(RAPID CITY, S.D.)—The Rapid City Rush, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, begin a two-week, six-game homestand with an out-of-division matchup against the Wheeling Nailers. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. MST on Wednesday at The Monument Ice Arena.

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LAST TIME OUT
The Rapid City Rush rallied to take a third period lead but fell 6-3 to the Tulsa Oilers (17-29-5) at the BOK Center on Sunday. Tulsa controlled a 2-0 lead halfway through regulation, but the Rush used their power play to battle back. Chaz Smedsrud and Blake Bennett scored back-to-back power play goals 1:28 apart to pull even. Facing a third consecutive winner-take-all third period, Rapid City took a 3-2 lead when Briley Wood sniped a high shot off a faceoff win with 17:37 remaining. That would be the Rush’s last goal of the game and Tulsa returned the favor with a run of their own. The Oilers scored three straight times in a two-and-a-half-minute span to reclaim the lead, then buried one into the empty net.

SMEDS’ SERIES
Chaz Smedsrud put together his best series of the season last weekend in Tulsa, with five points, including a goal in back-to-back games. Smedsrud’s power play goal opened the scoring for the Rush on Sunday. The second-year pro has a point in six of the last seven games.

BENNY DOES IT AGAIN
Blake Bennett scoring goals has become a regular occurrence, just as it was all last season. Bennett scored a power play goal in both Saturday and Sunday’s games at Tulsa. The Rush’s ECHL-era goals leader has buried in six of his last eight games, and 15 goals since the start of January.

50 FOR THE CAPTAIN
Ryan Wagner reached 50 points for the season with his assist on Sunday in Tulsa. The Rush’s leading scorer has paced the team in point production all season and continues his streak of having at least one point in every series since December 2024. Wagner is quickly rising up the ranks in Rush history, too: he is 5^th in total points in the team’s ECHL era and 12^th all-time.

QUINN-CREDIBLE
Quinn Olson enters this series with a point in eight of the last nine games, totaling 13 points (5g+8a). The Calgary native finished February with five multi-point performances in the month.

WINNING THE FIRST PERIODS
Since January 24, the Rush have only lost one first period in 16 games. In two of the three opening periods against Tulsa, the Rush were decisively the better team and scored three goals on Saturday. Over the last eight games, Rapid City’s goal differential is 12-4 in first periods.

WELCOME, ZACHARIE!
It’s that time of year again: college seasons are wrapping up, and professional teams are getting their hands on the best talent the collegiate ranks have to offer. The Rush signed Zacharie Giroux, a forward out of the University of Ottawa, to a contract on Tuesday. He arrives in town today but will not suit up.

AN UNUSUAL SERIES
The Rush suffered their first three-game sweep of the season at the hands of the Tulsa Oilers over the weekend. Offensively, the Rush came up with eight goals over the last two games and held leads in each of them. It was a series that bucked a positive trend the Rush had going all year: up until last week, Rapid City had been 6-2 when entering the third period tied, but went 0-3 in those situations in Tulsa.

A BIG WEEK IN THE RAP
The Rush begin a six-game homestand tonight and kick off their biggest week of the season. Saturday is Military Appreciation Night, presented by AARP South Dakota, always a significant game which brings the community together and packs the barn. The team will unveil their annual specialty jersey on Thursday at the Hangar Pub in Box Elder.

SCOUTING THE WHEEL
For the first time since December 2019, the Wheeling Nailers come to town. The Rush have yet to record a win over the Nailers in franchise history. Wheeling is tied with Adirondack for the best record in the North division, but things have gotten interesting: after a 25-7-1 start, Wheeling is just 6-8-5 since the middle of January. The Pittsburgh affiliation has been a strong source of talent, too, with 13 contracted players on the Nailers’ roster right now.

The Rapid City Rush kick off the month of March at home on March 4^th, 6^th, and 7^th against the Wheeling Nailers! Saturday, March 7^th is Military Appreciation Night, presented by AARP South Dakota, featuring specialty jerseys and a Coca-Cola youth jersey giveaway. Head to www.rapidcityrush.com or call 605-716-7825 to secure your seats today.