GAME NOTES: 4/12 vs Idaho

Game #70 vs Idaho

4/12/23 | The Monument Ice Arena | 7:05 p.m. 

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LAST TIME OUT: Matt Marcinew had two goals and an assist, Brett Gravelle scored and dished out two assists and the Rush beat the Wichita Thunder 6-3 on Friday night at INTRUST Bank Arena. Adam Carlson made 35 saves on 38 shots in net. Rapid City extended its point streak to five games with the win.

THE PLAYOFF PICTURE: Rapid City has three games remaining on its schedule and currently sits two points out of a playoff spot. The Rush and the Utah Grizzlies are tied for fifth with 68 points while the Kansas City Mavericks and Wichita Thunder are tied for third with 70. All three of Rapid City’s remaining games are against Idaho. Utah has three games left against the seventh-place Tulsa Oilers. Kansas City plays the second-place Allen Americans once and has two games against the Cincinnati Cyclones, who lead the Central Division. Wichita has just two games remaining, both of which are against Allen.

CREAM OF THE CROP: Idaho enters play on Wednesday having clinched both the Mountain Division and the Brabham Cup, given annually to the team with the best record in the ECHL. The Steelheads have matched an ECHL record with 56 wins and are one point shy of the all-time mark for points in a single season.

BUT THEY’RE GETTABLE: The Rush and Steelheads have played five times in Rapid City this season and the Rush own a 3-2-0-0 record in those five games. Rapid City is responsible for two of Idaho’s 10 regulation losses and one of its two shootout losses. The Rush erased a 3-1 deficit en route to a 5-4 win over Idaho the last time the two teams met on January 21.

30 RED LIGHTS FOR MARCINEW: Matt Marcinew scored twice on Friday in Wichita and in doing so hit 30 goals for the season. It’s the first time in Marcinew’s professional career that he has reached 30 goals. His previous career-high was 23, set during the 2020-21 season over 57 games for the Indy Fuel. In 246 career ECHL games, Marcinew has 89 goals.

ODDS AND ENDS: The Rush matched a season-high with 51 shots on goal on Friday and set a new single-period high with 24 shots in the second...Rapid City’s active five-game point streak is the third longest it has had this season. Twice the Rush have won six consecutive games...Rapid City is 19-12-2-0 on home ice this season. Idaho is 24-6-1-2 on the road.

UP NEXT: The Rush and Steelheads will take Thursday off before facing off again on Friday night. Puck drop at The Monument Ice Arena is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.