2012–13 NAHL season
| 2012–13 NAHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | North American Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | Regular season September 8, 2012 – March 30, 2013 Post-season April 4 – May 13, 2013 |
| Number of games | 60 |
| Number of teams | 24 |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Amarillo Bulls |
| Top scorer | Jared Van Wormer (Soo Eagles) |
| Robertson Cup Playoffs | |
| Finals champions | Amarillo Bulls |
| Runners-up | Wenatchee Wild |
The 2012–13 NAHL season was the 29th season of the North American Hockey League. The regular season ran from September 2012 to April 2013 with a 60-game schedule for each team. The Amarillo Bulls won the regular season championship and went on to defeat the Wenatchee Wild 5 to 0 in the championship game to capture the Robertson Cup.
Member changes
- During the previous season, the Chicago Hitmen had been locked out of their home arena due to unpaid fees. While they were able to come to an arrangement for the remainder of the season, the rink's owners did eventually file suit with the franchise for more than $100,000 in disputed charges.[1] The Hitmen were disbanded prior to this season.
- Due to high travel costs, the Dawson Creek Rage announced that they would attempt to join the AJHL after the 2012 season. After the plans fell through, the franchise elected to suspend operations in April.[2]
- In On March 2, 2012, the Soo Eagles announced that they had purchased the franchise rights to the Traverse City North Stars, the final condition for the team's move to the NAHL.[3]
- In April, the Alexandria Blizzard announced their move to Brookings, South Dakota. The club would retain its moniker and become the Brookings Blizzard .[4]
- One day later, the Alaska Avalanche announced that they were moving to Johnstown, Pennsylvania and would become the Johnstown Tomahawks.[5]
- In May, the St. Louis Bandits applied for and were granted inactive status for this season.[6] a little over a week later, the New Mexico Mustangs were also approved for a year-long dormancy.[7]
Regular season
The standings at the end of the regular season were as follows:[8]
Note: x = clinched playoff berth; y = clinched division title; z = clinched regular season title
Standings
Central Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Austin Bruins | 60 | 42 | 11 | 7 | 91 | 223 | 155 |
| x – Bismarck Bobcats | 60 | 35 | 16 | 9 | 79 | 183 | 140 |
| x – Brookings Blizzard | 60 | 32 | 23 | 5 | 69 | 175 | 179 |
| x – Minot Minotauros | 60 | 26 | 30 | 4 | 56 | 151 | 186 |
| Aberdeen Wings | 60 | 23 | 30 | 7 | 53 | 158 | 194 |
| Coulee Region Chill | 60 | 16 | 39 | 5 | 37 | 157 | 224 |
North Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Soo Eagles | 60 | 41 | 14 | 5 | 87 | 203 | 155 |
| x – Jamestown Ironmen | 60 | 37 | 19 | 4 | 78 | 170 | 152 |
| x – Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | 60 | 35 | 19 | 6 | 76 | 184 | 169 |
| x – Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 60 | 32 | 24 | 4 | 68 | 178 | 163 |
| x – Johnstown Tomahawks | 60 | 27 | 21 | 12 | 66 | 179 | 177 |
| x – Springfield Jr. Blues | 60 | 26 | 30 | 4 | 56 | 159 | 181 |
| Janesville Jets | 60 | 23 | 27 | 10 | 56 | 147 | 182 |
| Michigan Warriors | 60 | 19 | 32 | 9 | 47 | 136 | 177 |
South Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xyz – Amarillo Bulls | 60 | 46 | 7 | 7 | 99 | 248 | 118 |
| x – Topeka RoadRunners | 60 | 39 | 14 | 7 | 85 | 190 | 146 |
| x – Texas Tornado | 60 | 36 | 22 | 2 | 74 | 219 | 168 |
| x – Corpus Christi IceRays | 60 | 28 | 26 | 6 | 62 | 194 | 200 |
| Wichita Falls Wildcats | 60 | 26 | 30 | 4 | 56 | 183 | 200 |
| Odessa Jackalopes | 60 | 6 | 51 | 3 | 15 | 121 | 309 |
West Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Wenatchee Wild | 60 | 39 | 15 | 6 | 84 | 197 | 147 |
| x – Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 60 | 39 | 17 | 4 | 82 | 192 | 148 |
| x – Kenai River Brown Bears | 60 | 29 | 25 | 6 | 64 | 185 | 177 |
| x – Fresno Monsters | 60 | 18 | 35 | 7 | 43 | 139 | 224 |
Statistics
Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in regular season points at the completion of all regular season games. [9]
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jared Van Wormer | Soo Eagles | 60 | 25 | 51 | 76 | 28 |
| Kyle Sharkey | Topeka RoadRunners | 59 | 32 | 37 | 69 | 72 |
| Brandon Wahlin | Austin Bruins | 58 | 20 | 49 | 69 | 113 |
| Rudy Sulmonte | Corpus Christi IceRays | 60 | 27 | 41 | 68 | 42 |
| Sean Gaffney | Topeka RoadRunners | 58 | 26 | 40 | 66 | 47 |
| A. J. Reid | Austin Bruins | 55 | 25 | 40 | 65 | 50 |
| Robbie Payne | Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | 57 | 29 | 35 | 64 | 109 |
| Eric Rivard | Soo Eagles | 58 | 24 | 39 | 63 | 119 |
| Jono Davis | Wenatchee Wild | 59 | 32 | 29 | 61 | 110 |
| Mike Davis | Amarillo Bulls | 59 | 28 | 31 | 59 | 52 |
| C. J. Smith | Austin Bruins | 60 | 30 | 29 | 59 | 22 |
Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; SOL = Shootout losses; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; SV% = Save percentage
| Player | Team | GP | Mins | W | L | OTL | SOL | GA | SV | SV% | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Berrafato | Amarillo Bulls | 44 | 2455:08 | 33 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 68 | 839 | .919 | 1.66 |
| Aaron Nelson | Bismarck Bobcats | 40 | 2298:03 | 24 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 72 | 982 | .928 | 1.88 |
| Zach Nagelvoort | Aberdeen Wings | 28 | 1601:08 | 17 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 56 | 834 | .933 | 2.10 |
| Spencer Viele | Topeka RoadRunners | 41 | 2356:26 | 28 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 86 | 1,053 | .918 | 2.19 |
| Marcus Due-Boje | Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | 23 | 1335:45 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 49 | 748 | .935 | 2.20 |
Robertson Cup playoffs
In the Semifinal, ties are broken first by head-to-head matchup and then by goal differential.
| Division Play-in (Best-of-3) | Division Semifinals (Best-of-5) | Division Finals (Best-of-5) | Semifinal (Round Robin) | Championship (Best-of-1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Austin Bruins | 3 | 1 | 3* | 1 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C4 | Minot Minotauros | 1 | 2* | 2 | 0 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Austin Bruins | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Bismarck Bobcats | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Bismarck Bobcats | 8 | 6 | 6 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C3 | Brookings Blizzard | 3 | 3 | 0 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Soo Eagles | 4 | 4 | 4 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N4 | Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 3 | 0 | 4* | N4 | Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Soo Eagles | 3 | 0 | 2 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N5 | Johnstown Tomahawks | 0 | 2 | 3 | North Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Jamestown Ironmen | 6 | 1 | 5 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Jamestown Ironmen | 7 | 3 | 2 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Bismarck Bobcats | - | 4 | 1 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | 7 | 6 | - | N3 | Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Jamestown Ironmen | 3 | - | 1 | 2 | S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N6 | Springfield Jr. Blues | 1 | 0 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 2* | 2* | - | 0 | W1 | Wenatchee Wild | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 1 | 6 | 5 | 5 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Wenatchee Wild | 2 | 5 | 7 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S4 | Corpus Christi IceRays | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 4 | 5 | 6 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Texas Tornado | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Topeka Roadrunners | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S3 | Texas Tornado | 2 | 2 | 8 | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Wenatchee Wild | 7 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Fresno Monsters | 0 | 3 | 2* | 2 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Wenatchee Wild | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6* | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Kenai River Brown Bears | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
References
- ^ "Chicago Hitmen will not play in 2012-13". NAHL. May 11, 2012.
- ^ Davison, Rick (April 5, 2012). "Players devastated after Rage folds". Dawson Creek Daily News. Dawson Creek, BC. p. A1.
- ^ "Soo Eagles granted membership to NAHL for 2012-13 season". NAHL. March 2, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "Blizzard to relocate to Brookings, South Dakota for 2012-13 season". NAHL. April 23, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "Alaska hockey team relocating to Johnstown". 24 April 2012.
- ^ "St. Louis Bandits granted inactive status for 2012-13". North American Hockey League. May 14, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "New Mexico Mustangs granted inactive status for 2012–13". North American Hockey League. May 23, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "NAHL Standings". North American Hockey League. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
- ^ "NAHL Stats". North American Hockey League. Retrieved May 26, 2025.