Victor

No one wants to be rivals with some sickly eagles.

Rivals can win playoff games against each other.

Ah if only they had Pavlov.

Bronze winning goal and into the sunset he rides.

I wasn't, Bjornsson didn't count against the cap and I sent Foilen down (and in fact could have kept Petrovic in the VHLM too).

I know you're in Malmo now but it's not actually hell yet.

Putting HHH over Jaguar, smh @gorlab

As training camp comes to a close around the VHL, an unfamiliar sight has startled Moscow's hockey fans – a lack of Russians in their local Menace team. After three seasons of declining returns from fifth overall pick Dimitri Volosenkov, his contract was allowed to run down into free agency. While this was more or less accepted by the masses, there was more consternation over the decision to sacrifice former captain and Menace lifer Evgeni Komarov to accommodate overseas free agent signings. From three Russians in the team, Moscow now retains only Vladimir Pavlov, the former child prodigy now increasingly seen as the puppet of the man in charge of the de-Russianification of the Menace: GM Victor Alfredsson. “Look, my remit is to build a competitive team in Moscow,” Mr Alfredsson recently snapped back at reporters, “No one told me it had to be done with exclusively local talent. If there's no Russians worthy of playing for a cup contender in the VHL, then there are no Russians worthy of playing for Moscow.” It was the latest event in an increasingly tense relationship between Alfredsson, the man who brought VHL hockey to Moscow, and his team's fans. Following the failure to secure a playoff spot in star forward Podrick Cast's final season it appeared the GM's position was on increasingly thin ice, although less extreme fans have been placated by the double signing of Davos' Gritty and Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen. However, rumours are swirling that the decision to bring in another veteran VHL GM in Austin Gow as Alfredsson's assistant is a contingency plan by ownership if things go south for Moscow in S69. This could be a situation to watch as it develops.

1,119 words, here's week 2.

Shame it was a short stay in Moscow @Tyler, but realistically we have 4 S65-S67 defencemen ahead of you on the depth chart this season and 2 more S68 ones in the VHLM now, so someone was going to have to go eventually. Go stop Davos from being shit again.

Can't get away from you.

Pepper no

@monkeywrench15 was it your intention to play in S69? If so, portal be buggin @Will

The fuck you on

quite clearly Europe

No Pavlov to block them ?

Meh, solid round robin anyway.

Fuck yeah

Looks like S64/S65 was the worst time to rebuild - weaker drafts than before and especially after, and any team with lots of young players got hit by back-to-back expansion drafts. Obviously other factors involved as well, but telling that both NY and Davos have both restarted rebuilding without ever truly becoming contenders.

I definitely see people writing you off even though you were IMO, on paper the best team in Europe last season. Just because you made no flashy moves doesn't make Riga less of a contender in my eyes.

You declared war.

You guys really waited for Cast to retire to make this list.

Just adding a note on Chouinard here as I had to do a bit of digging to get this info myself: RW, Swedish, drafted 3rd round in S18, VHL debut S20. @Enorama

Wouldn't have happened if you had Pavlov.

Woop woop.