Springfield Jr. Blues
| Springfield Jr. Blues | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Springfield, Illinois |
| League | NAHL |
| Division | Midwest |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Home arena | Nelson Center |
| Colors | Navy, Gold |
| Owner(s) | Dan Ferguson |
| General manager | Todd Pococke |
| Head coach | Todd Pococke |
| Media | Hockey TV |
| Franchise history | |
| 1993–present | Springfield Jr. Blues |
| Championships | |
| Playoff championships | Robertson Cup 2 (1996,1997) |
The Springfield Jr. Blues are a Tier II junior ice hockey team in the North American Hockey League's Midwest Division.[1] The team plays their home games at the Nelson Center in Springfield, Illinois.[2]
History
[edit]Founded by John D. O'Laughlin and Al Jennings, the franchise joined the North American Hockey League for the 1993–94 season.[3] Springfield had previously been home to multiple semi-pro teams the Springfield Kings and Springfield Capitols. The team has made numerous appearances in the NAHL playoffs and were back-to-back Robertson Cup National Championships in 1996 and 1997.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that curtailed the 2019–20 season, the Jr. Blues suspended operations for the 2020–21 season.[4][5]
Season-by-season records
[edit]| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–05 | 56 | 30 | 25 | 1 | 61 | 207 | 200 | 1,509 | 5th, South Div. | |
| 2005–06 | 58 | 28 | 26 | 4 | 60 | 181 | 208 | 1,721 | 3rd, South Div. | |
| 2006–07 | 62 | 26 | 31 | 5 | 57 | 188 | 203 | 1,588 | 6th, Central Div. | |
| 2007–08 | 58 | 27 | 25 | 5 | 59 | 190 | 190 | 1,253 | 4th, Central Div. | |
| 2008–09 | 58 | 25 | 28 | 5 | 55 | 183 | 185 | 1,182 | 4th, South Div. | |
| 2009–10 | 56 | 21 | 29 | 8 | 50 | 163 | 193 | 921 | 4th, South Div. | |
| 2010–11 | 58 | 31 | 24 | 3 | 65 | 191 | 170 | 976 | 5th, North Div. | |
| 2011–12 | 60 | 31 | 27 | 2 | 64 | 202 | 190 | 1216 | 3rd, Midwest Div. | |
| 2012–13 | 60 | 26 | 30 | 4 | 56 | 159 | 181 | 907 | 6th, North Div. | |
| 2013–14 | 60 | 26 | 26 | 8 | 60 | 141 | 160 | 875 | 5th, North Div. | |
| 2014–15 | 60 | 23 | 31 | 6 | 52 | 126 | 184 | 815 | 6th, North Div. | |
| 2015–16 | 60 | 29 | 25 | 6 | 64 | 155 | 164 | 770 | 5th of 6, Midwest Div. 13th of 22, NAHL | |
| 2016–17 | 60 | 27 | 28 | 5 | 59 | 174 | 189 | 717 | 5th of 6, Midwest Div. 18th of 24, NAHL | |
| 2017–18 | 60 | 33 | 21 | 6 | 72 | 169 | 166 | 670 | 3rd of 6, Midwest Div. 9th of 23, NAHL | |
| 2018–19 | 60 | 33 | 22 | 5 | 71 | 192 | 177 | 901 | 3rd of 6, Midwest Div. 9th of 23, NAHL | |
| 2019–20[a] | 54 | 16 | 34 | 4 | 36 | 133 | 206 | 968 | 6th of 6, Midwest Div. 23rd of 26, NAHL | |
| 2020–21 | Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||||
| 2021–22 | 60 | 36 | 20 | 2 | 76 | 211 | 177 | 1018 | 2nd of 8, Midwest Div. 7th of 29, NAHL | |
| 2022–23 | 60 | 26 | 31 | 3 | 55 | 147 | 174 | 710 | 7th of 8, Midwest Div. 25th of 29, NAHL | |
| 2023-24 | 60 | 20 | 29 | 10 | 50 | 146 | 216 | 863 | 7th of 8th Midwest, 26 of 32 NAHL | Eliminated |
- ^ Season cancelled prior to completion.
Playoff records
[edit]| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | GF | GA | Round Results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2006 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 13 | 83 | Lost 1st Round, 1–3 vs. Texarkana Bandits | |
| 2007 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2008 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 31 | 18 | 119 | Won 1st Round, 3–0 vs. North Iowa Outlaws Lost 2nd Round, 2–3 vs. Alexandria Blizzard | |
| 2009 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 93 | Lost 1st Round, 1–3 vs. St. Louis Bandits | |
| 2010 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 20 | 76 | Lost 1st Round, 1–3 vs. Topeka RoadRunners | |
| 2011 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2012 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 26 | 155 | Won Div. Semifinals, 3–2 vs. Janesville Jets Lost Div. Finals, 1–3 vs. St. Louis Bandits | |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 2 | — | 1 | 13 | 32 | Lost Div. Play-in Round, 0–2 vs. Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | |
| 2014 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2015 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2016 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2017 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | Lost Div. Semifinals, 0–3 vs. Janesville Jets | |
| 2019 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 18 | Lost Div. Semifinals, 1–3 vs. Minnesota Magicians | |
| 2020 | Postseason cancelled | ||||||||
| 2021 | Did not participate | ||||||||
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 8 | Lost Div. Semifinals, 0-2-1 vs. Anchorage Wolverines | |
| 2023 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Jr. Blues skate on as Springfield's longest-operating sports franchise". sj-r.com. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
- ^ "The History of Hockey in Springfield". dexknows.com. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
- ^ "Junior Blues' finances 'better every year'". sj-r.com. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
- ^ "Springfield Jr. Blues suspend operations for 2020-21 season". NAHL. September 16, 2020.
- ^ Mahan, Ryan. "Springfield Jr. Blues cancel 20-21 season". The State Journal-Register. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
External links
[edit]
 | This American ice hockey team-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a sports team in Illinois is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |