Buffalo Blizzard
Encyclopedia
You may be looking for Lake Storm "Aphid" or the Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977
Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977
The Blizzard of 1977 was a deadly blizzard that hit upstate New York and Southern Ontario from January 28 to February 1, 1977. Daily peak wind gusts ranging from were recorded by the National Weather Service Buffalo Office ....

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Buffalo Blizzard
Operated 1992 - 2001
Arena The Aud
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium was an indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. It hosted the Buffalo Bisons of the AHL, the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL, the Buffalo Braves of the NBA, the Buffalo Stallions of MSL, the Buffalo Bandits of MILL, the Buffalo Blizzard of the second NPSL and the Buffalo...

 & HSBC Arena
Based in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

Colors blue, purple, black, and white
League NPSL II

The Buffalo Blizzard was an indoor soccer
Indoor soccer
Indoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink. The most important difference in play is that the indoor field is surrounded by a wall...

 team based in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

. The team was a member of the now defunct NPSL from 1992 to 2001. From 1992-1996, the team played at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium was an indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. It hosted the Buffalo Bisons of the AHL, the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL, the Buffalo Braves of the NBA, the Buffalo Stallions of MSL, the Buffalo Bandits of MILL, the Buffalo Blizzard of the second NPSL and the Buffalo...

, and they moved to HSBC Arena in 1996 where they played until 2001.

The team was originally owned by the Knox brothers who owned the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...

 at the time and the Riches who owned the minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 Buffalo Bisons
Buffalo Bisons
The Buffalo Bisons are a minor league baseball team based in Buffalo, New York. They currently play in the International League and are the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets...

. During their last five years of existence, the team was owned by John Bellanti who had owned the Buffalo Stallions
Buffalo Stallions
The Buffalo Stallions were a soccer team based out of Buffalo, New York that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979 to 1984. Their home arena was Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.-History:...

 of the original Major Indoor Soccer League.

The team's attendance was always in the top five of the league until its last season, and they had their record high attendance year in 1993-1994 season with an average attendance of 8,435 fans. The major stars of the team were the Pikuzinski brothers, Rudy
Rudy Pikuzinski
Rudy Pikuzinski is a former U.S. soccer forward who spent nearly his entire career playing indoor soccer. He was a three time American Indoor Soccer Association MVP and served as an assistant coach his last year as a player.-Youth:Pikuzinski, and his brother Randy, grew up in Buffalo, New York...

 and Randy, who rank sixth and ninth on the all time points list. The team colors were blue, purple, black, and white, and the team mascot was a dog Spyke who rode a four-wheeler. The team never won a playoff series.

The NPSL ceased operation in 2001 and several of its remaining teams formed the Major Indoor Soccer League, but the Blizzard declined to participate and folded at that time.

Year-By-Year Record

Year GP W L PF PA PCT Finish Playoffs
1992-93 40 23 17 570 503 .575 3rd Amer Lost Quarterfinals
1993-94 40 19 21 499 515 .475 3rd Amer Lost 1st Round
1994-95 40 20 20 579 552 .500 4th Amer Lost 1st Round
1995-96 40 21 19 562 586 .525 4th Amer Lost Division Semifinals
1996-97 40 21 19 545 469 .525 1st North Lost Conference Semifinals
1997-98 40 21 19 495 504 .525 1st North Lost Conference Semifinals
1998-99 40 22 18 430 510 .550 2nd North Lost Conference Semifinals
1999-00 44 19 25 495 617 .432 3rd Cent Out of Playoffs
2000-01 40 22 18 513 464 .550 2nd Amer Lost Quarterfinals

Coaches

1992-1994:  England Trevor Dawkins
Trevor Dawkins
Trevor Dawkins is a retired English professional football defender. He spent seven seasons in the Football League, five in South Africa, and seven in the United States, most in indoor leagues. Following his retirement in 1985, he coached for fourteen years in the U.S. indoor leagues...

 

1994-1996:  United States Jim May
Jim May
Jim May is a retired American soccer goalkeeper who played professionally in the North American Soccer League and the Major Indoor Soccer League....

 

1996-1999:  United States George Fernandez
George Fernandez
George Fernandez is a retired American soccer defender who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He coached in both the Continental Indoor Soccer League and NPSL and was the 1994 CISL Coach of the Year.-Youth:Born in San Francisco,...

 

1999-2001:  England Paul Kitson

Notable players

David Banks
David Banks (soccer)
David Banks was an English-American soccer defender who is currently the Director of Notts F.C., a youth soccer team in San Diego, California...

 Mauro Biello
Mauro Biello
Mauro Biello is now an assistant coach for the MLS-bound Montreal Impact and is best known for having been professional soccer player on the same team....

 Ralph Black
Ralph Black (soccer)
Ralph Black is a retired Scottish-American soccer defender who spent most of his career in indoor soccer.-MISL:...

 Steve Butcher Michael Collins
Michael Collins (soccer)
Michael Collins is a former U.S. soccer midfielder. Collins played for at least twelve teams in nearly half a dozen leagues over his seventeen year professional career. He also earned two caps with the U.S. national team in 1988.-Youth and college:Collins grew up in Hicksville, New York where he...

 Andrew Crawford  Italy Gino DiFlorio
Gino DiFlorio
Gino DiFlorio is a former professional soccer player. Canadian, he was a scoring star of indoor soccer in North America during the 1990s.Moved into Canada with his immediate family after the first few years of his life. Growing up and playing recreational soccer, he could not put the soccer ball...

 Paul Dougherty
Paul Dougherty
Paul Dougherty is an English former professional footballer and football coach who began his career with Wolverhampton Wanderers in England...

  Nigeria Jean Harbor
Jean Harbor
Jean Harbor is a former Nigerian American soccer forward who played for numerous teams in Nigeria and the U.S. He earned fifteen caps with the U.S. national team after becoming a U.S. citizen in 1992.-Youth:...

  United States Pat Harrington
Pat Harrington (soccer)
Pat Harrington is a former soccer and Canadian national team goalkeeper.-Club career:American-born Harrington had a spell at English side Charlton Athletic before making his name at Toronto Blizzard...

 Kris Kelderman
Kris Kelderman
Kris Kelderman was a U.S. soccer defender who is currently the head coach for the UW–Green Bay Phoenix men's soccer team. Kelderman was a member of the U.S. team at the 1985 FIFA U-16 World Championship. He played professionally both indoors and out, including four seasons in Major League Soccer...

 Michael Kirmse Tony Meola
Tony Meola
Antonio Michael "Tony" Meola is an American former soccer goalkeeper who played for the United States national team at the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, and from 1996 to 2006 played in Major League Soccer, the U.S. top soccer division, where he obtained multiple honors...

 Doug Miller
Doug Miller
Doug Miller is a U.S. soccer forward and a youth soccer coach. He spent one season in Major Indoor Soccer League and nine in the National Professional Soccer League, winning two championships and leading the league in scoring in 1998-1999. Miller also played ten seasons of outdoor soccer in the...

 Randy Pikuzinski
Randy Pikuzinski
Randy Pikuzinski is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League, National Professional Soccer League and United Soccer League....

 Rudy Pikuzinski
Rudy Pikuzinski
Rudy Pikuzinski is a former U.S. soccer forward who spent nearly his entire career playing indoor soccer. He was a three time American Indoor Soccer Association MVP and served as an assistant coach his last year as a player.-Youth:Pikuzinski, and his brother Randy, grew up in Buffalo, New York...

 Jamie Swanner
Jamie Swanner
James "Jamie" Swanner is a retired U.S. soccer goalkeeper and active soccer coach. He was a member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic soccer team and earned one cap with the U.S. national team in 1984. He spent his entire professional career playing indoor soccer.-High school and college:Swanner attended...

 Marco Rizi
Marco Rizi
Marco Rizi is a former Canadian professional soccer player. Rizi played in the American Professional Soccer League, professional indoor soccer, and briefly in Major League Soccer.-Club career:...


Year by year attendance

  • 1992/93: 7,068
  • 1993/94: 8,435
  • 1994/95: 7,283
  • 1995/96: 6,364
  • 1996/97: 7,974
  • 1997/98: 7,834
  • 1998/99: 7,068
  • 1999/00: 6,587
  • 2000/01: 4,635
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