Bellingham Blazers (2012)

Bellingham Blazers
City	Bellingham, Washington
League	United States Premier Hockey League
Founded	2012
Home arena	Bellingham Sportsplex
Colors	Red, black and white
Owner(s)	Whatcom Sports Commission
Head coach	Erick Ruud [1]
Website	https://whatcomsportsandrec.com/blazers/
Franchise history
2012–present	Bellingham Blazers

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. The team also has the local youth hockey association named after them, going by the Jr. Blazers. ^[2]

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] The team won its first WSHL division title and made its first Thorne Cup Final appearance in the 2018-19 season.

The Blazers' 2019–20 season ended early due to a COVID-19 outbreak in Washington. The WSHL itself would cancel the rest of the season not long after. The Blazers and the WSHL returned in the 2021–22 season, but it was short-lived due to the WSHL folding all of its US-based teams. The Blazers were able to continue playing in the Canadian division, but would suspend operations not long after.

The Blazers joined the USPHL the following season after the WSHL folded. The Blazers made their first USPHL playoff appearance in the 2024–25 season, losing in the first round to the Seattle Totems.

On September 11, 2025 the Blazers suspended operations for the 2025–26 season without giving any explanation other than struggles. ^[5]

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 [a]	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 [b]
2020–21	No season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021–22	5	0	5	0	0	—	0	7	50	DNF	Withdrew from season [7]
United States Premier Hockey League - - Premier Division
2022–23	44	9	33	0	2	—	20	120	228	5th of 5, Northwest 60th of 70, Premier	Did not qualify
2023–24	44	6	36	0	2	—	14	120	228	5th of 5, Northwest 56th of 61, Premier	Did not qualify
2024–25	44	27	14	1	0	1	55	176	154	3rd of 7, Northwest 21st of 73, Premier	Lost Div. Semifinal series, 0–2 (Seattle Totems)
2025–26	Suspended Season

1. 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.
2. Bellingham was removed from the playoffs prior to the end of the regular season due to the COVID-19 pandemic; ^[6] 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

1. https://www.usphlpremier.com/stats/roster/1203/121
2. "Bellingham's new junior hockey team joins Northern Pacific Hockey League". Bellingham Business Journal. August 13, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
3. "BELLINGHAM NAMES NEW COACH". WSHL. March 26, 2019. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019.
4. "DAILY DISH: NPHL Done?". Junior Hockey News. April 25, 2016.
5. https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1465542714979108&set=a.742959003904153
6. "STATEMENT REGARDING COVID-19". WSHL. March 8, 2020. Archived from the original on March 20, 2020.
7. "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

External links

• Team Website