Boston Blazers (2009–2011)

The Blazers were originally scheduled to begin play in the 2008 NLL season. On July 31, 2007 the league held an expansion draft and the Blazers selected a number of players.{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3027|work=NLL.com|title=Pat Merrill Selected First Overall By Boston|date=July 31, 2007|access-date=2007-08-01}} In preparation for the season, the team also made a number of trades.{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3030|title=Boston Deals Langtry Back To Colorado|work=NLL.com|date=July 31, 2007|access-date=2007-08-02}}{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3033|title=Boston Sends Croswell to Toronto|work=NLL.com|date=July 31, 2007|access-date=2007-08-02}}{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3065|title=Toronto / Boston Trade Revoked|work=NLL.com|date=August 28, 2007|access-date=2007-10-05}} On October 16, 2007, the NLL announced that the 2008 season had been cancelled due to the failure of the league and the Professional Lacrosse Players' Association to reach a new collective bargaining agreement.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3127 |title=2008 Season Cancelled |access-date=2007-10-16 |date=2007-10-16 |work=NLL.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017094708/http://nll.com/article.php?id=3127 |archive-date=2007-10-17 }} However, the negotiations continued, and on October 25, the league announced that a new seven-year agreement had been reached, and that the season would be played.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3132 |work=NLL.com |title=NLL, PLPA Reach Seven-Year Deal |date=October 25, 2007 |access-date=2007-11-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071031085546/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3132 |archive-date=2007-10-31 }} A new schedule was announced on November 2, 2007, but only included 12 of the expected 14 teams; the Blazers and the Arizona Sting had been removed.{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3141|work=NLL.com|title=League Releases New 2008 Schedule|date=November 2, 2007|access-date=2007-11-02|archive-date=2007-11-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071106023459/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3141|url-status=dead}} The reasons that the Blazers and Sting opted out of the season were not given, just that it was "due to a number of business issues", and that both teams would return in 2009. A dispersal draft was held on November 5, 2007.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3142 |work=NLL.com |title=Dawson selected first overall by Portland |date=November 5, 2007 |access-date=2007-11-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071107010051/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3142 |archive-date=2007-11-07 }}

The 2009 NLL season was the Boston Blazers' first season playing in the league. In order to field a team for the season, the Blazers participated in the three separate drafts: the Arizona Sting dispersal draft, the expansion draft on July 24, and the entry draft in September.

On June 30, in the Arizona Sting dispersal draft, the Blazers selected Dan Dawson first overall and forward Peter Veltman with the first pick of the second round.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3533 |work=NLL.com |title=Dawson joins Boston Blazers |date=June 30, 2008 |access-date=2008-06-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080702002101/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3533 |archive-date=2008-07-02 }} On July 24 the team picked 12 additional players for their roster in the 2008 expansion draft, including goaltender Mike Poulin with the first overall selection.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3556 |title=Boston selects Poulin first overall |date=July 24, 2008 |publisher=NLL.com |access-date=2008-07-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080728003859/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3556 |archive-date=2008-07-28 }}

Shortly after the draft concluded, the Blazers traded Cam Bergman back to the Edmonton Rush for F Brenden Thenhaus and G Kurtis Wagar.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3556 |title=Boston Adds 12 in Expansion Draft |work=NLL.com |date=July 24, 2008 |access-date=2008-12-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080728003859/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3556 |archive-date=2008-07-28 }}

On July 29, the Blazers and Rochester Knighthawks swapped defenders, with Kyle Laverty going to Rochester in exchange for University of Massachusetts Amherst alum Jack Reid.{{cite web|url=http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=3558|work=NLL.com|title=Blazers and Knighthawks Swap Defenders|date=July 29, 2008|access-date=2008-12-13}}

On July 30, the Blazers, San Jose Stealth, and Calgary Roughnecks completed a 3-way trade that sent Tom Johnson, Travis Gillespie, and Boston's 3rd-round pick in the 2009 NLL Entry Draft to San Jose, Devan Wray to Calgary, and forward Sean Morris (another UMass alum and Marshfield, MA native), defenseman Steve Panarelli, Calgary's 3rd-round pick in the 2009 NLL Entry Draft, and San Jose's 2nd-round pick in the 2010 NLL Entry Draft to Boston.{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3560|title=Five Players Swapped in Three-Way Deal|work=NLL.com|date=July 30, 2008|access-date=2008-12-13}}

Only weeks before the season began, the Chicago Shamrox suspended operations, and another dispersal draft was held. The Blazers had the first overall pick, and chose former Goaltender of the Year Anthony Cosmo.{{cite web|url=http://nll.com/article.php?id=3672|work=NLL.com|date=December 12, 2008|title=Cosmo Selected First Overall By Boston|access-date=2008-12-13|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417170043/http://nll.com/article.php?id=3672|archive-date=April 17, 2009}}

{{NLL roster

|TeamName=Final Boston Blazers

|NLLcomName=

|BC1=Red

|FC1=White

|BC2=Silver

|FC2=#FFFFFF

|Website=http://www.blazerslacrosse.com/ Roster

|Date=2009-02-04

|Goaltenders=

{{player|44| CAN | Anthony Cosmo}}

{{player|66| CAN | Nick Rose}}

|Defenseman=

{{player|85| USA |Mitch Belisle}}

{{player|12| CAN | Jon "Bubba" Durno}}

{{player|28| CAN | Dilan Graham}}

{{player|33| CAN | Jon Harnett}}

{{player| 4| CAN | Carter Livingstone}}

{{player|15| CAN | Curtis Ptolemy}}

{{player|18| USA | Jack Reid}}

|Forwards=

{{player|22| CAN | Bryan Bendig}}

{{player| 9| CAN | Gary Bining}}

{{player| 6| CAN | Dan Dawson|captain=1}}

{{player| 8| USA | Greg Downing}}

{{player|19| CAN | Matt Lyons}}

{{player|17| CAN | Geoff McNulty}}

{{player|25| USA | Sean Morris}}

{{player|23| USA | Brett Queener}}

|Transition=

{{player|47| CAN | Jason Bloom}}

{{player|37| CAN | Nick Cotter}}

|Practice=

{{player| 20 | | Travis Brown}}

{{player| 05 | | Paul Manesis}}

|Injured=

|Holdout=

|Unable=

|Restricted=

|Head coach=

• Matt Sawyer

|Assistant coaches=

• Todd Francis
• Randy Fraser
• Corey Hallman

|}}

• National Lacrosse League
• Box lacrosse
• Lacrosse
• Boston Blazers (1992-1997)
• New England Blazers
• Boston Cannons

First Round Selections

• 2007: Craig Point (3rd overall), Matt Lyons (11th overall)
• 2008: Daryl Veltman (1st overall)
• 2009: Max Seibald (8th overall)
• 2010: Kyle Rubisch (2nd overall), David Brock (7th overall)
• 2011: None

• [http://www.nll.com NLL Official Website]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070512194146/http://www.nll.com/article.php?id=2944 Team Announcement Press Release at NLL.com]

{{reflist}}

{{NLL}}

{{Defunct NLL}}

Category:Defunct National Lacrosse League teams

Category:Lacrosse teams in Boston

Category:Lacrosse clubs established in 2007

Category:Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 2011

Category:2007 establishments in Massachusetts

Category:2011 disestablishments in Massachusetts

Category:Lacrosse clubs disestablished in the 2010s