| Midwest Blackbirds | |
 | |
| City: | Dyer, Indiana |
|---|---|
| League: | United States Premier Hockey League |
| Division: | USPHL Elite Division |
| Founded: | 2013 |
| Home Arena: | Midwest Training and Ice Center |
| Colors: | Black, Red, Yellow, Green |
| Owner(s): | Reid Simpson |
| Head Coach: | Reid Simpson |
| Franchise history | |
| 2013-2016: | Illiana Blackbirds |
| 2018-Present: | Midwest Blackbirds |
The Midwest Blackbirds formerly the Illiana Blackbirds are a junior ice hockey team from Dyer, Indiana. The team is a member of the United States Premier Hockey League. The team is based out of Midwest Training and Ice Center.
The team began play with the 2012-13 season in the Minnesota Junior Hockey League. In 2015 the team would end up in the newly formed USPHL Midwest Division along with the membership of the Midwest Junior Hockey League and the majority of the members of the Minnesota Junior Hockey League. The team moved to the USPHL Elite Division when the Midwest Division was reorganized for 2016-17.
Owner and coach Reid Simpson was named an assistant coach with the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League for the 2016-17 season and announced that due to insufficient time to get a new coach the team would not play for the 2016-17 season.
The team would also sit out the 2017-18 season. The team would return for the 2018-19 season as the renamed Midwest Blackbirds.
The team would be dropped by the USPHL in early September of 2022.
Season-by-season results[]
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | GP | W | L | OL | SL | Pts | GF | GA | Standing | 1st round |
2nd round |
3rd round |
Final | |
| Minnesota Junior Hockey League | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–13 | 50 | 26 | 17 | 7 | - | 59 | 223 | 206 | 2nd, Great Lakes | W 2-0 (Central Wisconsin) | W 2-0 (Wooster) | L 2-1 (Wisconsin) | - | |
| 2013–14 | 46 | 34 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 69 | 213 | 141 | 2nd, Great Lakes | W 2-0 (Wisconsin) | W 2-1, (Tri-City) | L 2-0 (Dells) | - | |
| 2014–15 | 38 | 13 | 23 | 2 | - | 28 | 114 | 148 | 1st, Central | W 2-0 (St. Louis) | bye | L 2-0, (Rochester) | - | |
| USPHL Midwest Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2015-16 | 48 | 23 | 22 | 2 | - | 48 | 166 | 180 | 6th Western 9th overall |
L 0-2 (Dells Ducks | - | - | - | |
| USPHL Elite Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2016-17 | on hiatus | |||||||||||||
| USPHL Premier Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2017-18 | on hiatus | |||||||||||||
| 2018-19 | 44 | 17 | 25 | 2 | - | 36 | 139 | 178 | 3rd Midwest East | W 2-0 (Tri-City Ice Hawks | L 0-2 (Motor City Hockey Club) | - | - | |
| 2019-20 | 44 | 12 | 32 | 0 | - | 24 | 110 | 279 | 6th Midwest East | L 0-2 (MJDP | - | - | - | |
| 2020-21 | 44 | 12 | 30 | 2 | - | 26 | 134 | 255 | 6th Midwest East | L, DQF 2-0 (Fort Wayne Spacemen) | - | - | - | |
| 2021-22 | 44 | 15 | 25 | 4 | - | 34 | 120 | 201 | 5th Midwest East | L, DQF 0-2 (Detroit Fighting Irish) | - | - | - | |