Darren Zary, Saskatoon StarPhoenix
It’s a road trip like no other in the National Lacrosse League.
In a league where teams often play games two weeks apart, the Saskatchewan Rush are about to face the unenviable prospect of playing three games during a span of six days.
That road trip, as brutal as it sounds, begins Saturday in New York when Saskatchewan meets the New York Riptide on Long Island. It continues Sunday afternoon, less than 24 hours later, in Georgia, where the Rush takes on the Swarm.
From there, the Rush squad heads to Philadelphia for a rescheduled game against the Wings on Thursday. That game, originally slated for Jan. 13, needed to be rescheduled following a snowstorm which caused travel issues.
All this for a Rush team that is back in playoff contention with a 5-6 record.
“That’s a little bit different than what we’re used to in this league,” admitted Rush goalie Frank Scigliano, when asked about the busy schedule, “but a little bit of adversity can never really hurt so we’re just going to run with it here.
“We’re just taking it one game at a time during that stretch there.”
Saskatchewan will be playing five games, in total, over 15 days. After the U.S. road trip, the Rush will have a home-and-home series against the rival Calgary Roughnecks on April 5 in Calgary and April 6 in Saskatoon at SaskTel Centre. Game time is 7 p.m.
Saskatchewan has moved up into ninth place in the NLL standings, just outside a playoff spot, with seven games left in the regular season.
The Rush will finish off the season with tough games at home against the San Diego Seals and Toronto Rock, currently the top two teams in the NLL.
dzary@postmedia.com
