Edmonton Rush
 | |
| Founded | 2005 |
|---|---|
| Division | Western |
| Team history | Syracuse Smash (1998–2000) Ottawa Rebel (2001–2003) |
| Based in | Edmonton, Alberta |
| Arena | Rexall Place |
| Colours | |
| Head coach | Derek Keenan |
| General manager | Derek Keenan |
| Championships | 1 (2015) |
| Division titles | 2 (2014, 2015) |
| Local media | Shaw TV Edmonton, Global Edmonton, CTV Edmonton, City Edmonton, CBC Edmonton, Edmonton Sun, Edmonton Journal |
| Later | Saskatchewan Rush |
The Edmonton Rush were a professional lacrosse team in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) that played from 2006 NLL season to 2015.
The team announced on July 20, 2015, that they would be relocating to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, for the 2016 season, where they would play at the SaskTel Centre as the Saskatchewan Rush.[1]
History
[edit]The NLL announced that Edmonton, Alberta would receive an NLL franchise on May 5, 2005. They played their home games at Rexall Place. The Edmonton team was owned by businessman Bruce Urban,[2] who purchased the dormant Ottawa Rebel to start the Edmonton team. Although early reports suggested that they would be playing as the Edmonton Speed, they selected the name Rush on June 9, 2005.
On February 17, 2006, the Rush recorded the first victory in their franchise history, defeating the Calgary Roughnecks 12–11 in a thrilling game, scoring the winning goal with only 0.2 seconds left in the game. Their first home victory didn't come until their second season, when they defeated the Philadelphia Wings 13–12 on January 6, 2007, in the season opener.
After starting the 2008 NLL season with an 0–5 record, the Rush fired the franchise's original head coach and general manager, Paul Day, and replaced him with former NLL Coach and GM of the Year, Bob Hamley.[3] The Rush finished the season last in the West with a 4–12 record, and after rebuilding much of the team in the off-season, the Rush struggled again in 2009. After finishing last in the West for the second straight season, Hamley was fired.[4]
Relocation
[edit]During Edmonton's playoff run in 2015 Urban began threatening to move the team, telling the Edmonton Sun "It appears that it's coming to an end."[5] After much speculation, the team officially announced they'd be moving to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to play as the Saskatchewan Rush beginning in 2016.[6] Urban cited the lack of a long-term deal at Rogers Place, which was slated to replace Rexall Place as Edmonton's main arena. Additionally, the Oilers refused to let the Rush put any of their signage at Rexall Place, a move that Urban claimed harmed the Rush's marketing efforts.[7]
Rivalry with the Calgary Roughnecks
[edit]The arrival of the Rush created another version of "The Battle Of Alberta". The head coach of the Edmonton Rush however, has come under fire by the Calgary Roughnecks. The Rush took out ads in Calgary newspapers before their first meeting that the Rush would "Open a Can" on the Roughnecks.
This proved to backfire as the Roughnecks defeated the Rush in their first meeting.
The tactic continued though when the Rush were playing the Toronto Rock, but once again it proved to backfire as the Rock easily won.
However, Calgary tried this tactic against Edmonton before the April 5, 2008 game by taking an ad in the Edmonton Sun saying that Edmonton was a "City of Losers" instead of a city of champions. Just as it had for the Rush, the plan backfired as the Rush won 11–9.
The rivalry heated up March 13, 2009 in Edmonton as Calgary built up a 14–3 halftime lead over the Rush. At the one second mark of the 3rd quarter, a line brawl broke out between the two teams resulting in nine fighting majors and nine misconducts.[8]
Edmonton did get the upper hand in the first playoff meeting between the teams as the Rush won 11–7 in Calgary on May 1, 2010.
Edmonton had played four games against the Calgary Roughnecks in the 2012 season. The Rush went 0/4 in the regular season when they faced the Calgary Roughnecks. Calgary ended their season with the record of 12–4, while Edmonton dominated the second ever playoff Battle Of Alberta with a win over Calgary 19–11. Edmonton went on to the Western division final against the Minnesota Swarm toward another win, 15–3, and headed to the NLL finals.
Roster
[edit]| Edmonton Rush roster | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active (21-man) roster | Inactive roster | Coaches | |||||||
|
|
|
{{{Head Coach}}}
Roster updated 2014-12-18 | ||||||
Retired numbers
[edit]| No. | Player | Position | Career | No. retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | Jimmy Quinlan | F/T | 2006–13 | January 17, 2014 |
Hall of Famers[edit]
|
Team captains[edit]
|
Head coaches[edit]
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All-time record
[edit]| Season | Division | W–L | Finish | Home | Road | GF | GA | Coach | Playoffs | Avg Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Western | 1–15 | 6th | 0–8 | 1–7 | 150 | 202 | Paul Day | Missed playoffs | 10,367 |
| 2007 | Western | 6–10 | 5th | 4–4 | 2–6 | 160 | 189 | Paul Day | Missed playoffs | 10,815 |
| 2008 | Western | 4–12 | 5th | 3–5 | 1–7 | 141 | 197 | Paul Day (0–5) Bob Hamley (4–7) |
Missed playoffs | 8,820 |
| 2009 | Western | 5–11 | 6th | 4–4 | 1–7 | 159 | 200 | Bob Hamley | Missed playoffs | 8,347 |
| 2010 | Western | 10–6 | 3rd | 5–3 | 5–3 | 186 | 201 | Derek Keenan | Lost West Division Final | 7,558 |
| 2011 | Western | 5–11 | 5th | 4–4 | 1–7 | 175 | 204 | Derek Keenan | Missed Playoffs | 7,151 |
| 2012 | Western | 6–10 | 4th | 4–4 | 2–6 | 167 | 175 | Derek Keenan | Lost NLL Championship | 7,050 |
| 2013 | Western | 9–7 | 3rd | 2–6 | 7–1 | 203 | 170 | Derek Keenan | Lost in Western Semi-Final | 6,714 |
| 2014 | Western | 16–2 | 1st | 8–1 | 8–1 | 220 | 157 | Derek Keenan | Lost West Division Final | 7,844 |
| 2015 | Western | 13–5 | 1st | 6–3 | 7–2 | 241 | 177 | Derek Keenan | Won Championship | 6,578 |
| Total | 10 seasons | 75–89 | 40–42 | 35–47 | 1,802 | 1,872 | 8,103 | |||
| Playoff Totals | 8–6 | 3–1 | 5–5 | 152 | 116 | 9,695 |
Playoff results
[edit]| Season | Game | Visiting | Home |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | West Division Semi-Finals | Edmonton 11 | Calgary 7 |
| West Division Finals | Edmonton 11 | Washington 12 OT | |
| 2012 | West Division Semi-Finals | Edmonton 19 | Calgary 11 |
| West Division Finals | Edmonton 15 | Minnesota 3 | |
| NLL Championship | Edmonton 6 | Rochester 9 | |
| 2013 | West Division Semi-Finals | Edmonton 11 | Washington 12 |
| 2014 | West Division Finals Game 1 | Edmonton 11 | Calgary 12 OT |
| West Division Finals Game 2 | Calgary 13 | Edmonton 15 | |
| West Division Finals Tiebreaker | Calgary 2 | Edmonton 1 | |
| 2015 | West Division Finals Game 1 | Calgary 8 | Edmonton 10 |
| West Division Finals Game 2 | Edmonton 9 | Calgary 12 | |
| West Division Finals Tiebreaker | Edmonton 4 | Calgary 1 | |
| NLL Championship Game 1 | Edmonton 15 | Toronto 9 | |
| NLL Championship Game 2 | Toronto 10 | Edmonton 11 |
Franchise scoring leaders
[edit]These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NLL regular season.
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; G/G = Goals per game; A/G = Assists per game; * = current Rush player
|
|
|
Team records
[edit]Single Season
Goals - Mark Matthews, 53 (2015)
Assists - Mark Matthews, 62 (2015)
Points - Mark Matthews, 114 (2015)
PIM - Jamie Floris, 67 (2009)
Loose Balls - Brodie Merrill, 190 (2010)
Forced Turnovers - Kyle Rubisch, 61 (2014)
NLL awards
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Rush announce relocation to Saskatchewan". NLL.com. 2015-07-20.
- ^ "Bruce Urban Bio at Edmonton Rush Website". EdmontonRush.com. Archived from the original on 2008-02-12. Retrieved 2008-02-21.
- ^ Paul Tutka (2008-02-21). "Bob Hamley hiring made official". NLLInsider.com. Archived from the original on 2008-03-06. Retrieved 2008-02-21.
- ^ Tutka, Paul (May 19, 2009). "Breaking: Bob Hamley released by Edmonton Rush". NLLInsider.com. Archived from the original on May 23, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
- ^ Gerry Moddejonge (2015-05-20). "Threats by Rush owner Bruce Urban to move team not backed by NLL commissioner". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved 2015-07-20.
- ^ "Rush announce relocation to Saskatchewan". NLL.com. 2015-07-20.
- ^ Gregor, Jason (2015-07-21). "Urban explains why Rush are leaving Edmonton". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 2015-07-21.
- ^ "NLL.com -- Official Website of the National Lacrosse League - Stats". www.nll.com. Archived from the original on 2009-01-20.
