Bloomington Blaze Weekly

Published on October 22, 2012 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Bloomington Blaze News Release


The Bloomington Blaze, fueled by Mid-Illini Credit Union, host the Wichita Thunder in a pair of contests on U.S.

Cellular Coliseum ice this weekend.

Last week:

Friday, October 19- Rapid City Rush 5, Bloomington Blaze 4

Saturday, October 20- Bloomington Blaze 5, Rapid City Rush 2

This week:

Friday, October 26, 7:05 p.m.- Wichita Thunder at Bloomington Blaze, U.S. Cellular Coliseum

Saturday, October 27, 7:05 p.m.- Wichita Thunder at Bloomington Blaze, U.S. Cellular Coliseum

Lighting the fuse: The Blaze faced off the 2012-13 season by splitting two games with the Rapid City Rush during the opening weekend in Bloomington, coming back but falling short 5-4 in Friday's opener and leading wire-to-wire in a 5-2 win on Saturday. The Rush scored three goals in five minutes in the first period of the opener, although the Blaze outshot and outscored the Rush over the remainder of the game. On Saturday, the Blaze jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two periods led by two goals from Travis Granbois and never trailed. Jon Booras led the Blaze weekend with a goal and four assists for five points, while Granbois and Nicklas Lindberg each scored twice with a pair of assists from Lindberg for four points.

The Wichita line, man: The Blaze face the Wichita Thunder for the first time ever this weekend since the Central Hockey League schedule did not pair the clubs last season. The Thunder also split a pair of games with the Tulsa Oilers on home ice last weekend in similar fashion to the Blaze, losing Friday's opener 4-3 but rebounding for an 8-2 victory on Saturday. Matt Summers led the Kansans with two goals and four assists for six points while RG Flath lit the lamp three times with two assists and a team-leading +4 rating.

Gregor Hanson also recorded five points on two goals and three assists.

Opening closed: Blaze coach Brian Gratz is probably grateful to have the opener behind him as he was behind the bench for a season-opening loss in Bloomington for the second straight season. His Dayton Gems fell to the Blaze in overtime to begin the 2011-12 campaign.

Addition over subtraction: After the two opening games, only three players have a plus-minus rating in the negative range, and no one has a rating lower than -1. Jon Booras, Matthew Larke and Nicklas Lindberg lead the team with +3 ratings.

Let's get physical: Defenseman Tysen Dowzak leads the Blaze with 26 penalty minutes, with all but two minutes recorded on Saturday, and all but two minutes meted out for roughing or fighting.

Junior Blaze update: The Junior Blaze also split games with the Michigan Ice Dogs in their home opening weekend. Bloomington won their fifth straight in a 5-4 thriller on Friday when Kyler Schmor scored with 2.4 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and Anton Thompson tallied in the seventh round of the shootout. The Junior Blaze win streak ended with a 2-1 loss on Sunday, as Jacob Lourash scored the only Bloomington goal. The Junior Blaze host Holland in a 3 p.m. Friday face-off before the Blaze-Thunder CHL contest, then travel to Rhinelander, Wis. for games on Saturday and Sunday.

Following the Blaze: All Blaze games can be heard on WJBC.com and fans inside U.S. Cellular Coliseum can listen to the WJBC broadcast on 93.7 FM.

Like the Blaze on Facebook and follow the team on Twitter (BLMBlaze), and remember to check in during games for special social media prizes. Team information can be found at www.bloomingtonblaze.com.

Season, group, and multi-game ticket packages are available by calling the Blaze office at 309-434-2980.

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Central Hockey League Stories from October 22, 2012


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