2015 Edmonton Rush Team Awards Announced
May 19, 2015 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Edmonton Rush News Release
As the Edmonton Rush prepare for their National Lacrosse League West Final, Owner Bruce Urban and GM/Head Coach Derek Keenan are pleased to announce the 2015 Rush Team Awards. Voting for the 2015 Rush team awards was conducted amongst the Edmonton media covering the Rush and Rush front office personnel.
1) The Pizza Hut Top Scorer Award and the Crystal Glass Most Valuable Player Award both go to Mark Matthews.
It has truly been a breakthrough season for Matthews, who has gone from being an NLL Rookie of the Year to one of the biggest stars in the league. The native of Oshawa, Ontario, has become a major offensive threat and finished the 2015 regular season second in league scoring with 115 points and second in goals with 53. Those total enabled Matthews to become just the eighth member of the NLL's prestigious 50/100 club for players who have scored 50-plus goals and notched 100-plus points in a single season. Matthews, who also finished fourth in the league with 62 assists, broke all the Rush's single-season scoring records and became the first Rush player to finish in the top-three in league scoring, and first to reach 50 goals and 100 points.
"Mark has definitely become one of the premier offensive players in the league," said Keenan. "We expected him to hit new levels of achievement this season and he's gone above those expectations by quite a bit. He raised his game to a new plateau and the results are outstanding."
Matthews led the entire NLL in Three Star Voting and captured the league's Wingman of the Week award twice. The 25-year-old forward recorded four or more points and two-plus goals in all 18 regular-season games of his games played this season and had seven-plus points in 10 of those 18 games.
Matthews was selected first overall by the Rush in the 2012 NLL Entry Draft after a dominant collegiate career at Denver University.
2) The DCM Top Defender Award goes to Kyle Rubisch.
Rubisch, the three-time reigning National Lacrosse League's Top Defensive Player, had another outstanding season. The Brampton, Ontario, product is generally regarded as the best defender in lacrosse and again this season is amongst the league leaders in caused turnovers and loose balls. An alternate captain with the Rush, Rubisch, now in his sixth season, ended the regular season second in caused turnovers with 36 and 11th in loose balls with 118.
A Dowling College product, Rubisch joined the Rush via the Dispersal Draft of the former Boston franchise, and since then has matched up against many of the NLL's top offensive players and kept them in check. Rubisch led a Rush defense that gave up the second-fewest goals in the league this season
3) The Jayman Homes Top Transition Award and the Edmonton Kubota/Booster Juice Community Service Award go to Jeremy Thompson.
Thompson is highly regarded throughout the NLL for his tenacity and passion for the game of lacrosse and how it shows in his on-turf performance. Originally from Akwesasne, Ontario, Thompson finished the regular season second in the league with 181 loose balls and was third in faceoff wins with 246.
Along with his overall hustle and effort, Thompson is one of the game's most passionate players and often speaks about his upbringing and what lacrosse has meant to him and his family. Thompson is an active supporter of Edmonton's Crystal Kids Youth Group and is a frequent guest speaker at numerous aboriginal schools throughout Northern Alberta.
Thompson, who is now in his fifth NLL season, was acquired by the Rush in a trade with Buffalo in 2013.
4) The Rivard Rookie of the Year Award goes to Ben McIntosh.
McIntosh was the first overall pick in the 2014 NLL Entry Draft and lived up his advance billing and much more in his rookie season. The Port Coquitlam, B.C., native, who was selected out of Drexel University, led all NLL first-year players and finished in a tie for 14th overall in league scoring with 86 points.
McIntosh, who capped the regular season with a nine-point effort against Colorado, finished in a tie with teammate Robert Church for 12th in the league with 37 goals, and placed 14th in the league with 49 assists.
5) The Tim Horton's Unsung Hero Award goes to Jarrett Davis.
Davis has accepted a variety of roles with the Rush this season and more than capably provided the team with solid defense and skilled offense throughout the year.
Davis showed his versatility by finishing the regular season fourth in team scoring with 46 points (13 goals, 33 assists) as well as 61 loose balls and 19 caused turnovers.
The Port Moody, B.C., native is in his fourth year in the NLL, and joined the Rush via a trade with Rochester in 2013.
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