Renomitsu

Just going to spam post a bit so I can get all of my claims out of the way. Week ending 5/12 here

Let's do it.

I mean I understand it from both sides. BoD want to take things a little slower and adjust as necessary - and that's important to avoid a knee-jerk overreaction to this season's recruiting success. But now, it seems like we're retaining a decent number of newer members (especially a handful of hyper-active ones, like some of the new GMs) and next year's class is progressing pretty smoothly. It may be worth reconsidering this topic.

Part of what comes with the mock draft is being wrong - I'm always happy to play the bad guy in that respect. Now you've got a great chance to show 'em who's boss and prove me very wrong.

Saskatoon, SK - The Wild held a get-together for the VHL Entry Draft last night, with team alums and draftees alike. It was a beacon of excitement following a few weeks' worth of off-season limbo. Possibly more importantly, many of the Saskatoon players already knew where they were spending next season: mostly-intact in Saskatoon, this time for a run at a title. But a couple of members - among them star forward Shawnomir Jagr and new-ish defenseman Apollo Hackett - had made the irreversible leap in declaring for the VHL. The locker room was alight with chatter: what draftees had done in their previous lives, a handful of wisdom from GM Peace on rookie contracts, how @Jus and @Oost are thicc bois, and so on. The picks started early in the second round, and almost didn't stop: first, Jagr at #14 to the Vancouver Wolves. A natural choice - and the Saskatoon player most likely to go first. Then, with the very next pick, Bert Meyers - a close associate of the Wild GM - to the S65 finalist Helsinki Titans. Immediately after that, Hackett with the 16th pick to the Riga Reign, and with basically no hesitation, the brand-new Nighthawks took fellow D-man and new assistant captain Rusty Shackleford. Just a round later came captain Nethi Dissanayake to the Calgary Wranglers, Edgar Tannahill to the Moscow Menace, and Anthony Amberback, who once again shares a locker room with Hackett in Latvia. GM Advantage must have had his ear to the ground in Saskatoon, as a couple of rounds later he selected goalie Juan Jaundice, who will be joining Shackleford and Wild alum/expansion pick Brian Strong in Sweden. After that, most of the Wild were content, with smiles lighting up a team formerly hamstrung by narrowly-dashed playoff hopes. Finally, there was some closure to this hectic season in Saskatoon. From the back of the locker room, ecstatic new Nighthawk Rusty Shackleford could be heard: "Juan, you are my goalie for life!" Tagged: @K1NG LINUS @Peace @nethi99 @TheLastOlympian07 @RunnerBert11 (gregreg but he doesn't like being tagged)

Heya Reign, young and old! Answer some questions here for TPE. Let's start with these - you can (of course) pick and choose: 1) The draft just finished an hour ago or so. What do you think of the team's (four) first round picks? What about the 2nd and after? 2) Older players: this team just got a lot younger over the last 48 hours. Does this affect your outlook for next season? 3) New guys: this team has a handful of S61-S62 draftees. Who will you look up to for mentorship, now that you're in the big leagues? 4) The team has enough players -- especially centers -- for more than two lines. How should Riga deal with this? 5) With the sheer number of players drafted this season, does the VHL need a cap increase? How much should it increase, if so? 6) Veterans: Any rookie hazing rituals we should be looking for? Maybe just a little advance notice? Please? 7) Rookies: When are you moving, and what's one important/sentimental thing you're bringing with you to Latvia? 8 ) What's the weirdest thing you've seen our GM doing? 9) I heard there's a Switch set up in the training facility, 8 controllers. Who's your main in Smash? 10) Is there anyone - pets, significant others, family - that you're bringing with you to Latvia? @hedgehog337 @Anthony Matthews @bluesfan55 @Rocketman04 @Tagger @Beaviss @Devise @GRZ @Victor @solas @kayfabe @Symmetrik @Enorama @Jtv123 @Oost @speck1447 @kithoo @wuma @Sogarn @SwagSloth @Birdman @Sunburst @MD9

MUNK ?

I'm just here to confirm that I was tagged by @GustavMattias, and definitely not just to tag him back. Just kidding - wonderful work. I think your justification for Freeman at #2 is interesting, and very fair. Personal relationships do tend to matter a lot more in sim leagues than a few TPE here and there - and putting that into context makes a shakeup in the top 2-3 more than plausible.

Agreed. No pressure to get a goalie right now, since Riga and Davos are set with s63/s64 draftees. Malmo has the option of taking a goalie but have other pressing issues. Still have plenty of wings in this draft, and their next couple of picks will still have good wings available.

1. In your opinion, which teams need you the most? 2. Other than yourself, who's the most likely 'reach' in the draft (i.e. picked above their TPE)? 3. The VHLM Draft just happened a couple of days ago - how do you feel about your old team's chances? 4. Who was the best locker room influence on you in your minor league season? Why? 5. Are there any teams that you want to be on that haven't contacted you about the draft (don't name names)? If so, why do you think that is? 6. Who's done the best job improving their draft stock other than by increasing TPE? 7. Do you have any draft-day taboos or rituals? 8. You're in a freestyle dance competition and you can have one other player up there dancing your routine alongside you. Who is it, and why? 9. Let's say you can bring only one sentimental item with you to your new home after the draft. What is it? 10. What do you regret, if anything, about this past season?

Review - I think this is a well-constructed insight into the background of your player, and would encourage you to bring this style and creativity to your biography. The fact that you include details about a morning routine, never having been outside of Finland, and connecting your recruiter to your player are all nice touches that make this media spot feel a little homey, even. Good luck in Halifax, and don't be shy about reaching out to other members for questions.

Review - It's hard to evaluate the next season's draftees when there's relatively little time to see them develop, but I liked both content and style here. I also liked how you redirected/re-flavored countries of origin, gaps in TPE earning, and so on. Stylistically, there are a couple of choices that I might make (e.g. "stay-at-home" vs. "stay at home") but those aren't big. Make sure you put commas between multiple adjectives for the same subject!

Review - A lot of personality in this media spot, which is something I love. Very few usage/grammar/spelling errors. I felt like the interview was well-paced and that none of your answers went on too long. I also felt like many of your questions were better than typical sports interview questions, which is always a plus. I laughed out loud at the swiss cheese comment. Sorry for the rough season, hopefully you don't hold it against me!

Review - Glad to see a new member doing good Media Spot work! A lot of very typical sports interview questions (maybe with a little more punch), and a good narrative from the interviewee side (dad's farm, little hints about religiousness) that makes it believable. Couldn't find any spelling or grammar issues. Looking forward to reading more from you!

Review - A rare, but consistent insight from you - always well-appreciated. I see little-to-nothing wrong with your writing style, grammar, spelling, etc. Formatting is logical and easy on the eye, images or not. It feels like, at times, the Nighthawks got a bit unlucky insofar as who was considered active vs. inactive, but I'm glad you got the forwards you wanted. I was intrigued to see how you reasoned through the Glover vs. Moose selection.

Review - Some paragraphs that are a bit long for my taste, but I loved your narrative style and content of your anecdotes. Internally, I definitely read this story with a stereotypical Russian accent (not sure if that's a good or bad thing hah), and there's something to the cadence of your writing that makes it believable. I hope Mac has his sleeping checked out.

Review - A very honest and insightful look into a draftee's mindset. I think some of your metaphors (marriage/pantry) are pretty vivid and honestly I'm a huge fan of it. I like to think that, even after 1,769 (nice) posts, getting drafted still gets the blood pumping. Hopefully things go well for you and you go where you'd like to.

I'm just so glad @StamkosFan ended up recruiting you. Welcome to the league! Review - Ideally, I'd like to see just a liiiittle less reliance on using @StamkosFan's username in your spot. I'm not entirely convinced that some of your lines (e.g. the one about Oryol/Orel) is original, seems a li'l Wikipedia/Youtube description box-like. If that's how you write, that's how you write but please make sure it's coming from your head.

Let's go Wild!!

Saskatoon, SK - As every VHLM GM should (hopefully) know, Apollo Hackett's going straight to the pros. "It wasn't an easy decision. My GM, @Peace, has done so much for me this season getting me acclimated, and I hope that shows based on where I get drafted," Hackett said in a recent presser. "I might have only played 40 games or so, but my buddies on the Wild - Juan @Jus, Nethi @nethi99, Rusty @K1NG LINUS, Emil, Anthony, and even you Ed," he said, laughing as he pointed to teammate Edgar Tannahill, "well, they're all I know, really. The VHL is intimidating. Buncha guys you hear about growing up, you know?" We asked about his thoughts on the Wild next season. "Peace'll have them ready. A few of us from this season end up with the Wild again, no doubt. And I hope I see a few more familiar faces in the pros in Season 67." Hackett has the hopes of his family riding on him as he takes the step up; but many consider his rapid ascent a bit remniscent of his uncle's twenty years ago. When asked about his plans once going to the pros, Apollo shrugged. "Hit some folks, block some shots, and get some assists, I guess. Hoping I can get some early minutes. Otherwise, sky's the limit. I'm planning on doing the wonderful city of Saskatoon proud, and hopefully you guys hear about me sooner rather than later. Maybe Rusty and I can teach forwards a lesson sooner rather than later, eh?"

Would definitely be. I put you there without realizing wing positions were interchangeable so you'd more likely appear 9th or 12th, depending on Riga's needs and who's preferred between you and Shawnomir. I'm also too scared to edit the OP because it'll re-tag everyone lol

Loving these interviews - and glad to see Shawnomir being featured

Whoops, didn't realize that was the case! I'd swap some wingers around in the draft above, but that would re-tag everyone. Thanks for the help regardless - your sheet made it much more organized for me.

Yeah - one of the weird parts of this draft is that Riga had five picks in the first round alone because of a yesterday's trade with Davos. You're absolutely right in saying that you're an obvious logical pick for the first round by the numbers (you're top 6 or 7 in TPE), but the hard part of this draft is that Riga already has two RWs before making a single pick, and Mikko is very slightly higher TPE. Malmo also already has 4 RWs, only 1 D, and 0 LW prior to the draft.

I wouldn't for the world. (As an aside, I'll claim this uhm... eventually?)