By Scott Zerr
EdmontonRush.com

There's still half of the regular season to go, but a spot in the playoffs is becoming a hot topic for the Edmonton Rush.

That buzz is making Friday's game against the San Jose Stealth even more important. While the Colorado Mammoth run away at the top of the NLL's West Division, there are numerous possible scenarios among the five other teams vying for the three other playoff spots.

And with the Stealth coming to town and two other meetings between Edmonton and San Jose on the schedule, these games will go a long way to determining the West's playoff picture.

"I think these three games between us will decide who's going to make the playoffs," said Stealth head coach Walt Christianson.

Rush GM/head coach Paul Day is well aware of the playoff chase, but instead of looking long-term, he's focused on taking each game as they come and letting the chase sort itself out.

"Right now we're the fourth seed but there's half a season left still and I'm more worried about San Jose," said Day. "We want to go into the (all-star) break with a good feeling and with having to play in San Jose twice yet, it's pretty important we get this win.

"There has been a lot of talk about the playoffs but we want to keep our focus on one week at a time - think about today and not tomorrow. We're not thinking about the playoffs, we're thinking about San Jose."

At least some of the Stealth's thinking is set upon how to shut down Chris Gill, who leads the Rush with 17 goals (eight on the power play) and 30 points.

"Chris has really come into his own and had a bit of a rebirth," said Christianson. "We know Chris pretty well and he is very tough to defend. I think he may be one of those players who is more dangerous without the ball than he is with it."

A victory would give the Rush its first winning streak in franchise history. It's also the second contest in a stretch where the Rush play nine games against teams currently with records of .500 or worse (only Calgary at 5-4 is above). It's a perfect time to get on a run.

"It was a pretty important win for us against Portland (9-8 in OT last week) and we want to build off that momentum," added Day. "We've been shooting better every week and everyone is really coming together."

Rush Ramblings
Both the Rush and Stealth power plays should be in for a tough night. San Jose sits atop the NLL with a 61.9% penalty kill while the Rush are right behind in second at 61.7% ... Curtis Palidwor has climbed to seventh in the NLL with an 11.94 goals-against average.