Bellingham Blazers (2012–)
The Bellingham Blazers are an Amateur Athletic Union-sanctioned Tier II junior ice hockey team in the United States Premier Hockey League. The Blazers are based in Bellingham, Washington and play home games at the Bellingham Sportsplex.[2]
| Bellingham Blazers | |
|---|---|
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| City | Bellingham, Washington |
| League | United States Premier Hockey League |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Home arena | Bellingham Sportsplex |
| Owner(s) | Whatcom Sports Commission |
| Head coach | Mark MacDonald[1] |
| Website | Blazers' website |
| Franchise history | |
| 2012–present | Bellingham Blazers |
History
From 2012 to 2016, the Blazers played in the Northern Pacific Hockey League (NorPac/NPHL). In their first two seasons, the Blazers captured the Cascade Cup, awarded to the league playoff champions, and earned a spot in the USA National Tier III Championships. In 2013, coach Mark Collins was also awarded Coach of the Year when the Blazers won their first Cascade Cup. Collins was fired from team before the 2019 playoffs.[3]
In 2016, the team left the NPHL and USA Hockey-sanctioning with the intentions of joining the Amateur Athletic Union-sanctioned Western States Hockey League.[4]
Season-by-season records
| Season | GP | W | L | OTW | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA | Regular Season Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Pacific Hockey League | |||||||||||
| 2012–13 | 40 | 22 | 16 | — | 1 | 1 | 46 | 204 | 165 | 3rd of 6, NorPac | Won Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Eugene Generals Won Finals, 3–2 vs. West Sound Warriors CASCADE CUP CHAMPIONS |
| 2013–14 | 40 | 35 | 5 | — | 0 | 0 | 70 | 230 | 87 | 1st of 5, NPHL McBride Cup | Won Semifinals, 3–0 vs. Tri-City Outlaws Won Finals, 3–2 vs. West Sound Warriors CASCADE CUP CHAMPIONS |
| 2014–15 | 42 | 33 | 7 | — | 0 | 2 | 68 | 269 | 91 | 2nd of 6, NPHL | Won Semifinals, 3–2 vs. Wenatchee Wolves Lost Finals, 0–3 vs. West Sound Warriors |
| 2015–16 | 40 | 30 | 9 | — | 1 | 0 | 61 | 212 | 77 | 2nd of 6, NPHL | Won Semifinals, 3–2 vs. Eugene Generals Lost Finals, 0–3 vs. Wenatchee Wolves |
| Western States Hockey League | |||||||||||
| 2016–17 | 52 | 15 | 36 | — | 1 | — | 31 | 122 | 221 | 6th of 7, Northwest 22nd of 27, WSHL | Lost Div. Quarterfinals, 0–2 vs. Butte Cobras |
| 2017–18 | 51 | 28 | 20 | — | 3 | — | 59 | 228 | 221 | 3rd of 6, Northwest 12th of 23, WSHL | Won Div. Quarterfinals, 2–0 vs. Southern Oregon Spartans Lost Div. Semifinals, 0–2 vs. Tahoe Icemen |
| 2018–19 | 51 | 34 | 14 | 0 | 3 | — | 105[lower-alpha 1] | 281 | 153 | 2nd of 4, Northwest 7th of 23, WSHL | Won Div. Semifinals, 2–0 vs. Southern Oregon Spartans Won Div. Finals, 2–1 vs. Seattle Totems 0–3–0–0, 6th of 6, Thorne Cup round-robin (L, 0–6 vs. Rhinos; L, 4–6 vs. Jr. Blazers; L, 1–6 vs. Aeros) |
| 2019–20 | 48 | 17 | 26 | 3 | 2 | — | 59 | 157 | 232 | 4th of 5, Northwest 15th of 20, WSHL | Playoffs cancelled[lower-alpha 2] |
| 2020–21 | No season due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||||||||
| 2021–22 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 7 | 50 | DNF | Withdrew from season[6] |
| United States Premier Hockey League - - Premier Division | |||||||||||
| 2022–23 | 44 | 9 | 33 | 0 | 2 | — | 20 | 120 | 228 | 5th of 5, Northwest 60th of 69, Premier | Did not qualify |
- Beginning with the 2018–19 season, the WSHL began awarding 3pts for a win, 2pts for an overtime win, and 1pt for an overtime loss.
- Bellingham was removed from the playoffs prior to the end of the regular season due to the COVID-19 pandemic;[5] the entire WSHL playoffs were eventually cancelled.
Tier III Junior Hockey National Championship
The Bellingham Blazers qualified for the Tier III Junior Hockey National Championships in 2013 and 2014 by winning their league playoff championship. The Blazers have never past the round-robin stage of the tournament.
Round-robin play in pool with top four overall teams advancing to the semifinal.
| Year | Round-robin | Record | Standing | Semifinal game | Championship game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | L, Twin Cities Northern Lights (MnJHL) 0–6 L, North Iowa Bulls (NA3HL) 0–7 W, New Hampshire Junior Monarchs (EmJHL) 3–2 | 1–2–0 | 3rd of 4 National Pool | Did not advance | |
| 2014 | L, Flint Jr. Generals (NA3HL) 1–6 L, Northern Cyclones (EHL) 0–12 L, Springfield Pics (USPHL-Elite) 2–8 | 0–3–0 | 4th of 4 Pool B | Did not advance | |
References
- "Coaches - Bellingham Blazers". Bellingham Blazers. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
- "Bellingham's new junior hockey team joins Northern Pacific Hockey League". Bellingham Business Journal. August 13, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
- "BELLINGHAM NAMES NEW COACH". WSHL. March 26, 2019.
- "DAILY DISH: NPHL Done?". Junior Hockey News. April 25, 2016.
- "STATEMENT REGARDING COVID-19". WSHL. March 8, 2020.
- "December 2, 2021, Blazers Facebook post". Facebook. December 2, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
Blazer Fans It's with deep regret that we announce that the Bellingham Blazers are going dormant for the 2021/22 season. Due to circumstances outside of our control, we are unable to build a sustainable product for a full season or operations. Administration and Coaching staff has done a fantastic job in efforts to form a full team and develop our players. All of the players have given everything they had to the team and for this we can't thank them enough. We are working hard to find teams for those players wanting to continue playing Jr Hockey this season. All of us with the Blazers are heartbroken. I can't thank both Larry and Geordie enough for their dedication to the team. They have worked long and hard to find solutions to make it possible to play this season. Again, we apologize to our players, families and fans but felt we have no other choice. The Blazers will be back. We are already looking at options for our future to offer players a development program, which is sustainable and a product fans can be proud of. Stay tuned in the coming months for our next steps. Marc Ronney Whatcom Sports & Recreation