(KALAMAZOO, Mich.)—The Rapid City Rush, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, start a two-week, six-game road trip with their first series against the Kalamazoo Wings in team history. Puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. MDT on Friday at Wings Event Center.

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LAST TIME OUT
Ryan Chyzowski potted home a net-front deflection with 3:28 remaining to lift the Rapid City Rush to a 3-2 victory over the Wichita Thunder at The Monument Ice Arena on Saturday. Chyzowski tipped a Jaden Shields wrist shot low-to-high by Wichita goaltender Matt Davis for his team-leading 24^th goal of the season. As with every game between Rapid City and Wichita, it was a back-and-forth affair for 60 minutes. Trailing 1-0 entering the second period, Braden Birnie ripped in his first professional goal in the opening minute. Five minutes later, Shields walked in from the blue line and fired home an elevated shot to give the Rush a 2-1 lead. Wichita tied the game soon after, and the teams entered the third period tied. The Rush fought off a 15-3 shot deficit in the final period, and Chyzowski’s late goal stood up as the winner. It was Rapid City’s first and only third-period goal of the series.

SAVE THOSE PUCKS!
Braden Birnie and Zach Giroux each recorded their first points in professional hockey on Saturday. The two linemates combined for four points in the second period. Birnie fired home his first pro goal, while Giroux picked up two assists. The line of Birnie-Buhl-Giroux was outstanding in the Wichita series.

WE MISSED HIM
In Ryan Chyzowski’s first series back from his call-up to Calgary, the Rush took two out of three from division rival Wichita. The fifth-year pro scored just 13 seconds into Thursday’s game and the late game-winner on Saturday night, his team-leading fifth GWG of the season.

WE MISSED HIM, TOO
Despite five weeks between starts, Rico DiMatteo played his best game with the Rush to date. DiMatteo stopped 39 out of 41 against Wichita last Saturday for his second ECHL win. His cross-crease save in the second period also made the league’s weekly Saves of the Week.

THE MICHIGANDER STRIKES AGAIN
Jaden Shields wasted no time getting accustomed to his new surroundings. After being acquired from Idaho last Monday, Shields immediately stepped in and logged big minutes, including power play time. The Royal Oak, Mich. native scored his first goal with the Rush on Saturday and has four points (1g+3a) in his last two games.

NO MORE TRADES
The ECHL’s trade deadline came and went at 1:00 p.m. MDT yesterday. While the Rush did not make any moves at the eleventh hour, the team welcomes their two new acquisitions from Wheeling for this series: defenseman Eric Parker (#23) and forward Cole Tymkin (#91). Rapid City traded for the pair of rookies in the two-pronged deal last Thursday involving Blake Bennett.

RED IN THE CROWD
With Kalamazoo’s proximity to many of the Rush’s hometowns—just over two hours from Detroit, the Canadian border, and Chicago—expect a large contingent of Rush fans in the building this weekend. Rapid City’s two Michiganders, Mitchell Smith and Jaden Shields, are also returning to their home state. Shields played nine games to start the 2024-25 season with the K-Wings.

WE’VE SEEN THEM BEFORE
While most of the Kalamazoo roster will be new to us, four members of the K-Wings have faced the Rush before. Quinn Preston, Nolan Walker, Kishaun Gervais, Matt Berry, and the newly acquired Patrick Newell have all seen Rapid City while playing in the Mountain Division. Jayden Lee faced the Rush with South Carolina last season.

WHAT A MOMENT
For Rush Fights Cancer Night, the team welcomed Kay Buhl, mother of forward Cameron Buhl, for a ceremonial puck drop. Kay took on stage four intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, a rare form of cancer found in the bile ducts, and was declared cancer-free in 2023 against all odds. She received a standing ovation from the crowd and both player benches. Cameron went on to have a primary assist and a plus-two rating in the victory.

IN THE LAND OF JET’S PIZZA
Tonight is only the third meeting between the Rush and K-Wings. This is the first series between the two clubs, as the only prior meetings (January 25, 2019, and February 1, 2018) were one-offs on multi-city bus trips. Rapid City is 0-1-1 against Kalamazoo with both matchups at Wings Event Center.

The Rapid City Rush return home to face the Tulsa Oilers on April 1^st, 3^rd, and 4^th at The Monument Ice Arena! We’re rolling out the C of Red on Saturday, April 4^th for Affiliation Night, presented by KT Connections. Head to www.rapidcityrush.com or call 605-716-7825 to secure your seats today.