the Calgary Roughnecks, winning 10-6 in front of a sold-out crowd at SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

The win locked up a playoff spot for the Rush, who improved to a National Lacrosse League-best 9-2 on the year.

“It’s big to win the season series and we have the advantage on everybody in the division,” Rush GM/head coach Derek Keenan told SaskRush.com after the game.

“We’re undefeated in the division and that gives us a leg up to finishing first overall. It was a good bounce back game for us. We had a really good first quarter, (Evan) Kirk was good when we needed him to be good, and our power play came through for us.” 

The Rush went 5-for-5 on the power play as their special teams powered them to the victory.

Mark Matthews scored three times, including the game-winner, and finished with seven points in the win. Jeff Shattler added two goals and three points, while Matthew Dinsdale also scored twice for the Rush.

Ryan Keenan had four helpers; Robert Church picked up a goal and three points; and Ben McIntosh finished with a goal and two points in the victory.

The Rush return to the field this Saturday when they host the Vancouver Stealth.

Rush Deal for Dawson

In an effort to help bolster their roster for another run at the Champion’s Cup, the Rush pulled off a deal for a future hall of famer, Dan Dawson, on Monday.

In exchange for Dawson, the Rush sent a 2018 second round pick and a 2020 third round selection to the Rochester Knighthawks.

Dawson is in his 17th season in the NLL. He sits fourth all-time in assists with 802 and fifith in goals with 469 and points with 1,271. In eight games this season, Dawson has nine goals and 26 points.

The 36-year-old is currently the NLL’s ironman with 234 straight games played between 2002 and 2016.