Blaine Lacher
Canadian ice hockey player (1970–2024)
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Blaine Irwin Lacher (September 5, 1970 – January 29, 2024) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. Lacher played for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL) in the mid-1990s.
| Blaine Lacher | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
September 5, 1970 Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada | ||
| Died |
January 29, 2024 (aged 53) Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Caught | Left | ||
| Played for | Boston Bruins | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 1994–1997 | ||
Biography
Lacher was a standout goaltender at Lake Superior State University in college, leading his team to a national championship in 1994. In his final season at Lake Superior State, Lacher led the nation in both save percentage (SV%) and goals against average (GAA) at .918 and 1.98, respectively. He set an NCAA Division I shutout record of 375:01, which still stood as of 2024. Lacher gave up his final year of eligibility to sign as a free agent with the Boston Bruins.[1]
Lacher started his professional career with the Boston Bruins very well, losing only one of his starts down the stretch to get the team into the 1995 Stanley Cup playoffs, where they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils. During the 1994–95 season Lacher made 35 appearances with a 19–11–2 record, 2.41 goals against average (GAA), a .902 save percentage (SV%), and four shutouts.
After being promoted to the full-time starting goaltender the next season, Lacher's earlier performances did not keep up and his statistics suffered. He was part of a rotation of goaltenders in the 1995–96 season, which ended with Craig Billington signing onto the Bruins and when the Bruins traded for one-time Bruins prospect Bill Ranford from the Edmonton Oilers. Lacher played for several teams during the 1995–96 season, playing for the Cleveland Lumberjacks of the International Hockey League (IHL), and the Bruins' minor-league affiliate, the Providence Bruins, of the American Hockey League (AHL). Even in Providence, Lacher's record was hardly up to his numbers from the previous season. With Boston, Lacher's record was 3–5–2 with a poor 3.93 GAA and .845 SV%.
Lacher retired from professional ice hockey after the 1996–97 IHL season with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In 11 games with the Griffins, Lacher was 1–8–1 with a 3.76 GAA and a .877 SV%.
On January 29, 2024, Lacher died in Medicine Hat, Alberta, at the age of 53.[2][3]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 1988–89 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4.41 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 39 | — | — | — | 2,250 | 134 | 1 | 3.57 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | Lake Superior State University | WCHA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Lake Superior State University | WCHA | 9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 410 | 22 | 0 | 3.22 | .879 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Lake Superior State University | WCHA | 34 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 1,915 | 86 | 2 | 2.70 | .892 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Lake Superior State University | WCHA | 30 | 20 | 5 | 4 | 1,785 | 59 | 6 | 1.98 | .885 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 59 | 3 | 0 | 3.03 | .880 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 35 | 19 | 11 | 2 | 1,965 | 79 | 4 | 2.41 | .902 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 125 | 12 | 0 | 2.55 | .904 | ||
| 1995–96 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 9 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 462 | 30 | 0 | 3.90 | .878 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 12 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 671 | 44 | 0 | 3.94 | .845 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Cleveland Lumberjacks | IHL | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 478 | 28 | 0 | 3.51 | .891 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 191 | 10 | 0 | 3.14 | .899 | ||
| 1996–97 | Grand Rapids Griffins | IHL | 11 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 510 | 32 | 0 | 3.76 | .877 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 47 | 22 | 16 | 4 | 2,635 | 123 | 4 | 2.80 | .887 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 125 | 12 | 0 | 2.55 | .904 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| CCHA All-Tournament Team | 1993, 1994 | [4] |
| NCAA All-Tournament Team | 1994 | [5] |