The 2019-2020 schedule for the Kamloops Blazers has been officially released and here is a look at the numbers involved:
- 68 regular season games:
- 33 before Christmas
- 35 after Christmas
- 34 home games:
- 12 on a Friday
- 13 on a Saturday (up from only 6 last year)
- 5 on a Wednesday
- 3 games on a Monday including 2 on a holiday (Nov 11 and Feb 17 at 2 pm)
- 1 on a Tuesday
- 25 weekend home games — a fairly significant increase from last year’s 21 weekend home games
Divisional matchups:
Here is how the 36 divisional matchups will play out:
- Kamloops faces off against the rival Kelowna Rockets 10 times — five times at home, the other five down highway 97 at Prospera place.
- The reigning Western Conference champion Vancouver Giants occupy nine spots on the calendar — five games in Kamloops and the other four in Langley.
- The Prince George Cougars come to town for four games this season while the Blazers will visit the CN Centre on five separate occasions including two back-to-backs: November 22nd and 23rd, and January 24th and 25th. (A beautiful time of year to visit Prince George if any Blazers fans are looking for a road trip this upcoming season).
- The Blazers will have ample opportunity to stretch their legs on the ferry with two doubleheaders in Victoria, the first taking place on October 25th and 26th, while the second visit is on February 7th and 8th.
I’ve been everywhere, man:
- The Blazers will embark on a six-game eastern road swing from December 6th – December 14th that begins in Brandon where they’ll face off against the Wheat Kings.
- The next stop will be unfamiliar territory for most when the Blazers face the Winnipeg Ice in their inaugural season. The Blazers then move on to Moose Jaw, Regina, Saskatoon and finally conclude their road trip against the reigning Western Hockey League Champion Prince Albert Raiders.
- By our rough math here at DubNetwork, we estimate this particular Eastern road trip to reach a shade over 3,000 km and 31 hours, that is excluding the drive back to Kamloops from Prince Albert which will tack on an extra 1,363 km and 14 hours.
- As the roster stands right now, the Blazers have one player from Manitoba, four from Alberta, and five from Saskatchewan, meaning there should be plenty of legroom available for the remaining B.C. products heading home for the holidays.
Notable games for the 2019-2020 season:
- The campaign will kick-off on September 20th at the Sandman Centre where the Blazers will host the Spokane Chiefs. The Blazers then immediately head south where they will face off against Seattle on the 21st, and wrap up their first three games in three nights stretch in Portland on the 22nd.
- Battle of the Orange: On June 17th, the Blazers officially announced that Shaun Clouston had been named head coach, a position left open by the departing Serge Lajoie. A native of Viking, Alta, Clouston spent his previous sixteen seasons with the Medicine Hat Tigers where he served as either an assistant coach, associate coach, head coach, or general manager — the latter role from 2013-2019. Fans should expect a tightly-contested game when the Tigers make a rare appearance at the Sandman Centre on November 9th.
- The annual teddy bear toss will take place on November 30th when the Blazers host the Portland Winterhawks. Zane Franklin, last season’s leading scorer for the Blazers, brought the bears down to ice level when he scored the first of six goals in a 6-3 win over Seattle.
This season’s teddy bear toss will be the 26th one in franchise history, a ritual that started in Kamloops in the 1993-1994 season thanks to a goal from Brad Lukowich, with Darcy Tucker and Shane Doan recording assists.
- The regular-season will conclude on home ice with back-to-back games against the Prince George Cougars, taking place on March 20th and 21st.
