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Hello VHLM, Some of you may not be aware but currently there is a limit of 175 TPA for a VHLM players. In other words, once you earn 175 TPE and apply it to your player, all TPE earned is supposed to be Banked up until you move into the VHL, at which point you can apply all the TPE you've been banking. But we're going to up that limit to 200 TPA. These restrictions are in place to ensure players don't overly dominate the VHLM where it is supposed to be a relaxed, developmental league. As well, there is currently a restriction in place that players with carryover must Bank any amount of carryover greater than 30 until they reach the VHL. We've decided that this causes unnecessary hassle for something relatively insignificant and that we will go back to the old way, where a player can apply their carryover as soon as they create. Note, however, that carryover WILL count towards the TPA limits described below. Players who currently have their carryover deferred on the Portal have had it added to their Banked TPE. Please see the existing rules here (which by the way are written in kind of a confusing way): The new rules, which are effective immediately, are as follows: Players with VHLM rights must have less than 200 TPE total at the VHLM TPE-Cutoff date (marked on the off-season schedule each season) to be eligible for play in the VHLM. Players over 200 TPE at or before this cut-off will not be eligible to play in the VHLM whatsoever. A player playing in the VHLM can apply a maximum of 200 TPE to their player. In other words, if you are under 200 TPE prior to the season starting, choose to continue playing in the VHLM and then surpass 200 TPE during the season, all TPE over 200 must be Banked. TPE can still be earned with no restrictions, it just has to be banked until you exit the VHLM. The TPE restriction for the VHLM TPE-Cutoff date includes banked TPE, unclaimed TPE, and there may be punishment for circumventing the rules at the discretion of the VHLM Commissioner's. A player whose VHLM rights have expired is only eligible to be signed by a VHLM Team if he is under 150 TPE. Any player who is called up by a VHL Team will not be allowed to be sent back down if they exceed the 200 TPA limit. Points will not be removed from players attributes in order to accommodate for this. Finally, the VHL Portal will now enforce the TPA restrictions. If you have over 200 TPA, you will still be able to claim your updates and even mess with the rating-update tool to plan your build going forward, but you will not be able to save your ratings until you exit the VHLM.

m8 you got a welcome message, most newbies in my time got accused of being Anderson.

Overall # Positional # Up/Down Name Position TPE VHLM Team Nationality Username 1 1 - Tzuyu D 189 HFX TWN Tfong 2 2 Up 1 Ryan Kastelic D 169 YUK SVN Enorama 3 1 Down 1 Julian Borwinn LW 160 LVA CAN Jubo07 4 3 - Joseph McWolf D 150 OTT ENG McWolf 5 1 - Scott Shawinganen C 133 LVA CAN Cornflakers 6 1 Down 1 Nikita Flipachyev RW 114 HFX RUS Arayvenn 7 1 Up 4 Cole Mertz G 113 HFX USA ColeMrtz211 T8 2 Up 1 Alexander Pepper G 112 LVA USA sonnet T8 2 - Chance Matthews C 112 OTT USA DaftRaincloud 10 4 - Sidney Crosby D 110 YUK USA SidTheKid87 11 2 Down 4 Jose Gonzalez LW 99 LVA USA Jose Gonzalez 12 2 Up 6 Dan Wilinsky RW 93 OTT CAN Oilmandan 13 3 - Tyler Smith G 91 HFX USA DrHexDex 14 3 Down 2 Anthony Dabarno C 90 HFX CAN LordTony 15 3 Up 1 Chace Trepanier LW 81 OTT CAN ChaceT 16 5 Up 1 Mountain Thunderfist D 80 LVA ? AdamEss 17 3 Down 2 Vaydar Odinsson RW 79 OTT NOR BOOM 18 6 Down 4 Burnt Toast D 76 SASK CAN Toast 19 4 NEW Nathan McKinnon C 72 HFX CAN Bagelbitesisbae 20 4 Up 8 Jessy Thomas RW 70 LVA CAN jtww 21 7 Down 2 Gregor Rasputinov D 68 OTT RUS Joobles 22 8 Up 2 James Lombardi D 66 LVA ITA Nymets5 23 4 NEW King Gow LW 65 HFX USA eaglesfan036 T24 5 Up 3 Braylon James C 64 OTT CAN Trifecta T24 5 Up 2 Joey Boucher RW 64 LVA CAN joeyboucher1 26 5 Down 3 Athanasios Andrianopoulos LW 62 YUK GRC 803 27 6 Down 7 Theodore Gauthier C 61 YUK CAN Frank 28 6 Down 7 Anderson LaVey LW 60 SASK USA Doomzday 29 4 Down 7 Johannes Benoit G 59 CAN PremiumFunk 30 6 NEW Jorgon Weyed RW 56 LVA CAN Joubo 31 7 Up 2 Jerome Mitchell C 54 OTT CAN bdu754 32 7 Down 8 Anssi Koivuhaka RW 53 FIN Pelimies 33 8 Down 1 Wlodzimierz Zajaczkowski RW 50 SASK POL nicolas01 T34 8 Down 6 Chris F. C 48 SASK CAN ChrisF T34 T9 Down 6 Juri Rykonen D 48 HFX FIN Rykonen T34 T9 NEW Toby Fitzgerald D 48 HFX CAN JohnnyT_77 37 9 Down 6 Mike Lavalee C 47 LVA CAN CB204 38 11 Down 4 Robert Renner D 45 OTT USA Tacocat 39 9 Down 3 Zhang Shou Tian RW 42 YUK CHN Shou Tian 40 10 Down 5 Rzerk RW 40 OTT CAN Rzerk 41 11 NEW Kisshan Shan RW 38 OSL CAN Kisshan 42 5 NEW Rhett Stoffiday G 36 YUK USA Pierogituxedo 43 12 Down 6 Jesse Sublime D 35 YUK CAN Sublime 44 7 Down 6 Bilal Syed LW 34 SASK CAN CanucksHD 45 8 Down 6 Vander Peng LW 32 USA Dijital Aaron Butcher LW 30 HFX USA devilsfan35 Adam Werynski C 30 USA KnucklePuckAdam Ajay Minhas D 30 CAN brownboy102 Alex Schmidt G 30 CAN Schmidt Andreas Bergkvist G 30 OSL SWE Foehammer Andrew McDade D 30 USA DurdenBrandSoup Anton Jokelainen RW 30 FIN mjrv21 Beckett London D 30 USA bdlondon Bernard Bernardov D 30 RUS Rad Russian Bobby Larkin LW 30 OSL USA DickRobbins Conor Scott G 30 CAN ViIlains Craig Kost D 30 USA Tigerteeo David Lance D 30 CAN Nelson Donald J Wafer RW 30 USA DonaldJWafer Edwin Bergstrand C 30 SWE FuzzyLeeroy Ethan Sawatzky C 30 SASK CAN Greenert11 Finn Schaefer D 30 OSL GER SupaSta Frenchie French LW 30 CAN Galchenyuk_Is_God Frenezo D 30 USA Sook Harrison MacDuff RW 30 CAN Pauly51 Ho-Train RW 30 LVA ? Josh Ho-Train Hyuk-Kyu Kim RW 30 KOR Deft Ian Drake RW 30 LVA USA Claust J.P Desjardin RW 30 OTT CAN Mike_Houle Jace Stravinsky G 30 USA Scorpio James Wolf D 30 USA Ventsan Jeremy Myalls D 30 HFX CAN Sllaym Jerramy RW 30 CAN Jerramy Jesus Christ G 30 JPN KyleS56 Joe Bronie RW 30 USA colton14 Johnny RW 30 CAN RealJohny211 John McCan RW 30 CAN McCan Johnson Johnston RW 30 USA libbyfanaccount Justin Graves C 30 CAN Gravyncarrots Justin Recker RW 30 USA Reckasaur Keywi Miles C 30 CAN Keywi Kian Lopushinsky LW 30 CAN Kian Lopushinsky Kyle Desjardins G 30 SASK CAN Desjar Lars Tommernes LW 30 HFX ISR Flare Magnus Backlund D 30 SASK SWE T65 Matt Hart LW 30 CAN mhart97 Max Hosafros LW 30 USA madmonstermax Nick Blagden RW 30 CAN Nick Blagden Nick Ward RW 30 YUK CAN SirRupertBarnes Potato G 30 HFX ? Potato Radovan Svejkovsky LW 30 YUK SVK UltraMick Rick Slambone D 30 CAN Drob127 Riku Rantala G 30 FIN RickRandles Rob RW 30 USA Flyershockey90 Russell Jerome D 30 CAN Russell Jerome Ryan Cruise D 30 USA Steve Razyn Ryan Dodds D 30 SASK USA RJHockey21 Sebastian Dietz G 30 USA Bazmandoo22 Steve DeMatteo C 30 USA Nyr1994 Ted Thomas G 30 USA DBCrumpets Toshinaga Akutsu D 30 JPN toshimann Trjegen Pisz C 30 CZE JaacTree Victor G 30 YUK USA Zetna White Goodman RW 30 USA Tniz15 So for this week of the Draft Rankings, I'm going to give you guys a little insight on what each team in the VHL is potentially going to be looking for in the coming draft so you have a clearer idea of your potential landing spots once we make it to the draft. Note: All teams currently have their own 4th and 5th Round Selections Calgary Wranglers Current VHL Standing: 1st Picks: CGY 1st, CGY 3rd Providing the Wranglers can keep the likes of Oyorra Arroyo and Mats Johnsson on their books, they will be going for it all once again when Season 63 comes around and will likely look to rookies in this draft to fill up the holes in the team to avoid salary cap issues rather than trading for more veteran players. The Wranglers could really draft a player who plays at any position based on their current situation. Winger Niko Bogdanovic is retiring at the end of the season along with defenseman Peter Quill, however while Quill will be likely be replaced in the starting lineup with VHLM's Cayden Saint, there's no forward belonging to Calgary in the minors that will be called up anytime soon to fill the hole made by Bogdanovic. In addition, Calgary could also begin to look to the future by selecting a goalie, as Norris Stopko would only have two years remaining in his career when Season 63 comes around. New York Americans Current VHL Standing: 6th Picks: NYA 1st, QUE 1st, DAV 1st, NYA 2nd After several seasons of competing, the New York Americans have entered into a rebuild this season and look set to have a very high first round pick along with two late first rounders that they acquired in trades with Quebec City and Davos, giving them three of the first eight picks in this draft. As a team, they really could use any skater help they can get as they don't currently have anyone in the VHLM system to join the team and pretty much every member on their current roster is inactive filler. However, they will not be in the market for a goalie come draft time as they already have Ismond Kingfisher, who will be the team's goalie for several seasons to come. Quebec City Meute Current VHL Standing: 2nd Picks: QUE 2nd, QUE 3rd For the foreseeable future, the Quebec City Meute don't seem to have any particular holes that need filling. They currently have eight forwards on their roster (although three of them are set to enter Free Agency) along with three other forwards set to be promoted from the VHLM, so it doesn't look like they will be actively pushing for forward talent from this draft, unless they plan on trading some of their forward talent to make room for a forward they bring in from this draft. Their defenseman depth isn't quite as deep, they currently have three defenseman (one entering free agency) and one extra being promoted from the VHLM, so it might not be a surprise if they let the more expensive Luc Pierre Lespineau-Lebrunette enter free agency and select his replacement in this draft. This is another situation where it's unlikely to see the team acquire a goalie unless there's an absolute steal opportunity as Tristan Iseult is a solid goalie who still will have five seasons left in the league once Season 63 begins. Seattle Bears Current VHL Standing: 4th Picks: SEA 1st, HSK 2nd, SEA 2nd, SEA 3rd Seattle have gone from having one pick in the first three rounds of the Season 62 Draft to three picks in the the first two rounds of the Season 63 Draft, and being in possession of Helsinki's second round selection is a huge boost for the Bears, as that pick will have the value of a first from any other draft class. Seattle are another team who won't need a goalie, Roger Sterling is currently only in his second season, but looks primed to become one of the league's best in a few years time. Seattle could definitely use skaters though, and they may lean towards addressing their defenseman concerns first as their only active defenseman at this moment is Maxim Kovalchuk while they at least have a decent first line of forwards. Toronto Legion Current VHL Standing: 5th Picks: TOR 1st, TOR 2nd, TOR 3rd I would not be the least surprised if the Toronto Legion decide to use all of their picks in this draft on forward talent. The Legion drafted Johnny Carison with the third overall pick of last season's draft to play goalie for the team for the forseeable future, so they won't be selecting a goalie high up in this draft. In addition, their defensemen are very well set up for the future, with Robert Malenko and Sebastien Ironside already close to being considered one of the better defensemen pairings in the league. The current forward situation tells a different story though, as outside of Jake Davis, there isn't anyone of their forward core that will look to break out and potentially become a star, but there are plenty in this draft that can potentially fill that role. HC Davos Dynamo Current VHL Standing: 3rd Picks: DAV 2nd, NYA 3rd, DAV 3rd The Dynamo currently have five players scheduled to enter free agency at the end of this season, but given that the current team composition is very solid, I would be surprised if the majority of them do not opt to return to the team. Should that be the case, then the team doesn't really have any immediate needs that need addressing. Outside of Helsinki, this is probably the team that is most likely to look to pick up a goalie, as Shawn Brodeur will be entering his penultimate season when Season 63 comes around, however they could also look to draft some forwards to step in for when Gabriel McAllister calls it a day. Helsinki Titans Current VHL Standing: 8th Picks: HSK 1st, HSK 3rd After eight seasons of competing, the Helsinki Titans have finally started to begin a rebuild, but after so many seasons of competing, the team has very little players on it's roster and no-one in the VHLM system for them to promote. That means any player that they pick will be addressing a potential need for the team. The most interesting situation for Helsinki will be how they choose to address their goalie situation; with their first pick being a top two selection and there being three equally credible candidates for the starting role, there's no real reason to believe the Titans will select a goalie with their first round selection, although will they look to acquire an earlier pick than their HSK 3rd in order to grab the goalie that they want. Riga Reign Current VHL Standing: 7th Picks: RIG 1st, RIG 2nd, CGY 2nd, RIG 3rd Out of all of the teams in the league, the current standing is probably least likely to be their actual standing in the case of the Riga Reign, as most of that has to do with their horrific starting schedule (14 of their first 22 games have been against the top three teams in the league), but their first round selection is still set to be no later than fifth overall. Riga had two first round selections in the last draft and those selections along with the second round selections of Ryuu Crimson and Shawn Glade are set to complement the team very well heading into Season 64. If there is a position that the Reign will likely be addressing, it would be defenseman. Dylan Nguyen and Shawn Glade will be a solid pairing, but the depth defensemen are getting older and not better anytime soon. @tfong @Enorama @Jubo07 @McWolf @Arayvenn @Sonnet @DaftRaincloud @ColeMrtz21 @Jose Gonzalez @Toast @SidTheKid87 @Cornflakers @BOOM™ @Frank @Joobles @Doomzday @AdamEss @Pelimies @LordTony @803 @Rykonen @DrHexDex @VV2O4 @Tacocat @ChrisF @bdu754 @nicolas01 @Sublime @nymets5 @Rzerk @Dijital @Zetna @devilsfan35 @brownboy102 @Schmidt @Foehammer @DurdenBrandSoap @mjrv21 @Bdlondon @Rad Russian @DickRobbins @ViIIains @Tigerteeo @oilmandan @Nelson @pierogituxedo @DonaldJWafer @FuzzyLeeroy @Greenert11 @SupaStu @Galchenyuk_is_God @Sook @ZST @Josh Ho-Train @Deft @Claust @Scorpio @ventsan @Sllaym @Jerramy @KyleS56 @colton14 @joeyboucher1 @McCan @libbyfanaccount @28_stab_wounds @Mike_Houle @Reckasaur @Keywi @Kian Lopushinsky @Desjar @T65 @mhart97 @bagelbitesisbae @Nick Blagden @SirRupertBarnes @Potato @UltraMick @Drob127 @RickRandals @Flyershockey90 @Russell Jerome @Steve Razyn @RJHockey21 @Bazmandoo22 @Nyr1994 @DBCrumpets @JaacTree @Tniz15 @ChaceT @Jtww @canucksHD @PremiumFunk @Gravyncarrots @JohnnyT_77 @Shou Tian @eaglesfan036 @KnucklePuckAdam @Flare @toshimann @Pauly51 @Kisshan @Joubo @RealJohny211 @madmonstermax

@bdu754 has been permanently banned for creating over 5 accounts despite repeated warnings.

It is an honour to be selected as Canada's WJC GM. Big thank you to @Banackock @McWolf @BarzalGoat and @Beketov for providing me this opportunity. Without any delay, I present to you Canada's WJC Roster Training Camp Invites Final Roster @DollarAndADream @Reives @Romaris @Symmetrik @Cornflakers @evrydayimbyfuglien @Lefty @oilmandan @LordTony @ChaceT @ChrisF @Toast @bagelbitesisbae @Jtww @Trifecta @joeyboucher1 @PremiumFunk @JohnnyT_77 @Sublime

Overall # Positional # Up/Down Name Position TPE VHLM Team Nationality Username 1 1 - Tzuyu D 203 HFX TWN Tfong 2 2 - Ryan Kastelic D 189 OTT SVN Enorama 3 1 - Julian Borwinn LW 176 LVA CAN Jubo07 4 3 - Joseph McWolf D 170 OTT ENG McWolf 5 1 - Scott Shawinganen C 148 LVA CAN Cornflakers T6 1 Up 2 Alexander Pepper G 126 LVA KOR sonnet T6 4 Up 4 Sidney Crosby D 126 LVA USA SidTheKid87 8 2 Up 6 Anthony Dabarno C 122 HFX CAN LordTony 9 2 Up 2 Jose Gonzalez LW 121 LVA USA Jose Gonzalez 10 2 Down 3 Cole Mertz G 120 HFX USA ColeMrtz211 11 3 Up 2 Tyler Smith G 115 HFX USA DrHexDex T12 3 Down 4 Chance Matthews C 114 OTT USA DaftRaincloud T12 1 Down 6 Nikita Flipachyev RW 114 HFX RUS Arayvenn T14 3 Up 1 Chace Trepanier LW 113 OTT CAN ChaceT T14 2 Down 2 Dan Wilinsky RW 113 OTT CAN Oilmandan 16 3 Up 1 Vaydar Odinsson RW 91 OTT NOR BOOM 17 4 Up 2 Nathan McKinnon C 86 HFX CAN Bagelbitesisbae 18 5 Down 2 Mountain Thunderfist D 84 LVA ? AdamEss 19 4 Up 1 Jessy Thomas RW 80 LVA CAN jtww 20 5 Up 10 Jorgon Weyed RW 78 LVA JAM Joubo T21 T6 Down 3 Burnt Toast D 76 SASK CAN Toast T21 T6 Up 1 James Lombardi D 76 LVA ITA Nymets5 23 6 Up 1 Joey Boucher RW 72 LVA CAN joeyboucher1 24 4 Down 1 King Gow LW 70 HFX USA eaglesfan036 T25 5 Up 1 Athanasios Andrianopoulos LW 68 YUK GRC 803 T25 8 Down 4 Gregor Rasputinov D 68 OTT RUS Joobles 27 5 - Theodore Gauthier C 61 YUK CAN Frank T28 6 - Anderson LaVey LW 60 SASK Doomzday T28 6 Up 3 Jerome Mitchell C 60 OTT CAN bdu754 30 4 Down 1 Johannes Benoit G 59 CAN PremiumFunk T31 9 Up 3 Toby Fitzgerald D 54 HFX CAN JohnnyT_77 T31 7 Up 2 Wlodzimierz Zajaczkowski RW 54 SASK POL nicolas01 T33 8 Down 1 Anssi Koivuhaka RW 53 FIN Pelimies T33 10 Up 5 Robert Renner D 53 OTT USA Tacocat T35 11 Down 1 Juri Rykonen D 50 HFX FIN Rykonen T35 9 Up 6 Kisshan Shan RW 50 OSL RUS Kisshan 37 7 Down 3 Chris F. C 48 SASK CAN ChrisF 38 8 Down 1 Mike Lavalee C 47 YUK CAN CB204 39 5 Up 3 Rhett Stoffiday G 44 YUK USA Pierogituxedo 40 10 Down 1 Zhang Shou Tian RW 42 YUK CHN Shou Tian 41 11 Down 1 Rzerk RW 40 OTT CAN Rzerk 42 7 NEW Randoms LW 39 LVA hedgehog337 43 12 - Jesse Sublime D 35 YUK CAN Sublime 44 8 - Bilal Syed LW 34 SASK CAN CanucksHD 45 9 - Vander Peng LW 32 USA Dijital Aaron Butcher LW 30 HFX USA devilsfan35 Adam Werynski C 30 USA KnucklePuckAdam Ajay Minhas D 30 CAN brownboy102 Alex Schmidt G 30 CAN Schmidt Andreas Bergkvist G 30 OSL USA Foehammer Andrew McDade D 30 USA DurdenBrandSoup Anton Jokelainen RW 30 FIN mjrv21 Beckett London D 30 USA bdlondon Bernard Bernardov D 30 RUS Rad Russian Bobby Larkin LW 30 OSL USA DickRobbins Conor Scott G 30 CAN ViIlains Craig Kost D 30 USA Tigerteeo Dana Piebird C 30 USA Dude David Lance D 30 CAN Nelson Donald J Wafer RW 30 USA DonaldJWafer Edwin Bergstrand C 30 SWE FuzzyLeeroy Ethan Sawatzky C 30 SASK CAN Greenert11 Finn Schaefer D 30 OSL GER SupaSta Frenchie French LW 30 CAN Galchenyuk_Is_God Frenezo D 30 USA Sook Harrison MacDuff RW 30 CAN Pauly51 Ho-Train RW 30 LVA ? Josh Ho-Train Hyuk-Kyu Kim RW 30 KOR Deft Ian Drake RW 30 LVA USA Claust J.P Desjardin RW 30 YUK CAN Mike_Houle Jace Stravinsky G 30 USA Scorpio James Wolf D 30 USA Ventsan Jeremy Myalls D 30 HFX CAN Sllaym Jerramy RW 30 CAN Jerramy Jesse Wilson D 30 CAN monkeywrench15 Jesus Christ G 30 JPN KyleS56 Joe Bronie RW 30 USA colton14 Johnny RW 30 CAN RealJohny211 John McCan RW 30 CAN McCan Johnson Johnston RW 30 USA libbyfanaccount Justin Graves C 30 CAN Gravyncarrots Justin Recker RW 30 USA Reckasaur Kerry Hallett RW 30 CAN kerryj13 Keywi Miles C 30 CAN Keywi Kian Lopushinsky LW 30 CAN Kian Lopushinsky Kyle Desjardins G 30 SASK CAN Desjar Lars Tommernes LW 30 HFX ISR Flare Magnus Backlund D 30 SASK SWE T65 Marcus Ruggiero LW 30 YUK CAN Ruggiero10 Matt Hart LW 30 CAN mhart97 Max Hosafros LW 30 USA madmonstermax Nick Blagden RW 30 CAN Nick Blagden Nick Ward RW 30 YUK CAN SirRupertBarnes Potato G 30 HFX ? Potato Prescott Triomphe D 30 CAN PaintingItOrange Radovan Svejkovsky LW 30 YUK SVK UltraMick Rick Slambone D 30 CAN Drob127 Riku Rantala G 30 FIN RickRandles Rob RW 30 USA Flyershockey90 Russell Jerome D 30 CAN Russell Jerome Ryan Cruise D 30 USA Steve Razyn Ryan Dodds D 30 SASK USA RJHockey21 Sebastian Dietz G 30 USA Bazmandoo22 Steve DeMatteo C 30 USA Nyr1994 Steven Hovden RW 30 NOR Steveziedoesit Ted Thomas G 30 USA DBCrumpets Toshinaga Akutsu D 30 JPN toshimann Trjegen Pisz C 30 CZE JaacTree Victor G 30 YUK USA Zetna White Goodman RW 30 USA Tniz15 Note: The following Mock Draft was written before some updates were processed, therefore some updates that I was expecting (Magazine Updates namely) were used in the Mock but some players (Mertz/Matthews) had yet to add them, so if there are situations where I'm suggesting a player is better that doesn't line up with the Mock Draft, then that is why. 1 – Helsinki Titans Ryan Kastelic – D Given that the Titans roster is currently set to only have two VHL-ready prospects (Dan Montgomery and Konstantin Mulligan) by the start of Season 63, the Titans don’t have any positional needs to worry about as every position is a need! Given that, it makes the most sense for the Titans to grab the player who has earned the most TPE since the date of his creation in Ryan Kastelic. In the space of three weeks, Ryan Kastelic has earned 105 TPE. That’s an insane figure, even more so given that Kastelic hasn’t even used any donation perks to reach that milestone! Active across the forums and on the discord, if Kastelic continues to earn at the rate that he is, it would be difficult to see a scenario where Ryan Kastelic is not in the Hall of Fame, which is also where the last first-gen player taken first overall by Helsinki also resides (Ethan Osbourne in the Season 30 Draft). 2 – Toronto Legion Julian Borwinn – LW Unlike Helsinki who have a lot of different positions that they can address, the Legion have one big hole that they need to address and that is their forward core. Jake Davis is a good young talent that was selected in the second round and Aksel McKnight is also a solid forward, but the latter’s progression has come to a halt, meaning they will need promising young forwards along with Davis to take over the reigns from him in time for Toronto’s window of contention. Luckily for the Legion, while the top defensemen are the standouts, there’s more than enough offensive talent to allow them to build their team up in that department, and the best one of the bunch is Julian Borwinn. Like Kastelic and the player I have selected after this one, Borwinn has been earning TPE at a rate that we very rarely see in the VHL and is on pace to become one of the very best offensive talents in the game. Additionally to his credit, he was also responsible for recruiting a player who is set to be a first round talent in his own right, so has an extra TPE avenue coming in the near future once Scott Shawinganen reaches 200 TPE. 3 – New York Americans Joseph McWolf – D As a result of going for Continental Cup glory the last few seasons, the New York Americans haven’t held a pick in the top two rounds since the Season 59 Draft, so are very short on young talents outside of franchise goalie Ismond Kingfisher. Therefore, they can take the same approach as Helsinki, just take the best player available and build the team around him, and that player in this instance is Joseph McWolf. I talked about how Kastelic had earned an insane amount of TPE in the last three weeks, but he’s certainly not alone in that regard as McWolf has himself earned 99 TPE, and like Kastelic, has not used donations to reach that milestone, it’s an incredible amount of work ethic really! Out of all of the positions that are likely to change over the remainder of the season, I think the Toronto Legion have enough about them that they should be able to usurp the New York Americans, however I believe New York and Toronto will make the same selections regardless. While McWolf is currently slightly behind Borwinn in TPE, he’s been earning TPE at a very slightly more advanced rate and obviously the Legion would be ecstatic if they can get a player of Borwinn’s calibre that fills their needs at third overall. 4 – Seattle Bears Tzuyu – D Some people might be surprised to see the highest earning TPE player to this point fall to number four, especially given this isn’t through positional need as I’ve had two defensemen go before Tzuyu, however when you break down the numbers, it’s much more clear as to why that’s the case. This is the fourth week that I’ve done the draftee TPE rankings and here is how the TPE counts read in the first edition: Tzuyu – 168 Julian Borwinn – 91 Ryan Kastelic – 84 Joseph McWolf – 71 As you can see, Julian Borwinn was the only player in this draft class that Tzuyu didn’t have double the TPE of. However cut forward to now and the gap between Tzuyu and the top three prospects in the draft has been dramatically reduced to the point where you’d have to say, should all the top four candidates continue earning at the rate that they are, not only would Tzuyu be behind them, but he’d probably be as far behind them as much as he currently is ahead of them. This isn’t to say that Tzuyu is “bad”, he definitely isn’t and Tfong has a history of making great players with this same amount of work ethic, it’s more of an indicator of just how good the other top candidates have been. As for the selection here, this makes a lot of sense for Seattle. Currently their only VHL-ready defenseman is Maxim Kovalchuk, so definitely need to address their problems in defense, but also they’re set to make a push towards competing in the near future, so will want to secure a defenseman who will definitely be ready to play in the VHL next season as opposed to a player who may overtake Tzuyu in the long run, but not be ready for VHL action come the start of Season 63. 5 – Riga Reign Sidney Crosby – D The Reign are in an interesting position right now as heading into Season 63, they’ll have eight active talents on their roster (five forwards, two defensemen and a goalie) and have three picks in the first two rounds to add to that tally. Looking at this, I believe they will go with a defenseman to shore up their active depth at that position, and the next best defenseman on the board is Sidney Crosby. It’s been quite the VHL story for Sidney Crosby already even at this early point of his career. Originally overlooked by VHLM General Managers, Crosby went undrafted in the VHLM Draft but was quickly signed up by the Yukon Rush once it was clear he had the potential to be an active contributor to a team. Then once it was clear the Rush weren’t competing, the competing teams were looking at bringing in Crosby to help them win the Founders Cup and now, he’s potentially a first round pick in the VHL Draft! Crosby will add some big defensive help to an already potentially talented duo of Dylan Nguyen and Shawn Glade. 6 – New York Americans (From Davos) Scott Shawinganen – C 7 – New York Americans (From Quebec City) Jose Gonzalez – LW After addressing defense with their third overall pick, New York look to address the forward slots on the team with two consecutive forward selections in Scott Shawinganen and Jose Gonzalez. It’s been a reoccurring theme recently of the top players having so much TPE that they actually wind up not being eligible for the VHLM Draft because they have too much TPE to play in the VHLM and Shawinganen, who created not long after the VHLM Draft concluded is set to be one of those. Currently sitting at nearly 150 TPE despite joining later on in the process, Shawinganen is not quite at the level of Borwinn, but currently has a step over every other forward in this draft class and has the added benefit of being a pure center who can contribute at the face-off. Jose Gonzalez has consistently been one of the top TPE earning players in this draft class, never being lower than 12th in my standings and is currently the second best winger in the draft class having overtaken Nikita Flipachyev. He faces some stiff competition to keep that distinction thanks to the player I have going with the next selection, but Jose Gonzalez has been a very consistent earner since joining the VHL, never having less than 10 capped TPE to his name, and he could go on to form a very solid long-term partnership with fellow Ace Shawinganen. 8 – Calgary Wranglers Dan Wilinsky – RW This is the first selection where I can foresee the team’s cap situation affecting who the team takes in the draft. Calgary are a team that are filled with stars and providing they keep them should definitely be able to compete in Season 63, but that may come at the cost of not being able to bring in too much talent due to cap restrictions. If they are restricted in their cap, I could see them looking to bring in a goalie to become the eventual replacement to Stopko (as backup goalie’s oftentimes do not count against the cap), but I’m doing this mock under the presumption that they will still have the room to bring in more skaters, and if that is the case, I believe they will go with Dan Wilinsky to help aid their push for a Continental Cup. Wilinsky is the first player that I have drafted who wasn’t actually created at the point that I made the first scout rankings, but he’s already earned a ton of TPE and while it is extremely close between himself and Chace Trepanier, I will give Wilinsky the edge with his new VHLM Magazine job that he has picked up. 9 – Seattle Bears (From Helsinki) Chance Matthews – C When Seattle received this pick in that huge five man trade, we had very little idea about anything to do with this draft or what could happen to Helsinki, but you could make the argument that the player they’re getting with this second is going to be better than the player they got with that Season 61 1st. Having filled up all their first line holes with Tzuyu, it’s time for the team to focus on the second line and Chance Matthews has the potential to be a terrific player on that second line. Given that Matthews is a pass-focused forward, he also has the potential to slot in on the first line and provide solid service to a team that is full of players that actively look to score. A good podcaster and now a contributor to the VHLM mag, Matthews has the ability to earn a lot of TPE very consistently. 10 – Toronto Legion Anthony Dabarno – C Toronto have now got two active forwards in Jake Davis and Julian Borwinn but they need someone who is going to help them in the face-offs and, of the centers available, the best one is currently Anthony Dabarno. Dabarno was one of the first players created after the draft and has progressed well despite other players having a head start on him and is pretty consistently among the top 10 skaters in this draft class. A front line of Dabarno, Davis and Borwinn would have the potential to be a very productive one for the Legion and their long-term Continental Cup aspirations. 11 – New York Americans Chace Trepanier – LW With their last pick in the first three rounds, New York round off their forward line by picking Chace Trepanier to team up with Shawinganen and Gonzalez. Like Wilinsky, Trepanier joined the league a week or two after a lot of these top prospects, so hasn’t had as much time and opportunity to earn TPE, however he’s not let that stop him already break the 100 TPE barrier. This draft selection also allows him to team up with Joseph McWolf, who is the player who recruited him to the league. 12 – Seattle Bears Nikita Flipachyev – RW There’s one skater left here that’s currently on over 100 TPE, so it makes sense for Seattle to take him here at twelve. This pick is with a bit of a caveat though; Flipachyev had shown that he has the potential to make a very good player in this league, but it appears he’s taking some time off from the league to deal with some personal issues. If he returns in the near future to the form we saw earlier on, Flipachyev has the potential to be a very good forward and would likely wind up climbing in this draft. However, if his leave lasts a bit longer, he will wind up likely falling down this draft class. 13 – Riga Reign Nathan MacKinnon – C Like fellow Reign draftee Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon has an interesting origins story. At first, based on discussions on the discord, it seemed like MacKinnon didn’t have any interest in writing about the VHL for TPE, but has gone on to earn at least 10 capped TPE in each of the last three weeks by doing exactly that and based on that, has the potential to rise even further up this draft class! This isn’t necessarily a pick that addresses a need for Riga, as they already have two centers in Podrick Cast and Mikka Pajari, but based on his work ethic, he’s the best player available and would even stand a good chance of overtaking Pajari in TPE if given a couple of seasons. 14 – HC Davos Dynamo Cole Mertz – G Given the TPE totals above, you’d probably be thinking this is a mistake, but the reality is that there are only really three locations where a goalie selection makes sense (Helsinki, Davos, Calgary – Toronto could potentially feel that one of these goalies could out-earn Carison, but they may have too many holes on offense to fill to go with goalie) given that the rest of the teams have starting goalies that are all still active and are not yet even halfway through their careers. A team probably wouldn’t attempt to hold a team “to ransom” either by picking a goalie and then later trading him to a team either because two of the three GMs are capable of making their own goalie. With that being said, the Dynamo are going to be one of the teams that need a goalie in the near future as Brodeur will only have two seasons left once this draft concludes, and while all the goalies are extremely close, I’m going to give Mertz the edge based on the fact that he’s just secured a job as the VHLM Magazine editor and, once he adds the points for that, would be ahead of Pepper in TPE. If he continues earning at the rate that he is, there’s a chance he might even have more TPA than Brodeur once Mertz reaches his second VHL season. 15 – Quebec City Meute Jorgon Weyed – RW Already over 70 TPE after being here only two weeks, Weyed is one of the fastest improving players in the league right now and it wouldn’t be a surprise to me if he wound up featuring even higher in the next Mock Draft! He’s set to go here to a Quebec City team who already have a lot of young talents joining the professional roster for Season 63 and Weyed, who likely would need another season in the VHLM, would be a good way of ensuring that they get the most active player available who can contribute down the line without causing them any potential cap problems for Season 63. 16 – Riga Reign (From Calgary) Mountain Thunderfist – D The man from Foon goes to Riga at number 16 here to potentially team up with fellow Season 63 draftee Crosby on the defensive line. Thunderfist is currently over 80 TPE and has been a consistent earner of TPE through the affiliate welfare program and that should see him come into the Reign roster in Season 64 to provide some strong depth for the team. Given that Reign got this pick for what was essentially a cap dump by Calgary, this works out really well for the Latvian team. 17 – Helsinki Titans Vaydar Odinsson – RW If you were talking about a member of the Boom agency going in the third round of a draft, you’d likely think that they were talking about an inaugural draft, but in this instance, it’s just a case of a phenomenal draft class. Odinsson has been earning TPE at a solid rate similar to that of Thunderfist and, in many other VHL Drafts, would have been a first round selection without question. It’s just that, like with Tzuyu, there’s just so many good talents in this draft. Here, Odinsson goes to a Helsinki team where he can team up with Montgomery and Mulligan on the first line of a rebuilding Titans offense. 18 – Toronto Legion Jessy Thomas – RW I think at this position, the Legion will look at the rate of improvement that Pepper and Smith are showing and seriously consider taking one of the two goalies available as they are earning at a greater rate than Carison, but I believe in the end he will instead continue to address his skaters, and Jessy Thomas has proven to be a good earner since being brought into the league by Enorama. 19 – Helsinki Titans (From New York) Alexander Pepper – G The Helsinki Titans wait no more to grab their goalie of the future and select Alexander Pepper, who has the slight edge on Tyler Smith in current TPE earnings. Both have earned at a tremendous rate unfitting of the third round, but Pepper earned a few more TPE than Smith towards the start of his career and they’ve kept at the same earning rate as each other since. 20 – Seattle Bears James Lombardi – D A potential sleeper pick, Lombardi doesn’t have the high TPE counts of some of these other players, but he’s been consistently taking part in the league’s activities and has actually started to hit 8 capped TPE per week more consistently, which would be enough to see him become a very good producer for the Bears. 21 – Riga Reign Joey Boucher – RW While the Reign have Ivan Morozov and Lavar Ball as inactive forwards to help boost their depth, they will be entering the regression periods of their career come Season 63, so new winger talent will be needed to boost the numbers. Enter Joey Boucher, who has been earning a solid capped six TPE per week since joining the league and could wind up being a useful depth piece for the Reign as they move towards competing for the Continental Cup. 22 – Helsinki Titans (From Davos) King Gow – LW Providing Gow continues to do his welfare, he will be a strong pick at number 22. Joining late on in the process, Gow has leaped up quickly to 70 TPE and if he can maintain the rate that he started off at, could be not only somewhat of a steal, but probably one of Eaglesfan’s best players in a while. 23 – Quebec City Meute Jerome Mitchell – C I was torn here between Mitchell and Athanasios Andrianopoulos, but I decided to go with Mitchell as while Andrianopoulos has more TPE to his name and is earning TPE at a solid rate (Could well be one of the best fourth round selections of all time), Mitchell has been more present around the board and the discord, so may be more accessible with leaning him towards certain point tasks that are available. If Jerome is able to convert his on-board activity into more of a focus on earning TPE that will help improve his player, Quebec could have a really great selection here. 24 – Calgary Wranglers Tyler Smith - G I feel bad putting Smith here, because in terms of how much effort he’s put in, he’s not a last pick of the third round talent at all. In fact, in terms of earning capped TPE, he’s right up there with Kastelic, Borwinn and McWolf. But in this scenario that I’ve created where only the teams that could definitely use a new starting goalie in the near future take a goalie, this is the place where Smith fits. So you know what? To do the goalies justice for their hard earning to this point, I’m going to do three more mock drafts! One which has the Wranglers with salary cap issues, one which has the Legion deciding to take a goalie that could out-earn Carison and one that’s a combination of the two! If Calgary have Cap issues 1 – Helsinki Titans - Ryan Kastelic – D 2 – Toronto Legion – Julian Borwinn – LW 3 – New York Americans – Joseph McWolf – D 4 – Seattle Bears – Tzuyu – D 5 – Riga Reign – Sidney Crosby - D 6 – New York Americans (Via Davos) – Scott Shawinganen – C 7 – New York Americans (Via Quebec) – Jose Gonzalez – LW 8 – Calgary Wranglers – Cole Mertz - G 9 – Seattle Bears (Via Helsinki) – Chance Matthews - C 10 – Toronto Legion – Anthony Dabarno - C 11 – New York Americans – Dan Wilinsky - RW 12 – Seattle Bears – Chace Trepanier - LW 13 – Riga Reign – Nikita Flipachyev - RW 14 – HC Davos Dynamo – Alexander Pepper - G 15 – Quebec City Meute – Nathan McKinnon - C 16 – Riga Reign (Via Calgary) – Jorgon Weyed - RW 17 – Helsinki Titans – Tyler Smith - G 18 – Toronto Legion – Mountain Thunderfist - D 19 – Helsinki Titans (Via New York) – Vaydar Odinsson - RW 20 – Seattle Bears – James Lombardi - D 21 – Riga Reign – Jessy Thomas - RW 22 – Helsinki Titans (Via Davos) – Joey Boucher - RW 23 – Quebec City Meute – King Gow - LW 24 – Calgary Wranglers – Jerome Mitchell - C If Toronto Want A Goalie 1 – Helsinki Titans - Ryan Kastelic – D 2 – Toronto Legion – Julian Borwinn – LW 3 – New York Americans – Joseph McWolf – D 4 – Seattle Bears – Tzuyu – D 5 – Riga Reign – Sidney Crosby - D 6 – New York Americans (Via Davos) – Scott Shawinganen – C 7 – New York Americans (Via Quebec) – Jose Gonzalez – LW 8 – Calgary Wranglers –Dan Wilinsky - RW 9 – Seattle Bears (Via Helsinki) – Chance Matthews - C 10 – Toronto Legion – Cole Mertz – G 11 – New York Americans – Chace Trepanier – LW 12 – Seattle Bears – Nikita Flipachyev – RW 13 – Riga Reign –Anthony Dabarno – C 14 – HC Davos Dynamo – Alexander Pepper - G 15 – Quebec City Meute – Nathan McKinnon - C 16 – Riga Reign (Via Calgary) – Jorgon Weyed - RW 17 – Helsinki Titans – Tyler Smith - G 18 – Toronto Legion – Vaydar Odinsson - RW 19 – Helsinki Titans (Via New York) – Mountain Thunderfist – D 20 – Seattle Bears – James Lombardi - D 21 – Riga Reign – Jessy Thomas - RW 22 – Helsinki Titans (Via Davos) – Joey Boucher - RW 23 – Quebec City Meute – King Gow - LW 24 – Calgary Wranglers – Jerome Mitchell - C If Calgary have Cap issues AND Toronto want a Goalie 1 – Helsinki Titans - Ryan Kastelic – D 2 – Toronto Legion – Julian Borwinn – LW 3 – New York Americans – Joseph McWolf – D 4 – Seattle Bears – Tzuyu – D 5 – Riga Reign – Sidney Crosby - D 6 – New York Americans (Via Davos) – Scott Shawinganen – C 7 – New York Americans (Via Quebec) – Jose Gonzalez – LW 8 – Calgary Wranglers – Cole Mertz – G 9 – Seattle Bears (Via Helsinki) – Chance Matthews - C 10 – Toronto Legion – Alexander Pepper - G 11 – New York Americans – Dan Wilinsky – RW 12 – Seattle Bears – Chace Trepanier – LW 13 – Riga Reign –Anthony Dabarno – C 14 – HC Davos Dynamo – Tyler Smith - G 15 – Quebec City Meute – Nikita Flipachyev – RW 16 – Riga Reign (Via Calgary) – Jorgon Weyed - RW 17 – Helsinki Titans – Nathan McKinnon - C 18 – Toronto Legion – Vaydar Odinsson - RW 19 – Helsinki Titans (Via New York) – Mountain Thunderfist – D 20 – Seattle Bears – James Lombardi - D 21 – Riga Reign – Jessy Thomas - RW 22 – Helsinki Titans (Via Davos) – Joey Boucher - RW 23 – Quebec City Meute – King Gow - LW 24 – Calgary Wranglers – Jerome Mitchell - C @tfong @Enorama @Jubo07 @McWolf @Arayvenn @Sonnet @DaftRaincloud @ColeMrtz21 @Jose Gonzalez @Toast @SidTheKid87 @Cornflakers @BOOM™ @Frank @Joobles @Doomzday @AdamEss @Pelimies @LordTony @803 @Rykonen @DrHexDex @VV2O4 @Tacocat @ChrisF @bdu754 @nicolas01 @Sublime @nymets5 @Rzerk @Dijital @Zetna @devilsfan35 @brownboy102 @Schmidt @Foehammer @DurdenBrandSoap @mjrv21 @Bdlondon @Rad Russian @DickRobbins @ViIIains @Tigerteeo @oilmandan @Nelson @pierogituxedo @DonaldJWafer @FuzzyLeeroy @Greenert11 @SupaStu @Galchenyuk_is_God @Sook @ZST @Josh Ho-Train @Deft @Claust @Scorpio @ventsan @Sllaym @Jerramy @KyleS56 @colton14 @joeyboucher1 @McCan @libbyfanaccount @28_stab_wounds @Mike_Houle @Reckasaur @Keywi @Kian Lopushinsky @Desjar @T65 @mhart97 @bagelbitesisbae @Nick Blagden @SirRupertBarnes @Potato @UltraMick @Drob127 @RickRandals @Flyershockey90 @Russell Jerome @Steve Razyn @RJHockey21 @Bazmandoo22 @Nyr1994 @DBCrumpets @JaacTree @Tniz15 @ChaceT @Jtww @canucksHD @PremiumFunk @Gravyncarrots @JohnnyT_77 @Shou Tian @eaglesfan036 @KnucklePuckAdam @Flare @toshimann @Pauly51 @Kisshan @Joubo @RealJohny211 @madmonstermax @hedgehog337 @kerryj13 @PaintingItOrange @Ruggiero10 @Steveziedoesit @monkeywrench15 @Dude

Issue I Temporary upload location until @Will says otherwise

How lucky am I? The first time I was the GM of the Helsinki Titans it was amazing I thought there was no way I could top it. And then I did. I can honestly say I had more fun during my second tenure as GM of the Helsinki Titans. There are many, many things I am proud of, but I think these might be the three best: 1) The Jacob Trade To  (S53) G - Jacob To (S48) D - Black Velvet (S50) RW - Theo Axelsson S54 CGY 1st (G Torsten Ironside)* *This pick was swapped with Toronto to draft Hudson Abbott 1st overall in S54. 2) Season 53 Draft Pick Swap During the Entry Draft To S53 HSK 1st (C Lukas Muller) S53 COL 1st (D Xander Finn) S53 HSK 2nd (C Fredinamijs Krigars)  To S53 QUE 1st (C Franchise Cornerstone) S53 SEA 1st (G Astrid Moon) S53 CGY 2nd (G Chet Manley) 3) Having a team of members that played the league villain role perfectly. Honourable Mention Winning back to back championships and then one more 5 seasons later. The list of people who have helped me in some way along this journey is long, but I can narrow it down to a few special ones to shout out, these users shaped my time as GM of Helsinki more than they know: @boubabi (Franchise Cornerstone & Ay Ay Ron) @Trifecta (Astrid Moon) @Corco (Rudolph Schmeckeldorf) @solas (Theo Axelsson & Lukas Muller) @evrydayimbyfuglien (Daryl Dortch & Augustus Gloop) @Wasty (Maksym Barnyashev) @Bushito (Hudson Abbott) @Fire Hakstol (Shayne Gow) Extra special thanks to @boubabi the member. If it wasn't for having a person like boubs by my side for the past 10 seasons I never would have lasted this long or have been as successful as the GM. I dedicate this GM tenure to @boubabi for keeping me sane and always being online to talk and being 100% real. So who replaces me? Well it'll be someone who has experience in the role, a REALLY long time ago. The former Titans GM from S12-16, after a 46 season break from the managers chair he's back. Effective immediately @Quik is the new Helsinki Titans General Manager. I hope your second tenure is as fun as mine was! For the final time... Hardballer out! (For real this time)

When the position opened up this previous off-season, I wasn't 100% sure I wanted to take on the role of VHLM commissioner. I had given the role a chance quite a few seasons ago, and while starting off on the right foot, I eventually slipped, fell down and was unable to keep up with the demands. This was something that was possibly discouraging me from taking on the role again and giving it another chance. To me, it's one of the most important roles on the site. Though, let's be real here for a minute. Without anyone on this site, it would be nothing and while one job may be more important than the other, they're all pretty close. I knew that stepping into the role, I was going to have to bring the best "me" I could walking into it. The league was a little bit of a mess, rules were everywhere, nothing was updated and organization seemed to be better in a crack house than it was at the VHLM draft. These qualities are detrimental to the league and can not be a constant presence if we wish to have an effective, enjoyable and stable VHLM. So, when Toast stood up to do with job, my interest grew. I liked Toast and knew him and myself would be compatible personality wise. Unfortunately, the VHLM draft was so messy and stressful, he stepped down right away. Cue in Banana and Muffins Cafe. I took the job and myself and Muff-Boy quickly got to work. We sorted everything out, cleaned up the rules and updated them, created new draft pick trackers, financing pages and did a bit more updating throughout the website. Muffins strongly kicked ass at creating player pages and we held an accountability meeting with the managers reminding them that this site is for fun, that we have lives outside of the site but to remain open with communication with us if they ever need a hand or have things going on. That we understand, but also won't tolerate total neglect towards their teams and most importantly, members. Since and to this very moment of writing, I think it's safe to say we're extremely pleased with the set of managers we currently have. Halifax 21st @ShawnGlade Las Vegas Aces @jacobaa19 @Jubo07 Oslo Storm @Laflamme Ottawa Lynx @diamond_ace @McWolf Saskatoon Wild @Dtayl @Gooningitup Yukon Rush @BarzalGoat These guys are on top of everything, have shown amazing activity and the best part about it is, of the names above, 6 of those guys are new managers. Not only this, but are veteran managers have also decided to take on some new blood, help them learn the ropes in one day hoping they can become the next best thing the VHLM has seen. I don't think there's any of you I don't talk to on a very consistent basis, but to let you know, Banana and Muffins are proud of the work you guys have done. Keep it up! What's to come??? WORLD JUNIORSSSSSS - She's back! What an exciting time to be alive in the VHLM right now? We have GM's firing off trades, new members signing up like crazy and nooooooww... though it was tough towards the end, I tried bringing back the World Juniors and folks, we're not too far away from having them get underway. I've managed to clean up the rules, introduce some new things and add some cooler additions that I think everyone will like. We've added a Hall of Fame for the future (likely no inductees for some time), A "World Rankings" and an All-time statistics section where you'll be able to track your every move. Currently, all our rosters have been finalized, the GM's are locked and loaded and we're currently waiting on @Beketov who is working extremely hard and diligent on presenting the league with our WJC file. It's incredible the amount of players that are available for each nation and to be honest, is overwhelming to see. Fortunately, I had the extreme pleasure of working with two amazing guys who without I would have struggled hard to get this project off the ground. I started hot, but doing the list and everything else may have been the thing to temporarily burn me out. @McWolf @BarzalGoat One day, maybe you end up in the HoF as WJC commissioners... If... just if... this is a permanent role for you guys. Guess we talk next season, hey? Pay For All ACT Currently, as you know, the only players who receive money in the VHLM are players who joined a little too late and missed the draft. You may have been here for days, weeks or whatever... you got drafted into the VHLM by your respective teams and you don't get any money. You've just done all this work and sure, while it's an awesome feeling and experience, no cold, hard cash. Bullshit? Yep. Because that guy who joined 5 hours after the draft now has the chance to make some of that money and I think the understanding was at the start to help them make up for what they maybe missed on other players - but it's a silly, stupid ruling that will be replaced in the following off-season. It's a little too late to do it now I believe, as others have not - though, possibly and with permissions and talks with @Will @Beketov and @.sniffuM, maybe we can give those who missed out this season a small bonus if they post somewhere for "fairness". Either way, next season, all players within the VHLM - whether they be waiver or draftee, will be entitled to $1,500,000 upon acceptance by the player. This does not change anything else on how the league works. We still post pages in the finance section and allow players to make their pitches. The only things that literally change here is that there is no minimum or maximum and only a set value for offers now and that EVERYONE IS MAKING MONEY! CELEBRATE GOOOOOOD TIMES COOOOOME ON! Closing Message: I'm gonna leave this short and sweet as almost everything needed to be said was done so above. To the GM's, well done so far on the season. You guys have done a great job and we really have an amazing core of guys in place. If ever overwhelmed or seemingly busy in life, remember to always keep communication open with Muff and I. We're here to assist you. To the players, congrats so far on the season. You've all done amazing - those who are sticking around and the future is extremely bright for a lot of you. Hard work pays off but at the end of the day remember, if it's hard work on here - change your ways. It should never be hard - always find a way to enjoy what you do here. To my Partner In Crime, @.sniffuM, thanks for being a good CO and not leaving me in the dust to do everything. I appreciate you. like 1,100 words+

Best Teams to Never Win a Continental Cup The VHL does a great job of remembering past successes, of engraving the names of victorious teams and players into the record books. What often slips through the cracks is the near-misses – the times when things fell apart in the playoffs, when a team just couldn't take the final step, through circumstance or sheer bad luck. Playoff disappointment is usually not the end of a road for a team, so we have excluded any run which ultimately led to a Continental Cup, even if there could have been more. It's also not necessarily the end for a player, but for a GM, it could be the difference between judged a great or a failure. Below is a ranking of the best teams to never win a cup, starting with a few honourable mentions: S53-S55 Stockholm It would turn out to be the last attempt to turn around the fortunes of the much-maligned Vasteras/Madrid/Stockholm franchise. Getting one of the VHL's most celebrated GMs in Chris Miller was seen as a coup and the early signs were positive. However, this version of the Vikings never fully convinced. A run to the finals in S53 came too soon, and they would never win another playoff series again, thwarted by the fledgling Helsinki dynasty and more damningly, an underdog Davos in S55. Future Hall of Famer Rhett DeGrath performed miracles in goal, which is perhaps more of an indictment on the Vikings' offence – names like Pietro Maximoff, Tyson Kohler, Lee King Snatch just missed out on tangible success with Stockholm and also this list. The trigger was pulled on a rebuild in S56, but two seasons later, the franchise fell victim to contraction. RIP. The most recent entries: S59 Toronto and S60 New York The last 3 Victory Cup winners have failed to deliver in the playoffs and for Toronto and New York, it's meant a painful return to the rebuild. It's hard to rank their most recent runs without much hindsight just yet – how many of Fook Yu, Torstein Ironside, Colton Rayne, and Casey Jones will end up in the Hall of Fame for example? Both these teams had several 'what if' stories – Bo Boeser, Chase Keller, Ike Arkander, Roman Sokolov, Pablo – and perhaps over time we will come to understand how damaging those playoff losses were, but it's too early to rank them now. And so, onto the proper ranking: 10. S18 Madrid We start all the way back with a team which most have forgotten existed. The Madrid Thunder experiment was killed off after around six seasons, but in that time it did offer hope of breaking away from the 'Vasteras Curse'. That is, of course, until they blew their best chance to win a championship. Season 18 was a season of great change in the VHL, and Madrid stocked up with the stars of the time to become pre-season favourites, and won the regular season too. It all fell apart in the playoffs though, as the Thunder scraped through the first round before being dispatched all too easily by the unfancied Wranglers in 6 games. It was the end of the road for the star attractions, Hall of Famers David Henman and Carl Jacobs, while some other luminaries like Frans Spelman, Marek Schultz, Ryley Dawson and franchise goaltender Zach Voss would find success elsewhere. 9. S26-S28 New York A strange one this – the Americans had something of a curse of their own, having only won a cup in S14 and it was exacerbated by four straight finals losses from S25 to S28. Moreover, New York ended up winning it all in S32 and didn't miss the playoffs in between, but it was very much a new core by then, most importantly without the Hall of Fame duo of Benjamin Glover and Daniel Braxton, both of whom retired cupless. While S25 was a bit of an underdog run, the Americans probably should have won one of the next three finals, but the writing seemed to be on the wall when even Vasteras broke a 25-season drought against them. Several big names of the time like Adam Schultz, Pavel Koradek, and Kristian Carlsson came and went without pushing New York over the edge, as the offense never really seemed to click like their rivals' did. 8. S52-S53 Seattle I was surprised to learn recently that the Bears won back-to-back Victory Cups in S52 and S53, yet their rosters never looked like those of cup favourites, particularly in S52. Perhaps a contributing factor to that is that the core of the team – Jakab Holik in goal, Bogdan Podarok and Sven Wolf up front – all either retired too early or in Holik's case were overshadowed by contemporaries. The supporting cast was not too shabby either, but probably changed too much to really stand out – from Biggu Kyanon and Joel Jarvi in S52 to Zach Parechkin, Pietro Maximoff, and Jeff Hamilton in S53 when Seattle really went for it. In the end, they were twice eliminated by the Americans who won cups in both seasons – if only they shared the prize around. 7. S43-S45 Stockholm Back in the early days of the Vikings, there was a sense that the Vasteras curse would be lifted by relocation. Those hopes would look terribly misguided about 15 seasons later, but Stockholm under the stewardship of Benoit Prevost looked well placed to exploit a very open VHL in the early 40s. Instead, a sole Victory Cup in S43 would prove to be the highlight, at least until a surprise run to the finals in S47, just when it looked like the moment had passed. Hall of Fame two-way forward Lord Karnage was the leader on and off the ice and Tom Slaughter made a cameo appearance, but the Vikings couldn't get past the high-scoring O'Malley-powered Cologne Express. A few of the players never quite went from good to great either, in particular Jody 3 Moons, Lloyd Light, Francis York Morgan, and Jerrick Poole. In the end, it was a sign of things to come for the doomed franchise. 6. S16-S17 Toronto Before David Knight built a dynasty which led to the top GM trophy being renamed after him, he experienced two devastating Game 7 defeats in back-to-back seasons. A hotly contested rivalry with Seattle went Toronto's way in S16, but the Legion fell in the finals to a surprise package in Riga. The following season, Toronto vs Seattle was the deciding battle in the league and this the Bears would come out on top, famously winning 3 games in overtime. In a battle between two teams stacked with veteran stars, it was very much winner-takes-all and this time the Legion would be on the wrong side of history. As part of the team, so would some big names of the time like David Henman, Carl Jacobs, Alexander Sauve, Brandon Rush, Zak Rawlyk, and Tayson Barabash. 5. S7-S8 Vasteras Starting off the top half of the list is what might be considered the start of the Vasteras curse. Some might argue that it started by trading Scotty Campbell after S3, but in truth Vasteras rebuilt well and had a star-studded team by S8. Mike Szatkowski and Alexander Beketov now have awards named after them and were mainstays of the team, while Anton Nygard was one of the top goaltenders of his time. In the 'Hall of Famer for hire' seat, Vasteras could call on Brannan Anthony in S7 and Matt Defosse in S8. In the end, they fell short to a young Riga team in S8 and desperation was the name of the game for far too much of the rest of the franchise's history. 4. S42-S44 Quebec Quebec's role as league villains had been well established following a maiden cup win with substantial help from free agency in S35, and by the time Clinton “Brovy” Chevy took over as GM, the hatred was in overdrive. If you're hated so much, the only thing you can do is win, and the Meute missed some glorious opportunities to add to their cup collection. With an all-time great attacking partnership in Bruno Wolf and Aksel Thomassen, Jake Wylde on defence, and the likeable Travis Boychuk providing scoring support, Quebec were favourites in S43 and S44 but lost to underdogs in Seattle and Calgary, respectively. Their only finals appearance weirdly came in S42, when it was the Meute who were the underdogs. At least this generation could later console itself with the fact that there was more bad luck to come. 3. S51-S52 Calgary Building a team through free agency can backfire terribly, but things were going really well for the Wranglers after they signed Black Velvet, Aleksi Koponen, Unassisted, and Tyson Kohler before S51. With Ariel Weinstein in goal, and a young Theo Axelsson also a part of the team, S51 Calgary had one of the greatest VHL regular seasons. Their playoffs lasted just 5 games however, as they were shut down by Greg Clegane and the fourpeat-chasing Toronto Legion. The Wranglers looked like having the last laugh when they made the playoffs and the Legion didn't in S52, but again were eliminated early on and the team assembled through free agency, predictably fell apart through free agency. 2. S20-S21 Seattle It was a case of role reversal in the famous Toronto vs Seattle rivalry, with the Legion exacting some serious revenge by blocking a very strong Bears team from even making a finals appearance. In S21, the race for the North American crown was as heated as ever, with an already strong attacking core of Markus Strauss, Cam Fowler, and Phil Gerrard bolstered by defensive reinforcement – most notably Patrick Bergqvist and Geno Esposito. Two mainstays of the team in goalie Joey Clarence and defenceman Dante Terragni were also unlucky to miss out on the Hall of Fame. The Bears pushed the Legion to the limit but would fall in Game 7 and a rebuild ensued – for a long time this would be the best team to never win a cup. 1. S49-S50 Quebec With five future Hall of Famers – Greg Clegane, Aleksi Koponen, Jeff Hamilton, Tom Lincoln, and Unassisted – and a modern-day record 27 game winning streak, the S49 Quebec City Meute were easily the biggest casualty of the Toronto threepeat. Their playoffs ended at the hands of the Legion in both S49 and S50 in what was surely the most star-studded conference finals match-ups of all-time (Toronto boasting five Hall of Famers of their own by S50). This team was in truth the inspiration for this article and the only one which was easy to rank, culminating a horrific decade for Quebec from a playoff perspective (but some great regular season achievements). The drought almost carried on through the 50s, but the Meute did manage to win one of their four straight finals and seem to be better for the experience.

First, on behalf of myself, @Banackock, @McWolf, and @Beketov I'd like to thank all of you who applied. We had a lot of talented applicants with varying ranges of experience, and it was a tough decision for us to decide who would be GMing which World's team. Without further adieu, I present to you the s62 WJC GMs: Team Canada: @Jubo07 Team USA: @ShawnGlade Team Asia: @Dtayl Team World: @TheLastOlympian07 Team Europe: @Enorama Again, thank you to all who applied, and congratulations to our new GMs!! All of you need to download STHS AS SOON AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE, and start picking your rosters from the spreadsheet we'll provide to you. Best, Barzy and the WJC Commish crew

Why is there always 1 step between "let's make this one change" and Devise's "also let's start from scratch guys"?

New Brackets & Cap Incoming This may seem like jumping the gun a bit but we want all players and GM's to be prepared when it happens. As those in the know are aware, the current Salary cap of $36 million was never meant to be permanent. It was put in while we adjusted brackets after having an extra influx of TPE from raising of the weekly cap. After much deliberation the new brackets and cap have been agreed upon and follow as such: Legend: 0-200: 1M / 1.5M 201-300: 1.25M / 1.75M 301-400: 1.5M / 2M 401-500: 2M / 2.5M 501-600: 2.5M / 3.5M 601-700: 3M / 4M 701-800: 3.5M / 4.5M  801-900: 4M / 5M 901+: 4.5M / 5.5M Salary Cap: $34 million Maximum contracts across the board stand as $6M for Rookie contracts and $9M for Prime contracts. Please note, however, that a maximum of $3M is available to players who have been drafted but are spending extra seasons in the VHLM. These changes won't be particularly important to many of you outright but we wanted to be clear about what's happening with them so that everyone on VHL teams, or those who are being drafted in the coming season, can be prepared. In light of these changes the league rule requiring that no salaries be decreased after they are accepted will be waived during the off-season, after the S62 Finals are complete,  to allow teams to adjust their salaries accordingly with the new brackets. Accepting these changes falls under regular regulations for the players in question.

"I'd rather be lucky than good." This is one of the most popular phrases around, and it definitely has its merit. Today I thought I would look through the stats to see who are the most unlucky players in the VHLM, based on shooting percentage and shots. To be eligible for this list, the player must have played at least 30 games. Let's take a look to see who are the most unlucky players in VHLM S63. Ryan Dodds-Saskatoon Wild (1st place) Congrats to Ryan Dodds of the Saskatoon Wild for being the most unlucky player in VHLM so far this season! In 31 games, he has put up a shooting percentage of 3.23, with 31 shots, averaging one shot per game. I don't think he feels too bad, as he is inactive and only has 30 TPE. Erik Johannsen-Saskatoon Wild (2nd place) Another Saskatoon Wild player, they go back to back at 1 and 2 on this list. Another inactive player, he has only put up 1 goal and 4 points, shooting at 3.57 percent. The Wild will need to get their inactive player problems together if they want to improve for next season. James Lombardi-Las Vegas Aces (3rd place) I have to admit, when I came up with this idea, I had myself in mind. I have been pretty frustrated with my lack of goal scoring, and wanted to see who else was struggling across the league. I did end up finding out that I have the lowest shooting percentage amongst active VHLM players. It's disappointing, but I did not set out to make a great goal scorer. My shooting percentage is currently at 3.85%, and it should get better as I would imagine my PDO is pretty low. Dylan Nguyen-Halifax 21st (4th place) This is someone who has gotten seriously unlucky, and you should feel really bad for him. He is in his second year in the VHLM, with 193 TPE. Last season he had 10 goals in only 49 games, impressive for a defense man. This year, he only has 2 goals in 31 games, and has 51 shots. This is a 3.9% shooting percentage, which must be frustrating him considering the season he had last year. Look for him to have a hot streak and keep the 21st up at the top of the standings. Braylon James-Ottawa Lynx (5th place) It is almost expected to see defense man on this list, so when you see a forward you feel just a little sadder for that person. James is an active member, with 64 TPE in his rookie season. So far through 32 games, he has registered 3 goals and 21 points, a respectable number. James is another guy I expect to go on a hot streak, as he is shooting only 5.55% but has 54 shots so far. Guys who shoot more tend to score more, and I expect his goal totals to shoot up. There is the scoreboard for most unlucky. Don't really feel too bad about the inactive guys being so unlucky, but I really feel bad for that Lombardi guy😁. Anyways, hope everyone enjoyed this, and I am excited for the next half of the season

Hello everyone, Thanks for the chance to get back into the GMing game. I have been away basically all summer because of personal reasons but I am back now and It is great to see the VHL still going strong. Everyone looks to be enjoying themselves and the VHLM is stronger than ever. Without further adieu, here is the Team World Roster. Forwards C - Chris F - @ChrisF C - Brylon James - @Trifecta C - Matthew Keller - @Jepox LW - Chace Trepanier - @ChaceT LW - Athanasios Andrianopoulos - @803 RW - Patrick Triscuit - @Sami K RW - Jessy Thomas - @Jtww RW - Jakub Vilhjalmsson - @Týr RW - Joey Boucher - @joeyboucher1 Defenseman D - Lew Bronstein - @troy D - Ryan Kastelic - @Enorama D - Joseph McWolf - @McWolf D - Paulo Nano - @leafsman Goalies G - Cole Mertz - @ColeMrtz21 G - Tyler Smith - @DrHexDex

Great effort everyone, will definitely get a shoutout in the next Newsletter! Looking forward to the second edition!

Halifax 21st: The Little Expansion Team That Could and Most Likely, Will. [665 Words] The Halifax 21st is a brand new expansion team in the Victory Hockey League Minors and they have so far started their season off with a bang. They greeted the VHLM in the 62nd Season. Starting off with a fantastic draft the team had huge room to grow and improve. Although Shawn may have gotten some flak for drafting 2 goalies to replace an inactive one so far it seemed to be working out for the team. Let’s break down their season so far and see if we can crack the secret of their success. Step One: The Draft and the Tools of Trade The 62nd season of the VHLM was Halifax’s very first draft. Allowing them to be under the radar and underestimated in their picks. Their picks were as follows: Round 1, Pick 3: Tzuyu (D) Round 2, Pick 9: Nikita Flipachyev (RW) Round 2, Pick 12: Shawn Glade (D) Round 3, Pick 15: B.B. Nat (D) [TRADED] Round 4, Pick 21: Cole Mertz (G) Round 4, Pick 23: Mike Lavallee (C) [TRADED] Round 6, Pick 32: Aaron Butcher (LW) Round 6, Pick 33: Hunter Kidd (C) Round 7, Pick 39: Nathan MacKinnon (C) Round 8, Pick 47: Tyler Smith (G) Round 9, Pick 51: Jeremy Myalls (D) Round 10, Pick 57: Potato (G) While some of these players may not be superstars the moment they were drafted most of them have been working hard over the season to keep constantly improving. Although Shawn made some early trade moves, they seem to be working out as they picked up Karl von Moltke, Juri Rykonen, and Tomos Walker (who was later traded to Yukon). While picking 2 goalies may have seemed risky Tyler and Cole have been very active for the team and player growth, along with most of the team, but what about their on ice performance? Step 2: Hard Working and Hard Hitting. Halifax started the year off amazing, as they’ve only lost a handful of games and as of this date of writing is the number one team in the VHLM. Strong and evenly divided lines has proven time and time again to prove that this was the winning formula for the 21st. While Cole and Smith have both experienced bumpy roads in the crease; as is to be expected; they’ve quickly recovered on the practice ice and plan on moving ahead to produce more W’s for the team. But the goalies aren’t the only hard working members on the team, defensive men, Shawn [Ranked 1st in Defensive men as of writing] and Tzuyu [Ranked 4th in Defensive men as of writing] have been seen on the practice ice working on goal scoring and passing. Along with forwards Nathan MacKinnon [Ranked 3rd in Center men as of writing], Karl von Moltke [Ranked 1st in Left Wingers as of writing], and Nikita Flipachyev [Ranked 4th in Right Wingers as of writing] have also been seen working on their breakaways, penalty shots, and puck rotation on the practice ice as well. Team moral has been rumored to be at a high point as players in the locker rooms have been seen conversing with one another on how to improve on their game and most of them watching film after the games. That may be all good but how is their future? Step 3: A Game of Numbers. As it Stands, Halifax’s goalies Tyler and Cole have a combined save percentage of 0.875. Proving to be brick walls in the crease, they’re sitting very solid as it stands. Along with Shawn and Karl sitting at 66 points combined in the league as they are sitting in the top 3 of the player boards right now. On paper they look unstoppable and have a bright future ahead for all the young players and young expansion team. The future looks bright for this young team, and I’m excited to see how far they go.

Helsinki, FINLAND - With just about 2 weeks left until the trade deadline, the VHL will soon see it's first batch of prospects for Season 64 start to pop up. One such prospect already making a name for himself is teenage sensation, Kronos Bailey. While he had no idea that his name would be a prophecy when he first started lacing up his skates, the grandson of the legendary Matt Bailey has been hyped for over a year, and will be looking to start his journey with the same team his grandfather did, 52 seasons prior - the Helsinki Titans! Indeed, with a name like Kronos, leader of the Titans in Greek mythology, it seems to be destiny that the young Bailey will join the rebuilding Titans and look to lead them back to Continental Cup glory! While he did inherit his grandfather's frame, standing 6'3 and weighing 215 lbs, he does not share the affinity for laying hits, as he prefers to focus more heavily on scoring than being a terror on the ice.

Is it me or does the Minors look funner than the Big Leagues this season?

I worked really hard on this over the weekend!

#AnyoneButFong tbh

I think I've outdone myself on this one: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Oei0OpFRn3zSkwcGHjagfictg6ZfA_P4GrIkLvcm_q8/edit?usp=sharing There's a bunch of pivot tables and shit running in the background so I can definitely add some info using the same data if there's any interest. I reckon I'll eventually incorporate this as well: https://vhlforum.com/topic/19054-another-all-time-list-playoffs-every-season/ My work-free time is coming to an end.... I reckon the last time my VHL:useful IRL shit ratio was so bad was in 2011. ❤️ Note: If you are looking for playoff career stats, here is the place: https://vhlforum.com/topic/1067-vhl-career-playoffs-stats-updated-for-s54/ Updated (select players only) to S61 here: https://vhlforum.com/topic/51909-playing-around-with-career-stats/ Longest playoff streaks of all time: New York: 11 seasons (S24-S34) Helsinki: 9 seasons and counting (S53-present) Riga: 7 seasons (S15-S21) Toronto: 7 seasons (S19-S25) Davos: 7 seasons (S19-S25) Seattle: 6 seasons (S26-S31) Calgary: 6 seasons (S30-S35) Helsinki: 6 seasons (S31-S36) Quebec City: 6 seasons (S40-S45) New York: 6 seasons (S44-S49) Cologne: 6 seasons (S48-S53) Longest cup droughts of all time: Vasteras/Stockholm: 31 seasons (S27-S57) *franchise defunct Vasteras/Madrid: 25 seasons (S2-S25) Davos: 22 seasons (S39-S60) Quebec City: 20 seasons (S36-S55) New York: 17 seasons (S15-S31) Calgary: 17 seasons and counting (S45-present) Riga: 16 seasons (S17-S32) Cologne: 15 seasons (S43-S57) *franchise defunct Seattle: 15 seasons (S44-S58) Seattle: 14 seasons (S29-S42) Hamilton/New York: 13 seasons (S1-S13) Calgary: 13 seasons (S31-S43) Toronto: 11 seasons (S10-S20) Cologne: 11 seasons (S31-S41) Toronto: 11 seasons and counting (S51-present) Seattle: 10 seasons (S18-S27) Helsinki: 10 seasons (S35-S44) Toronto: 10 seasons (S38-S47) Riga: 10 seasons (S41-S50) Longest finals droughts of all time: Vasteras/Stockholm: 20 seasons (S27-S46) Vasteras/Madrid: 15 seasons (S3-S17) Riga: 14 seasons (S18-S31) Seattle: 14 seasons (S44-S57) Calgary: 14 seasons (S47-S60) Hamilton/New York: 12 seasons (S1-S12) Seattle: 12 seasons (S31-S42) Cologne: 11 seasons (S31-S41) Quebec City: 11 seasons (S43-S53) New York: 10 seasons (S15-S24) Seattle: 10 seasons (S18-S27) Davos: 10 seasons (S40-S49) Toronto: 10 seasons and counting (S52-present)

Good sentence structure and multiple paragraphs. Punctuation excellent and a working link to your request thread. Keep up the good work.

Aleksi Koponen Class of S59 Position: C Birthplace: Helsinki, Finland Height: 5’11” Weight: 180 lbs Jersey Number: 21 Drafted: Automatically drafted via GM Rule by Helsinki Titans Username: @Will Aleksi Koponen joined the Helsinki Titans in the Season 44 offseason as a GM player. He was not the best individual player of his generation and doesn’t have enough hardware to justify his place in the Hall of Fame on its own, but he was a dominant team-first player throughout his career and was part of the mid-40’s Helsinki dynasty that captured two straight Continental Cups in Season 45 and Season 46. Koponen is one of the players that had to wait the longest between the moment he retired and the moment he finally got inducted in the VHL Hall of Fame, only being awarded a spot among the stars in the Hall of Fame in his sixth season of eligibility. He did however receive at least a vote in each of his first five seasons of eligibility. Awards S45 Continental Cup - VHL Champions (HSK) S46 Continental Cup - VHL Champions (HSK) S51 Mike Szatkowski Trophy - Top Scorer Season 45 Statistics Regular Season S45(HSK) 72GP | 28G - 69A - 97P | +49 | 327SHT | 5GWG | 23HIT | 32SB | 51.1FO% Playoff S45(HSK) 12GP | 5G - 5A - 10P | +2 | 29SHT | 1GWG | 2HIT | 2SB | 47.2FO% Following a short rebuild process where they missed the playoffs for two straight seasons, the Helsinki Titans came back strong in Season 45, thanks to an eventful offseason. They traded for both Thomas O’Malley and Brady Stropko and they made a couple of important picks in the Entry Draft. Among the players they selected, 1st overall pick Phil Hamilton, 2nd overall pick Greg Clegane and GM player Aleksi Koponen were the only ones to make the jump to the team on the first year. Koponen found himself centering the second line, behind Thomas O’Malley, for the majority of the year. He finished the season ranked 4th in the league in assists and 11th in points in his rookie season. He continued his strong play in the playoffs, when he scored 10 points, en route to the first Helsinki Titans Continental Cup since Season 34, after they disposed of the Calgary Wranglers in 7 games. Despite his 97-point performance, Koponen only got a single vote for the Christian Stolzschweiger Trophy, awarded to the VHL’s rookie of the year, as voters felt Titans goaltender and future Hall of Famer Greg Clegane was more deserving of the award, following his insane rookie campaign in which he led Helsinki to a first place finish in the regular season and to a Continental Cup. Season 46 Statistics Regular Season S46(HSK) 72GP | 24G - 56A - 80P | +43 | 360SHT | 1GWG | 105HIT | 34SB | 55.4FO% Playoff S46(HSK) 10GP | 4G - 8A - 12P | +5 | 30SHT | 1GWG | 2HIT | 8SB | 50.6FO% There has been close to no movement from Helsinki in the offseason. They lost 2 forwards in captain Thomas Duddy and Brady Stopko, but they replaced them by veteran Jackson Miller and rookie Giovanni Reuel. As the reigning champions, a lot was expected from the team as a whole, but also from the 3 players on their sophomore seasons. Phil Hamilton filled big shoes as he replaced Duddy as the team’s captain, while Clegane continued his dominance in front of the net. Koponen followed on his strong rookie campaign with a very small regression to his offensive performance, dropping from 97 to 80 points. 80 points isn’t bad per se, as it still was good enough for 27th in the league, though it was his worst offensive season at this point in his short career and it ended up being his worst point total throughout the rest of his career as well. Koponen had worked on his faceoff skills since the last season and it showed, upgrading his win percentage from 51.1% to 55.4%. For a second straight season, Helsinki finished first overall in the regular season and, for a second straight season, they capped it off by beating the Calgary Wranglers in the finals to win the Continental Cup, becoming the first team since the HC Davos Dynamo in Season 24 and 25 to accomplish this feat. Koponen was Helsinki’s top scorer in the playoffs, but finished 2nd behind Milos Denis of the Wrangles in voting for the Daisuke Kanou Trophy. Season 47 Statistics Regular Season S47(HSK) 72GP | 41G - 46A - 87P | +27 | 423SHT | 8GWG | 56HIT | 30SB | 58.9FO% Playoff S47(HSK) 6GP | 3G - 4A - 7P | +2 | 26SHT | 0GWG | 4HIT | 5SB | 55.7FO% After winning two straight Continental Cups, Helsinki lost hopes of completing the surreal three-peat, when they lost Thomas O’Malley, Christoph Klose and Giovanni Reuel to free agency. They did snag free agent Bismarck Koenig, though, in hopes he could replace O’Malley as the first center on the team. This pushed Koponen back to second line duty again, but only for a couple of games, as he was eventually moved to the left of Koenig on the first line. Having an elite playmaker center him helped him score a personal best of 41 goals, good for 8th in the league, while his 87 points ranked him at the 11th on the scoring ladder. He also finished the season just short of a 60% faceoff win percentage, once again raising from the previous season. For a third straight year, the Titans found themselves at the top of the European Conference, this time finishing 2nd in the league. However, the loss of the 3 veterans before the season started was felt in the playoffs as their path was stopped when they lost to the Stockholm Vikings in 6 games in the semi-finals. Season 48 Statistics Regular Season S48(HSK) 72GP | 46G - 52A - 98P | +33 | 441SHT | 13GWG | 75HIT | 31SB | 61.4FO% Playoff S48(HSK) 11GP | 3G - 8A - 11P | -6 | 54SHT | 1GWG | 11HIT | 6SB | 54.2FO% After Season 47, Bismarck Koenig decided the hang his skates, giving Aleksi Koponen his first chance as the team’s top line center. He did well, hitting new career bests with 46 goals, 98 points, ranking him 6th in the league in both stats, and breaking the 60% faceoff win percentage for the first time in his career. The Titans clinched their fourth straight European Conference regular season title. They took their revenge on the Vikings from Season 47, beating them in the European semi-finals in 6 games, before facing the Toronto Legion in the Continental Cup finals. The team’s lack of depth proved to be a problem, as the Legion went on to win their first of three straight Continental Cups. This defeat marked the end of an era for the Helsinki Titans. In four seasons, they finish atop the European Conference four times, reached the finals three times, winning the VHL championship twice. After this season, they would start a new rebuilding process, as they would trade the 3 team’s stars away. Phil Hamilton was dealt to the Cologne Express, while Aleksi Koponen and Greg Clegane were sent to the Quebec City Meute in the same deal. Season 49 Statistics Regular Season S49(QUE) 72GP | 55G - 77A - 132P | +97 | 524SHT | 7GWG | 298HIT | 30SB | 68.0FO% Playoff S49(QUE) 5GP | 4G - 3A - 7P | +2 | 28SHT | 1GWG | 21HIT | 2SB | 54.0FO% The change of scenery proved effective for Koponen, as he reached new high grounds with his new team. His 55 goals, 77 assists, 132 points, +97 differential, 524 shots, 298 hits and 68.0 faceoff winning percentage were all new career best for him. He finished the season with the 2nd most points in the league, trailing Legion’s Max Moholt by 13. As a team, the Meute did well, claiming the regular season championship. They traded for Wolfgang Strauss, Pablo Escobar, Severin von Karma and Jeff Hamilton during the season, to help with the quest for the Cup, while bringing a friendly face around in Strauss and Escobar, two former Titans. This proved to not be quite enough to dispose of the Meute’s Canadian rivals, the Toronto Legion, who beat them in 5 games in the semi-finals, before going on to win a second of three straight Continental Cups. In the offseason, Koponen was nominated for the Scott Boulet Trophy, awarded to the league’s best two-way forward, and for the Scotty Campbell Trophy, awarded to the league’s most valuable player. He left the awards ceremony empty-handed, but still proved how valuable he was to his team by these accolades. Season 50 Statistics Regular Season S50(QUE) 72GP | 40G - 60A - 100P | +33 | 496SHT | 7GWG | 189HIT | 43SB | 67.0FO% Playoff S50(QUE) 10GP | 6G - 9A - 15P | +5 | 55SHT | 1GWG | 20HIT | 6SB | 62.6FO% Season 50 was marked by an offensive regression throughout the whole league. Koponen followed on his previous season’s outstanding performances with a little drop, down to 100 points. This was, however, good for 3rd in the league, behind teammates Tom Lincoln and Unassisted. Season 50 also marked the first time in Koponen’s career his team didn’t finish at the top of its Conference, as the Meute trailed the Legion by 9 points, ending the season in the North American Conference runner-up spot. Finishing the season in second place meant they had to play in the quarter-finals first, in which they beat the Wranglers in 4 games, before they faced with the Legion again. This was the third straight season Koponen’s team was eliminated from the Continental Cup playoffs by a Cup-winning Legion team. He still scored an impressive 15 points in 10 playoff games, despite not even reaching the finals. Following this crushing defeat, Quebec City sold good players to competing teams and let some others walk to free agency in an attempt to start a rebuilding process. Aleksi Koponen became a free agent for the first time in his career and deciding to sign a one-year deal with the Calgary Wranglers. Season 51 Statistics Regular Season S51(CGY) 72GP | 60G - 75A - 135P | +94 | 573SHT | 15GWG | 177HIT | 23SB | 69.7FO% Playoff S51(CGY) 5GP | 1G - 1A - 2P | -3 | 17SHT | 0GWG | 14HIT | 2SB | 64.8FO% As was the case following his move to Quebec, the change of scenery was nice for Koponen. The Wranglers had a young roster filled with improving rookies a year prior and added Koponen, Unassisted, Black Velvet and Tyson Kohler from free agency. The mix of proven veterans and young guns worked wonders as the team finished first in the league, breaking a 18-year record for most points in a season with 132. For the first time in his whole career, Koponen finished the season 1st in points with 135. He also finished 2nd in goals with 60, a new career high. His 69.7% win percentage from the faceoff circle is also the best percentage he collected throughout his career. Unfortunately, the Wranglers faced up the Toronto Legion in the North American Conference semi-final and were eventually eliminated from playoffs contention following a 5-game series. For the first time in his career, Koponen left the VHL Award Ceremony with some hardware to be proud of, as he claimed the Mike Szatkowski Trophy, awarded to the league’s top scorer. Season 52 Statistics Regular Season S52(CGY) 72GP | 44G - 54A - 98P | +48 | 487SHT | 8GWG | 101HIT | 25SB | 67.6FO% Playoff S52(CGY) 7GP | 4G - 8A - 12P | +2 | 37SHT | 2GWG | 2HIT | 1SB | 50.6FO% It was in Season 52 that age finally caught up on Aleksi Koponen. He scored below 60 assists and 100 points for the first time since leaving Helsinki following Season 48. The Wranglers lost Unassisted in the free agent market and couldn’t find anyone to cover for his big loss. The team ended the season in the 3rd spot in the North American conference, marking the worst position by any team that had Koponen on its roster throughout his career. The Wranglers season and, at the same time, Aleksi Koponen’s career came to an end when the team lost to the 2nd placed New York Americans in the opening round of the playoffs. The Finnish center gave all he had in his final games, gathering 12 points in the 7-game series. Career Statistics Regular Season 576GP | 338G - 489A - 827P | +424 | 3631SHT | 64GWG | 1024HIT | 248SB | 62.3FO% Playoff 6GP | 30G - 46A - 76P | +9 | 276SHT | 7GWG | 76HIT | 3SB  Aleksi Koponen retired as the 14th best scorer in the history of the league. He was also ranked 19th on the assists leaderboard and 4th in the plus-minus category. He only won a scoring title once, but finished most seasons in the top 10 for either goals, assists or points, if not all of them. Early in his career, he served in more or a support role to the elite veterans of a stacked Titans team that won two straight Cups, but was never able to be the star that led the Meute or the Wranglers to a similar finale, as he found himself on the losing end of series against the Legion dynasty 4 times in a row. He had to wait for a while before finally getting his name amongst the greats in the VHL Hall of Fame, probably because he lacked the individual awards to make him go before other players that got inducted before him, like his Titans teammates Greg Clegane and Phil Hamilton, but also because he couldn’t recreate the success of his youth during his peak. However, when all was said and done, his place in the Hall of Fame was well deserved. His career totals of 827 points, +424 and 62.3% of faceoff wins along with 76 playoff points and strong performances leading to two straight Continental Cups made for a strong case and led to him finally being immortalized in the Hall of Fame in the class of Season 59. --- Thanks @Victor for the infos. Thanks @Quik for the stats tables I shamelessly stole. Thanks as a whole for the opportunity to write about one of the better players. I like backtracking the history of the league. And congrats again @Will on Koponen's career. It's 4 in the morning here. I'll probably not mess with the formatting right now, but I'm guessing it will be horrible, as it usually always is when I copy-paste from Word directly. If it's not too bad, I might edit it out directly, though. But worst case, I'll come back tomorrow. EDIT: It's readable, so here goes. Off-article fact; Koponen was top 10 in Hits Taken during 7 of his 8 seasons. Not sure what to do with that, as I’m not sure it helps the narrative of how he deserved his spot in the HOF, but I couldn’t just not talk about it either, so I’m just throwing that out here.

So as many of you know, I tend to keep my GMing as a one man job. Most of the others seem to have two guys in the staff in some capacity, and I've tended not to do that. However, in the interest of teaching a promising new guy how it's done so the M can carry on successfully, I gladly take on @McWolf as the AGM of Ottawa, with a view toward a main role somewhere in the future.