1987-88 – ANOTHER GREAT SEASON
1987-88 – Another Great Season
For the fifth straight season, the Blazers finished 1st place in the West Division. The Blazers also led the league in goals with 399, despite losing scoring phenom Rob Brown to the pro ranks. The team was instead led by local product Mark Recchi’s 154 points which placed him third in WHL scoring behind Joe Sakic and Theoren Fleury. The Blazers were successful in the playoffs again sweeping the New Westminster Bruins 5 games to 0 and downing the Spokane Chiefs in the West Division final 5 games to 2 in a pair of best-of-9 affairs. This set up a best-of-7 series with the defending Memorial Cup champions, the Medicine Hat Tigers. The Tigers were too much once again, ousting the Blazers in six games and eventually repeating as Memorial Cup champions. This was the end of an era as Greg Hawgood and Mark Recchi both graduated to long and productive pro careers.
Team Record: 45-26-1, 1st West
Playoffs: Lost League Championship (4 games to 2 to Medicine Hat)
Leading Regular Season Scorer: Mark Recchi – 61 Goals, 93 Assists, 154 Points
Leading Playoff Scorer: Mark Recchi – 31 Points
Notable Players: Greg Hawgood, Mark Recchi, Warren Babe, Pat MacLeod, Dave Chyzowski, Glenn Mulvenna, Mike Needham, Tony Horacek
(A very good book has been written about the history of the Kamloops Blazer franchise, dating all the way back to its inception in Estevan, Saskatchewan in 1966. Its title is “The Seventh Man”, written by Glen Cowley. We recommend this book for any true Blazer fan…and it can be purchased at the Kamloops Blazers Corner Store.)
