Rock Ready for Home and Home

Toronto, ON – With a seventh straight playoff berth guaranteed, you might excuse the Toronto Rock players for easing up a bit as they face a final weekend of back-to-back games. Then again, Terry Sanderson is the Head Coach. He’s never known to let up, particularly with first place in the East and home field advantage throughout the Playoffs at stake.

The one big thing standing in the Rock’s way? The Philadelphia Wings.
The home-and-home series begins at the Wachovia Centre on Saturday April 9. The two teams faced off last weekend in a high scoring affair that saw the Rock emerge with the 17-15 win. A big reason for the victory was the powerful combination of Colin Doyle and Josh Sanderson, who connected for 21 points on the night.

“Colin and Josh are a natural team, they’re able to find each other on the field and put the ball in the net,” said line-mate Blaine Manning.

During the season, Doyle and Sanderson have combined for 170 points in only 13 games, potting 30 goals collectively. Neutralizing this dynamic duo would go a long way to stopping the Rock this weekend.

“The Rock know how to put the ball in the net, there’s no getting around that. They did it to us last weekend the same way that they’ve been doing it to everyone in the League. Do we have the answer as to how to stop them? We’ll see after this weekend,” Said Lindsay Sanderson, Philadelphia Wings Head Coach and GM.

Toronto and Philadelphia have faced each other 16 times over the years, with the Rock winning 7 of the last 8 games. Despite that record, the Rock will have to stay on their toes and out of the penalty box this weekend. The Wings powerplay ranks 3rd in the League, spearheaded by snipers like Tom Marechek, Dan Marohl and Jeff Ratcliffe.

While the Rock are fighting for a win that translates into home field advantage throughout the playoffs, the Wings are fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive. At 6-7 it’s a long shot and they’ll likely need some help to see post-season action.

The series begins Saturday night at the Wachovia Centre at 8:00pm EST. Catch all the action live on AM 640 Toronto, with pre-game coverage starting at 7:30pm. On Sunday, return match kicks off at 4:00pm at the Air Canada Centre, featuring the annual Mascot game and post-game Autograph Session sponsored by the Toronto Sun. Tickets through Ticketmaster outlets online at www.ticketmaster.ca , by phone at (416) 872 5000 or in person at the Box Office at the Air Canada Centre.