Herning Blue Fox

Herning Blue Fox is a Danish professional ice hockey team based in Herning, Denmark, playing in the Metal Ligaen, the top tier of Danish ice hockey. The club was founded in 1947 and play their home games in the KVIK Hockey Arena which has a capacity of 4,105 spectators.[1][2][3]

Herning Blue Fox
2016–17 Herning Blue Fox season
CityHerning
LeagueMetal Ligaen
Founded1947
Home arenaKVIK Hockey Arena
(Capacity: 4,105)
Colors     
Head coach Ben Cooper
Websitewww.bluefox.dk

The club has won the Danish championship 16 times with the last title coming in 2012.[4]

Club history

2015–2016: Mario Simioni era

2015–2016 season

After the departure of long time head coach Todd Bjorkstrand; Herning signed Mario Simioni to take helm of the club. Simioni led the team to the playoffs where they would face the fifth ranked Odense Bulldogs in the quarterfinals. Herning started the series strong with a 2–1 victory at home, though Odnese would then even it up in game two, with a 3–0 shutout victory. Herning came back strong in game three as they dominated Odnese in a 6–1 road win. Game four was a 2–1 victory to Odense, again evening up the series. Odnese took their first lead of the series as they won game five in overtime 2–1. Herning evened up the series in game six with a 2–1 victory on the road. Herning would win the series, with a series clinching 2-1 overtime win in game seven to move on to the semis.

The semifinals saw the Herning Blue Fox facing the second ranked Frederikshavn White Hawks. Game one resulted in a 3–1 home win for the White Hawks. In game two Herning came out victorious in a blowout 7–1 win. The White Hawks would regain the series lead with a 5–2 win in game three. In game four Herning evened up the series with a 5–2 win. The White Hawks won game five 5–3 as they took back the series lead, though game six saw Herning shutout the White Hawks in a 2–0 win. Herning defeated the White Hawks 3–1 in game seven to clinch a spot in the leagues final.

In the finals Herning Blue Fox was set to clash with the Esbjerg Energy. In game one, Esbjerg came out victorious in a 3–2 home win. Though Herning would go on to win three straight games to take a 3–1 series lead. Esbjerg would go on to win three straight games to win the finals, their first since 2004.

After his first season with Herning, Simioni left the club to join the coaching staff of the Hamburg Freezers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) in Germany as an assistant to Serge Aubin.[5]

2016–present: Return of Todd Bjorkstrand

2016–2017 season

In May 2016, Herning Blue Fox successfully signed former head coach Todd Bjorkstrand. Bjorkstrand returned to club after leaving in 2014 to coach the Graz 99ers of the Erste Bank Hockey League.[6]

Season by season record

This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by Herning Blue Fox.

Seasons of Herning Blue Fox[7]
Season Rank GP W L OTW OTL Pts Postseason
2011–12 3rd 40 23 14 2 1 74 Champion
2012–13 1st 40 24 8 4 4 84 Quarter final loss
2013–14 2nd 40 25 7 4 4 87 Final loss
2014–15 1st 36 24 6 0 6 78 Bronze medal game loss
2015–16 4th 45 21 15 4 5 76 Final loss

Current roster

Updated February 20, 2019[8][9]

# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
31 Simon Nielsen G L 34 Herning, Denmark
16 Patrik Madsen D L 28 Herning, Denmark
18 Daniel Nielsen (C) D R 40 Herning, Denmark
12 Thomas Andersen RW R 26 Herning, Denmark
25 Markus Jensen LW/C L 24 Herning, Denmark
4 Lasse Lassen RW R 31 Herning, Denmark
11 Daniel Nielsen LW L 22 Vojens, Denmark
7 Sebastian Ruders F L 23
21 Kristoffer Søgaard Jensen RW/C L 24 Herning, Denmark

Retired numbers
  • 22 Todd Bjorkstrand, C, 1988–2002

NHL alumni

References
  1. "Herning IK". Eurohockey.com. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  2. "Kvik Hockey Arena". Eurohockey.com. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  3. "Kvik Hockey Arena". bluefox.dk. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  4. "History". bluefox.dk. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  5. AS, Blue Fox Herning. "Forgyldt træner til Herning Blue Fox". bluefox.dk. Retrieved 2016-05-03.
  6. AS, Blue Fox Herning. "Todd Bjorkstand tilbage på Heden". bluefox.dk. Archived from the original on 2016-07-14. Retrieved 2016-07-14.
  7. http://www.eliteprospects.com/team.php?team=138
  8. "Herning Blue Fox Truppen". www.bluefox.dk. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  9. "Eliteprospects.com - Herning Blue Fox". www.eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 2016-11-01.
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