Rush add new faces to core lineup
Core remains intact from last campaign but changes made on transition, defence
The Saskatchewan Rush roster is looking a lot different than a year ago.
Ditto for the weather out in southern Ontario, where Rush general manager/head coach Derek Keenan took out his golf sticks for one last round Tuesday afternoon before a new National Lacrosse League season officially begins this weekend.
“I thought I was done (golfing) three weeks ago, and then all of sudden I’m out there, but it was shockingly busy, though — I thought I was the only smart guy in the world,” chuckled Keenan, whose Rush squad will bring out the other sticks Friday in Denver, where Saskatchewan opens the season against the Colorado Mammoth.
Those would be the same Mammoth who knocked out the Rush in a one-game NLL playoff last spring.
Motivation is not a problem these days for the three-time NLL champion Rush.
“The guys were sour — I could see it,” noted Keenan. “I could see they were disappointed then and now they’re kind of sour and really looking forward to getting back at it and it couldn’t happen at a better place by playing in Colorado.
“I think we’ll be ready to go for that one.”
While the core remains the same for the Rush, there are some notable changes, particularly on defence and transition.
The Rush welcome back Ryan Dilks and Jeff Cornwall from their one-year sabbaticals. A pair of 2019 NLL Draft picks, Holden Garlent and Justin Robinson, are also new to the mix.
Dilks was the NLL defensive player of the year in 2016.
“We get Cornwall and Dilks back, so that’s huge, then we drafted two really good young guys,” noted Keenan. “So, they’re big additions.
Ryan Mclean we had on the practice roster last year, so there’s a guy who’s earned his spot. He developed big-time last year and had a really good summer, playing out in Victoria, and he’s had a great camp. A few changes there. We’ve added some youth as well as bringing back two high-end guys.
“You bring them back and I think we’re better.”
Gone are Brett Mydske, Matt Macgrotty, Nick Finlay and Tyler Gaulton from the 2018-19 opening-day roster.
“Brett Mydske’s a different sort of situation and also similar what happened to the other two (Cornwall and Dilks) last year in that he’s about to be hired by a (Vancouver-area) fire department,” explained Keenan. “We’ll find out probably in a week or two what his status is. He’s technically an unrestricted free agent right now, but if he’s able to play, we’d certainly like to bring him back — but we’ll see what happens with that.
“We’re kind of planning on going forward. We can’t sit here thinking he’s going to be back. We have to plan ahead. If he is back, it’s a bonus.”
Saskatchewan returns its veteran core, including 2018 league MVP and four-time NLL firstteam all-pro Mark Matthews, 2018 NLL Cup MVP Jeff Shattler, former NLL rookie of the year Ben Mcintosh, 2018 first-team all-pro Robert Church, team captain Chris Corbeil, four-time NLL defensive player of the year Kyle Rubisch and former NLL goaltender of the year Evan Kirk.
There’s also an injection of youth up front with 2018 first-round pick Connor Robinson and 2017 fourthround pick Austin Murphy.
“We still, for the most part, kind of have our core,” Keenan said.
“I really liked our training camp. We were really dialed in, right from the beginning. You hope you do it every year. Last year, we had some different circumstances with guys missing and that, but we just didn’t make excuses about that. We just didn’t seem to have that focus. This year, right from the beginning, we have. The leadership helps with that, along with the young guys buying in. There’s some youthful enthusiasm and also some speed and athleticism, so that helps too. I am pretty optimistic about this season, for sure.”
The Rush will play their home-opener on Co-op Field at Sasktel Centre against the New England Black Wolves on Saturday, Dec. 14.