Nikko Ice Bucks

The HC Nikkō Ice Bucks are an Asia League Ice Hockey team based in Nikkō, Tochigi, Japan.
Logo design: The word IceBucks in italicized English in black with white trim, with the words "NIKKO KOBE" in bold italics in orange trimmed with white
Mascot: An orange and white furred male deer wearing a hockey helmet.
==History==
The Nikkō area has a long history of ice hockey, with the Furukawa Electric semi-professional team (one of the oldest in Japan) having been established in 1925, and becoming a founding member of the Japanese Ice Hockey League in 1966. In 1999, however, the team was forced to disband due to financial difficulties.
A outflow of support from the city and local financing allowed the team to be recreated as a club team, supported locally. It was renamed the HC Nikkō IceBucks and joined the league in time for the next season's start. The team, despite fervent local support, was never one of the successes of the JIHL even when they were supported as Furukawa Electric, and had a rocky start as the HC Nikkō IceBucks, having to relaunch their business model in 2001. The team has consistently placed near or at the bottom of the league.
When the league expanded into the Asia League Ice Hockey, Nikkō was one of the teams that was part of the new league. In the summer of 2005, the team arranged to play a number of its home games in Kobe, Hyogo, and changed its name to the Nikkō Kobe IceBucks to reflect its new two-city home. In 2007-2008 season Kobe is no longer home and the name was reverted to the older HC Nikkō Ice Bucks.
==Honours==
*Japan League championships: none
*Asia League championships: none
==Year-by-year record==
===JIHL 1999-2004===
Season 	GP	W 	W(OT)	W(PS)	T	L(PS)	L(OT)	L 	GF 	GA 	PTS 	Finish	Playoffs
1999-00	30	3 	 	 	5	 	 	22	45 	106	11 	6th/6 	Out of playoffs
2000-01	40	10	 	 	1	 	 	29	91 	164	21 	6th/6 	Out of playoffs
2001-02	40	6 	2 	2 	 	2 	2 	26	103	163	23.0	6th/6 	Out of playoffs
2002-03	32	7 	0 	4 	 	1 	2 	18	68 	114	23.0	5th/5 	Out of playoffs
2002-03	24	1 	0 	1 	 	0 	1 	21	33 	112	4.5 	4th/4 	?
2003-04	12	0 	0 	0 	 	0 	0 	12	19 	56 	0.0 	4th/4 	?
===ALIH 2003-present===
complete records for previous seasons
Season 	GP	W 	W(OT)	W(GWS)*	T	L(GWS)*	L(OT)	L 	GF 	GA 	PTS	Finish	Playoffs
2003–04	16	2 	0 	— 	2	— 	0 	12	38 	67 	6 	5th/5 	No Playoffs due to shortened season
2004–05	42	13	1 	— 	2	— 	2 	24	110	125	45 	6th/8 	N/A
2005–06	38	16	2 	— 	2	— 	1 	17	103	118	55 	6th/9 	Lost in quarter-final
2006–07	34	12	0 	— 	1	— 	0 	21	90 	158	37 	6th/8 	Lost in semi-final
2007–08	30	8 	2 	— 	2	— 	0 	18	60 	109	30 	6th/7 	Lost in quarter-final
2008–09	36	4 	2 	1 	—	1 	1 	27	74 	161	20 	7th/7 	N/A
2009–10	36	12	2 	1 	—	2 	2 	17	103	118	46 	6th/7 	N/A
*prior to the 2008–2009 season, there were no shoot-outs and games ended in a tie
==Current roster==
Goaltenders	Goaltenders	Goaltenders 	Goaltenders	Goaltenders	Goaltenders
# 	Country 	Player 	Catches 	Acquired 	Place of Birth
29 	 	Ito Keisuke 	 	2010 	Japan
39 	 	Kikuchi Naoya 	 	2009 	Japan
44 	 	Fukufuji Yutaka	L 	2010 	Japan
Defencemen	Defencemen	Defencemen 	Defencemen	Defencemen	Defencemen 	Defencemen
# 	Country 	Player 	Shoots 	Acquired 	Place of Birth	
2 	 	Hagiwara Yugo (A) 	 	2006 	Japan 	
3 	 	Yamaguchi Kazuyoshi	 	2009 	Japan 	
6 	 	Sumida Yousuke 	 	2010 	Japan 	
7 	 	Fukuzawa Noaya 	 	2008 	Japan 	
22 	 	Ohkubo Tomohito 	 	2009 	Japan 	
34 	 	Okamoto Toshiaki 	 	2007 	Japan 	
43 	 	Kawamura Masahiro 	 	2009 	Japan 	
 	 	Richard Rochefort 	 	2010 	Canada 	
Forwards	Forwards	Forwards 	Forwards	Forwards	Forwards	Forwards
# 	Country 	Player 	Position	Shoots 	Acquired	Place of Birth
8 	 	Suzuki Takahito (C)	W 	R 	2009 	Japan
11 	 	Tsukada Hiroyuki 	 	 	2008 	Japan
12 	 	Uchiyama Tomohiko 	W 	 	2009 	Japan
13 	 	Tagawa Akira 	W 	 	2010 	Japan
15 	 	Kurata Ryuichi 	 	L 	2010 	Sapporo, Japan
16 	 	Tsuchida Hideji 	W 	 	 	Japan
17 	 	Takahashi Kazuma 	 	 	2009 	Hachinohe, Japan
18 	 	Tsuji Kojiro 	W 	 	2004 	Japan
19 	 	Nakai Musashi 	C 	 	2007 	Japan
45 	 	Setaka Tetsuo (A) 	C 	 	2005 	Japan
47 	 	Shinohara Kota (A) 	C 	 	2005 	Japan
58 	 	Bud Smith 	C 	 	2009 	Rochfort Bridge, Canada
==Past import players==
* Martin Kariya 2004-05, LW (Brother of Paul Kariya and Steve Kariya)
* Shjon Podein 2005-06, LW (Former Oilers/Flyers/Avalanche/Blues)
* Chris Paradise 2005-06, C
* Mike Henderson 2006-07, RW
* Eric LaFreniere 2008-09, RW
* Mickey Gilchrist 2008-09, C
==References==
==External links==
* Nikko Ice Bucks - official website
Category:Asia League team
Category:Japanese ice hockey clubs