Bloomington Blaze
Encyclopedia
The Bloomington Blaze is a minor league ice hockey
franchise currently a member of the Central Hockey League
in the Turner Conference and scheduled to begin play for the 2011-12 season. Based in Bloomington, Illinois
, the Blaze will play its home games at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum
.
The Blaze replace the defunct Bloomington PrairieThunder which played in the International Hockey League
from 2006-2010 (in their first season the league was called the United Hockey League
) before it merged with the CHL for the 2010-11 season, which they had only played the single season before folding. Though the Blaze also plays at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum, the franchise is not a continuation of the PrairieThunder franchise. The former head coach, Jason Christe, resigned before the season started. He is now the Coach for the Ontario Reign of the ECHL.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
franchise currently a member of the Central Hockey League
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League is a mid-level professional hockey league, owned by Global Entertainment Corporation. Its current champions are the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs, which defeated the Colorado Eagles four games to three in the 2011 playoffs....
in the Turner Conference and scheduled to begin play for the 2011-12 season. Based in Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington is a city in McLean County, Illinois, United States and the county seat. It is adjacent to Normal, Illinois, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area...
, the Blaze will play its home games at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum
U.S. Cellular Coliseum
U.S. Cellular Coliseum is an arena in downtown Bloomington, Illinois that opened to the public on April 1, 2006. It is on the southwest corner of Madison Street and Front Street. It hosts the Bloomington Extreme of the Indoor Football League, the Bloomington Blaze of the Central Hockey League,...
.
The Blaze replace the defunct Bloomington PrairieThunder which played in the International Hockey League
United Hockey League
The United Hockey League was a low-level professional ice hockey league , with teams in the United States...
from 2006-2010 (in their first season the league was called the United Hockey League
United Hockey League
The United Hockey League was a low-level professional ice hockey league , with teams in the United States...
) before it merged with the CHL for the 2010-11 season, which they had only played the single season before folding. Though the Blaze also plays at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum, the franchise is not a continuation of the PrairieThunder franchise. The former head coach, Jason Christe, resigned before the season started. He is now the Coach for the Ontario Reign of the ECHL.