The Calgary Roughnecks, despite their far-flung roster, stay in touch.

Sprinkled throughout the country from as far away as Vancouver and Toronto players can get together only on weekends.

But, thanks to the digital age, they are never more than a click or two apart.

Weve got a (BlackBerry Messenger) group, weve got e-mail chains, were sending pictures back and forth, were constantly making jokes, were betting on hockey games and that makes a big difference in a league like this, Roughnecks captain Andrew McBride said after Saturdays practice at the Scotiabank Saddledome. Its not one of these things where you dont know lots about the other people on the team. Guys care about other guys lives. They know the girlfriends, the wives, the kids names. They know if theyve had a bad week. Thats pretty special.

Some teams dont have that they come in, talk about lacrosse, play lacrosse, then go their separate ways. But were a very tight cohesive group. Wed go through a wall for each other.

Their hottest e-topic these days? Being three wins from National Lacrosse League glory.

You dont want to think in those terms, but Id be lying if I said everyone hasnt thought about it, said McBride, whose crew finished the regular season with a circuit-best 12-4 record. This week we were reflecting that were literally 180 minutes away. We sent e-mails: What is 180 minutes in the big picture? Its not a lot of time. Were very cognizant that this is our opportunity, that this is our time.

The Roughnecks, though, are careful not to gawk much beyond the nearest challenge.

As the West Divisions top seeds, they host the fourth-place Edmonton Rush on Saturday.

Here its worth noting that the Calgarians dominated the northerners during the regular season. Active is a 10-game winning streak.

More here:
Chemistry strong on playoff-bound Roughnecks