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Blaze Drop Season Finale to Mallards

March 24, 2012 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Bloomington Blaze News Release


MOLINE - The Bloomington Blaze, presented by Mid-Illini Credit Union, concluded their inaugural season with a 5-2 loss to the Quad City Mallards behind a Jeremy Boyer hat trick on Saturday night at iWireless Center.

The Mallards opened the scoring with 11:31 remaining in the opening period when Jeremy Boyer collected his own rebound on a breakaway and bounced a sharp angle shot off Blaze goalie Zane Kalemba that trickled into the net.

Neither team scored until a furious flurry in the final three minutes of the second period. The Mallards converted another breakaway with 2:25 left in the middle frame with an unassisted goal by Mickey Lang, but the Blaze scored just eight seconds later when Jason Dale beat Mallards netminder David McKee from the slot, assisted by Vladimir Nikiforov. The Blaze tied the game just 33 seconds after Dale's goal with an unassisted tally from Travis Granbois, who also beat McKee from the slot, to send the game to the second intermission even at 2-2.

Boyer scored his second tally of the game with 15:32 left in the third period when he weaved through the slot to score and give the Flock a 3-2 lead. The Mallards were given a 5-on-3 power play and capitalized with 7:38 on a Brandon Marino goal that slid in just inside the left post. The Mallards sealed the season-ending victory with an empty-net goal by Boyer with 39.6 seconds left to complete his hat trick.

Kalemba took the loss in net with 41 saves, while McKee earned the win by stopping 37 Blaze shots. The Blaze did not convert on four man-advantage opportunities, while the Mallards were 1-for-8 on the power play. The Blaze end the season in seventh place in the Turner Conference with a final record of 24-35-7, and the Mallards finish in fifth place in the division with a record of 37-27-2. The Blaze finish 2-5-2 against the Flock.

Season tickets are available for the 2012-2013 season as the Blaze continue working on improvements for their second season in the Central Hockey League. For information, call the Blaze office at 309-434-2980 or check online at Facebook, Twitter (BLMBlaze) and www.bloomingtonblaze.com.

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