2018 Atlanta Blaze season

2018 Atlanta Blaze
LeagueMajor League Lacrosse
2018 record7-7
Home record2-5
Road record5-2
Goals for187 (10 2-point goals)
Goals against184 (7 2-point goal)
General ManagerSpencer Ford
CoachLiam Banks
StadiumFifth Third Bank Stadium
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2019 →

The 2018 Atlanta Blaze season was the third season for the Atlanta Blaze of Major League Lacrosse. The Blaze created a lot of noise in the preceding offseason period. On September 12, 2017, the Blaze signed former Lizard Tommy Palasek.[1] Later in the month, the Blaze also signed Matt Gibson from the Lizards and acquired Eddy Glazener from the Denver Outlaws for Christian Burgdorf.[2][3]

On December 18, 2017, Blaze head coach Dave Huntley died unexpectedly at the age of 60.[4] Former MLL player Liam Banks was named his replacement on January 15, 2018, becoming the third head coach in the young team's history.

For the second straight year, the Blaze improved their record, finishing .500 for the first time in franchise history at 7-7. The team entered the final week of the season just needing a win to clinch a playoff spot. However, the Blaze lost a close one to the Denver Outlaws, 15-14.

Milestones and events

Offseason

  • December 18, 2017 - Head coach Dave Huntley died unexpectedly at the age of 60.
  • January 9, 2018 - Jim Pfeifer was renamed President of the Blaze. He served the same role for the team from December 2016 to May 2017.[5]
  • January 15 - Former MLL player Liam Banks was named the third head coach in Blaze history.[6]
  • April 18 - Commissioner Sandy Brown announces the sale of the Blaze to Andre Gudger, founder and CEO of technology investment company Eccalon.[7]

Regular season

  • May 31 - The Blaze make a flurry of trades and acquire faceoff specialist Joe Nardella from the Boston Cannons, and send Jake Withers to the Charlotte Hounds in exchange for a 2019 second round draft pick.[8]
  • July 25 - Major League Lacrosse announces the site of the All Star Games for 2019, 2020, and 2021. After hosting the championship games from 2014 to 2016, Atlanta will host its first All Star Game in 2020.[9]

Schedule

Regular season

Date Opponent Stadium Result Attendance Record
April 22 Florida Launch Fifth Third Bank Stadium L 10-13 1,043 0-1
April 28 Boston Cannons Fifth Third Bank Stadium W 19-12 1,967 1-1
May 6 at New York Lizards James M. Shuart Stadium W 16-14 3,219 2-1
May 12 at Boston Cannons Harvard Stadium W 17-14 4,210 3-1
May 19 at Dallas Rattlers The Ford Center at The Star L 14-15 (OT) 4,732 3-2
June 2 New York Lizards Fifth Third Bank Stadium L 17-20 2,326 3-3
June 9 Charlotte Hounds Fifth Third Bank Stadium L 13-19 1,481 3-4
June 16 at Chesapeake Bayhawks Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium L 6-9 4,734 3-5
June 23 Dallas Rattlers Fifth Third Bank Stadium L 14-16 1,233 3-6
June 30 at Charlotte Hounds MUSC Health Stadium (Charleston, SC) W 16-10 1,145 4-6
July 21 at Ohio Machine Fortress Obetz W 13-10 3,288 5-6
July 26 Chesapeake Bayhawks Fifth Third Bank Stadium W 12-11 1,406 6-6
July 28 at Florida Launch FAU Stadium W 16-13 7-6
August 4 Denver Outlaws Fifth Third Bank Stadium L 14-15 2,204 7-7

Standings

2018 Major League Lacrosse Standings
W L PCT GB GF 2ptGF GA 2ptGA
Dallas Rattlers 11 3 .786 - 201 8 175 2
Chesapeake Bayhawks 9 5 .643 2 176 11 174 7
Denver Outlaws 8 6 .571 3 225 5 183 14
New York Lizards 8 6 .571 3 211 5 214 5
Charlotte Hounds 7 7 .500 4 196 8 191 4
Atlanta Blaze 7 7 .500 4 187 10 184 7
Boston Cannons 5 9 .357 6 173 9 213 9
Florida Launch 5 9 .357 6 192 4 201 10
Ohio Machine 3 11 .214 8 173 6 199 8
Playoff Seed


References

  1. ^ Blaze sign Tommy Palasek in Player movement
  2. ^ Blaze acquire Matt Gibson
  3. ^ Blaze acquire Glazener
  4. ^ Blaze coach Dave Huntley passes away
  5. ^ Jim Pfeifer named President of Atlanta Blaze
  6. ^ Liam Banks named head coach of Blaze
  7. ^ "MLL approves sale of Atlanta Blaze to Andre Gudger". Archived from the original on 2018-04-21. Retrieved 2018-04-21.
  8. ^ Atlanta Blaze fortifies its already potent roster heading into the season's most important month
  9. ^ MLL announces All Star Games for 2019-21