FAST, EARLY OFFENSE SUBDUES MAVERICKS

SLAPSHOT POSTGAME COVERAGE PRESENTED BY ASSURANT SOLUTIONS

FAST, EARLY OFFENSE SUBDUES MAVERICKS

(RAPID CITY, SD) – The Rapid City Rush scored three goals in the first eight minutes of the game, which proved to be too much to handle for the Missouri Mavericks, as the Rush rode those three goals to a 4-2 win on Wednesday night at Premier Home Mortgage Ice in Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. The Rush now sit one point behind the Tulsa Oilers for the Central Division’s final playoff spot with 21 games remaining in the season.

Just 44 seconds into the action, Mathieu Brisebois gave the Rush their first strike in two straight games. On a rebound from a shot from Kale Kerbashian, Brisebois unloaded a bomb that went bar-down past Mavericks goaltender Josh Robinson, giving the Rush an early 1-0 lead. Exactly 1:32 later, with the Rush offensively buzzing in the Mavericks zone, Justin Faryna unloaded on a centering pass from Dylan Clarke from the near corner to the slot to double the Rush lead early to 2-0 at the 2:16 mark of the period. Missouri halved the deficit on their first power play of the game, with Lindsay Sparks tapping the puck past Rush net-minder Johnny Griggs to put the Mavericks on the board at 2-1 just under five minutes into play, but the Rush threw it right back at the Mavericks on their next power play. Former Rush defenseman Landon Oslanski turned the puck over on his blue line on the second Mavericks power play of the game, springing Winston Day Chief and Dylan Clarke on a shorthanded two-on-one break. Day Chief feathered the puck to Clarke, who finished on a backhander after dancing around Robinson to extend the Rush advantage to 3-1 at the 7:26 mark of the period.

Former Rush forward Jared Brown struck shorthanded on the first Rush power play of the game at 3:05 of the second period. As the puck was dumped into the Rush zone, Brown forechecked and ripped a shot on a sharp angle past Griggs up high to bring the Mavericks within striking distance at 3-2. Late in the game, the Mavericks had an opportunity while down one to capitalize on a power play. With 1:24 left in the game, Kale Kerbashian was called for a roughing minor, leading the Mavericks to pull Josh Robinson from the net for a six-on-four advantage. Just 19 seconds later, however, Josh Brittain was booked for hooking, ending the Mavericks threat, and eventually leading to a Patrick Cullen empty-net goal, sealing a 4-2 Rush win, their fifth straight over Missouri.

Johnny Griggs earned his second straight win, and improved to 3-2-1 in 8 appearances for the Rush (6-4-1 overall), stopping 35 shots in the win. Kale Kerbashian has now recorded a point in each game he’s played with the Rush with his assist on the opening goal of the game (5 goals, 7 assists, 12 points in 8 games).

The Rush head on the road to Wichita to take on the Thunder on Friday night at the INTRUST Bank Arena, followed up by a third matchup in four games against the Missouri Mavericks on Saturday night at the Independence Events Center. Puck drop for both games is slated for 6:05 p.m. MST.

Other Rush News:

Join Rush Nation for only $10 per game! Call the Rush office at 716-7825 for details, and stay informed on all Rush happenings this summer through the official Rapid City Rush team website, www.RapidCityRush.com, and the Rapid City Rush mobile app, available on iTunes and Google Play.

######