Kendrick

Reports have surfaced that the Ottawa Lynx will name Joey Kendrick the brand new General Manager next week. It is a surprise report as just last week Joey Kendrick hinted that he had no desire in managing a team in a bigger role than what he was doing currently with the Saskatoon Wild. However when news surfaced that a former concept team/expansion team idea had resurfaced back from the early stages of the Victory Hockey League, Kendrick's ears perked up. Reports surfaced in addition that the Kelowna Ice would make their way back into the news and possibly land a spot in the VHLM. Of course lots of financial details would have to be put in place for this to happen, however the whole design and arena are already in place. Stay posted to hear what eventually happens to a team that few know about in the Victory Hockey League. ​*Please do not think anything of this. I simply stole one of Beketov's (Sharpe) signature he made in the early days of the Victory Hockey League and turned it into a VHL Fan story. It created a cool conversation piece. Thanks Sharpe!

The Original Ten The next two weeks have been dubbed "Historic Weeks" in regards to the spotlight shown on our league over forty seasons of existence. The beauty of a theme like this is that the very old/historic members can give you the 411 on some of the earliest happenings of the Victory Hockey League's history. I feel like I personally have to do some justice as to the early period of this league and what I remember and still have planted in my brain. Some of our newer members may not know the following in this list but be sure they all shaped the league in some form or another. I introduce to you "The Original Ten" members who graced the land of the Victory Hockey League. Kevin Brooks created the Victory Hockey League and it was one of his dreams to see this thing strive. Brooks was a great member with the ability to design a webpage and also put a creative spin on the cosmetic area of the webpage. Brooks is the first known Commish who helped the league through some dark times as well as some of the bets times in this league. It's a shame he is no longer around on the boards but he was always known for creating a great player in Maxim Desny (one of the first great goaltenders). Kevin created some washed up guys later on in his time before escaping into the horizon on a trusty steed. Cheers Kevin! Scotty Campbell may be the most recognizable name simply because many look at the record books straight away. Campbell set many Victory Hockey League records in his time here but he also had an impact elsewhere. "Scotty" was another one of the early Commissioners in the league and approved many rules that are still in effect to this day. His first created player is the great Scotty Campbell but he also created several players after that before fizzling out of the Victory Hockey League world. Campbell's last player on record is Leon Leitner who currently plays for the Toronto Legion, although Scotty hasn't been around to ensure his player makes a difference. For all the time he was in the Victory Hockey League, Scotty was a valuable member and we thank him for his efforts! You probably don't know who Brett Noiles is but you have to trust me that he made made a big impact on the league. Noiles was one of those solid members that could never be looked at for just one job that he held at any given time. Noiles was a General Manager, a Grader and at one point the brunt of a lot of jokes. If you have never heard of the phrase "Get Bent Noiles" then you probably aren't as old in VHL terms as you may think. Noiles was Scotty Campbell's best buddy and where Scotty went so did Brett. Go back in history and search Brett Noiles to create yourself some pleasant nostalgia or better yet, some laughs. Slobo is known around the Victory Hockey League for demonstrating one of the hardest working attitudes and best work ethics this league has seen. Brett has been a General Manager, Updater, Grader and a Hall of Famer throughout his history. We are blessed to have him with us to this day with his current player playing on the Helsinki Titans. Slobo is so old in VHL terms that they used to be the Helsinki Frostbite when he entered the league. There were a couple stints where Slobo wasn't part of our community and his lack of presence was felt heavily. Not one to shy away from putting every ounce of effort he has into writing the perfect Media Spot for the board to read. Thanks for all his contributions to every section of the forum for the past 7 years and counting! Bob McCown was created to help this league explore it's creativity and have it's own news source for articles and stories from around the league. Sadly the Bob McCown personality fell by the wayside when the league prospered more from various stories put forward by it's everyday members. How sad was the Bob McCown experiment? When considered ol' Bob had only twelve posts altogether, it shows that he wasn't as committed to the Victory Hockey League as he is with being paid by the Sportsnet outlets. If one positive came from Bob, it was that to this day we still have Fan 590's pouring in every day for a solid 1 TPE haul. However we have to sign off this paragraph by saying "Thanks for nothing Bob!" CFLStyle was one of the founding fathers of the Victory Hockey League, although not as prominent as some of the others. Known to most by his real name Jeff Krever, CFLStyle was very vocal about his love for the Buffalo Bills and the Toronto Argonauts. Krever was a General Manager back in his day before he moved on and thought he was bigger than the world by creating the second rate SHL. As far as we know Krever is out of the Sim League game now and focused on his life as a diehard Bills fan. Jay Bris will live on as another one of those original members who simply did it all or at least did it behind the scenes. Bris doesn't stand out with any player being above average or Hall of Fame worthy but he was a solid board member. Bris was like Krever in the fact he came from a previous league we all frequented in and left around the same time Krever did as well. Before you say something about the above picture, just know that that was Bris' only signature he ever wore and it was god awful. It is a very out of focus picture of former Montreal Canadiens forward Guillaume Latendresse. Jay will also always be known for the worst avatar in Victory Hockey League history; it was a .gif of Pierre McGuire "raising the roof". Besides having one of the best usernames on the site, Aiden was one of the best members the early era of the Victory Hockey League had. Alexander strived to improve with his graphics and almost twice a week posted a graphic for "CNC". Aiden Alexander the player was a good player who didn't quite reach great status but was a fixture with the Helsinki Titans and Toronto Legion. Rumpleforeskin went on to create the great hitting forward in Peter Payne. Payne was one of the crowd favourites around the league because every year you had to watch out for him behind the flow of play. If we find Rumple we will be sure to bring him back here to see how far we've come! Oh the infamous PensFan makes it on the first ten! It shouldn't be a surprise that the creator of the worst franchise in Victory Hockey League history makes it on this list. Lucas thought he struck gold when he joined the league and won a championship in the very first season of it's existence. Sadly though he held onto the team much too long and it started to fizzle into disappointment very fast. Lucas had some crazy fascination with the Swedish hockey team based in Vasteras, Sweden. The even more puzzling part is that every other franchise created had a General Manager who had a form of creativity. Lucas however decided to bring his love for a "2nd Tier" real life hockey team from Sweden into our presence from the get go. Tannehill created some above average players but none that really shaped the Victory Hockey League from the early stages. Besides his failure to be creative he will always be known for always wanted to go to Vasteras with whatever player he re-created with. If my information is correct he is friends with both Tyler Edgar and Greg Harbinson. Thanks (but no thanks) for creating Vasteras Lucas! Well we arrive at number ten and I guess it's fitting that I round this group out. Back in the early stages of the Victory Hockey League I was asked to create a team and manage them from the get go. I went ahead and created the Seattle Everblades who eventually became the Seattle Bears. My resume is kind of all over the place in the league in which I came into right after graduating high school. I've been a Grader, Updater, General Manager, Commissioner and among other things just a community member. I've enjoyed well over seven years of my life to have some fun on the board. I've been involved in fights, arguments, debates, bannings and of course the pleasure of earning the most TPE of all-time. I can honestly say that everyone of the members here has engaged me and allowed me to enjoy myself in some form of another. Since day one I've only ever missed one week of PT's and I can attest to the fact hard work can sometimes reward you in the end. Here is to another seven years!

I decided to try my best and come up with one.

Not sure if any of your brilliant logo designers and graphics guys are on this, but it's pretty cool. Go search anything you want but I found a cool one that had all NFL teams Soccer kits. https://www.behance.net/gallery/19700081/NFL-to-Soccer-

The Saskatoon Wild have made it out of their first round clash with the Brampton Blades alive, or very close to alive. The series went down to seven games and the Wild were victorious when their second line decided to come through big. Oskars Karumpf, Jarome Iginla and veteran Ashton Galbraith put their stamp on the seven game series tonight. The Wild walked out of Brampton with a 4-2 win and now have to face the Ottawa Lynx who are waiting for them a short drive away. The Wild are worn out and physically suffering but need to stay focused if they want to beat the high powered Ottawa squad that features some of the leagues more talented forwards. The Wild hope to bring a strong defensive game and excite their own fans by shutting their opponent out as much as possible. The second line depth will be key for the Saskatoon Wild moving forward.

Blades of Steel: Episode 24 Link "I sang a Hanson song at my Wedding I covered questions from the Mailbag + League News! So Far Marriage has taught me to #DURRD (Do Unlike Ray Rice Does) Blades of Steel Game Link Note: 30+ Minutes Intro Song: Guerilla Radio - Rage Against the Machine Closing Song: Mind Over Matter - Young the Giant

Over the weekend and before the Saskatoon Wild faced off with the Brampton Blades in game three of their VHLM NA conference clash, Mason Richardson tied the knot. In quite the unexpected timing of the wedding in which Mason was hoping the schedule would be nicer to him, the young Wild player married longtime girlfriend Brittany Brousseau. The two had been seeing each other on and off for the past four years and finally decided they were ready to take the next step. The two youngsters met each other at Coachella several years back and hit it off right away. Brousseau is an actress and model in Beverly Hills as well as San Diego. Richardson of course is from Riverside, California so both are well known in the areas surrounding their homes. The wedding took place in a small country themed barn in the Saskatoon area. Brousseau is hoping to keep pace with the high travelled hockey lifestyle that Richardson has been involved with.

So I decided to take my first ever VHL related sig and try improving on it. This is what I got: This: Became This:

Blades of Steel: Episode 23 Link "Seth Speaks for 10 minutes" I covered questions from the Mailbag and go over the League Roundup #ICanSeeRussiaFromMyHouse Blades of Steel Game Link Note: 30+ Minutes Intro Song: Dumpweed - Blink 182 Closing Song: Ghostwriter - RJD2

Mason Richardson has seen some things written about his current feelings towards certain VHL squads. Reports surfaced that Richardson had denied any interest in a select number of VHL franchises. One inexperienced individual said Richardson was being selfish in his approach going into the draft. Mason decided to speak on his twitter account and eventually answered reporters after a Saskatoon Wild practice. "Of course I'm in no position to hold myself on a different platform when it comes to the VHL General Managers. if they want to pick me they can pick me, whether thats first overall or twentieth overall. I will play with any franchise but if I am unhappy going into the situation, then you can't expect loyalty can you? If a franchise feels they have unfairly been ruled on and they have talked to me about it, I tell them why I'm not a fan of their franchise. It's then their choice whether they agree or disagree and what they do to fix that issue or choose to keep status quo. It's more common than not to see a player or individual have an opinion on a location, I'm just being honest with them. So yes many people may not like the approach but I am not holding back when they speak to me, I will tell them exactly what disinterest me about their franchise. I am very approachable when it comes to asking about each team, it's no secret everyone has their favourites. If you don't conduct yourself in an appealing way, why expect prospects to see you an appealing way?", spouted Richardson. It sounds as though Richardson is saying that he may go to every franchise even if they don't appeal to him, but he frowns upon some places and would want to see stability before he commits. tl;dr version: You can't fault a person for having a view of a certain team in a negative light. If one is to ask around and also look at the facts they will see what franchise they feel is either building properly or mismanaged. You can't judge them for that simply concept.

So while I was in the shower today (where most of my good ideas come from which would make it seem like I only shower once a month) I came up with a cool sort of interactive music game/insightful list. The rules of this and they are very loose (not Phil Knight loose though) is to simply name the best song in your opinion of the following artists. Feel free to add some at the bottom of the list you post too. I'd love to see some of peoples answers but also maybe find songs I and you have never heard of. Here goes the list: 1. Audioslave: 2. Rage Against the Machine: 3. Blink 182: 4. Big Wreck: 5. Foo Fighters: 6. Nirvana: 7. Avicii: 8. The Trews: 9. Sam Roberts: 10. The Sheepdogs: 11. The Black Keys: 12. Weezer: 13. Red Hot Chili Peppers: 14. Coldplay: 15. Foster the People: 16. 30 Seconds to Mars 17. ACDC: 18. Aerosmith: 19. Pink Floyd: 20. Led Zeppelin 21. Alien Ant Farm: 22. Alice in Chains: 23. Pearl Jam: 24. Alexisonfire: 25. Arcade Fire: 26. The Arkells: 27. AWOLNATION: 28. BTO: 29. CCR: 30. Band of Horses: 31. Barenaked Ladies: 32. Rise Against: 33. Against Me: 34. Beatie Boys: 35. The Beatles: 36. Billy Talent: 37. Breaking Benjamin: 38. Bruce Springsteen: 39. Bush: 40. Cage the Elephant: 41. Chevelle: 42. Chromeo: 43. The Clash: 44. The Who: 45. Dave Matthews Band: 46. Eminem: 47. deadmau5: 48. Matthew Good Band: 49. Drake: 50. Kendrick Lamar: 51. Faith No More: 52. Feeder: 53. The Strokes: 54. Fleetwood Mac: 55. Genesis/Phil Collins: 56. Gorillaz: 57. Green Day 58. Guns N Roses: 59. Imagine Dragons: 60. Incubus: 61. Jay-Z: 62. Kanye West: 63. Jimmy Eat World: 64. Justice:

Please respond honestly, trying to gauge something for recruitment purposes and it would be in your best interest to simply respond with where you currently reside. I'll be using this to try and branch out to different areas. The maps below are simply so you know what I am speaking about:

To sum up this thread I'll just say this, with your unbiased opinion post kits you've seen from around the world that you think are gems. For example I could list the 14-15 Bayern Home kit, but frankly I don't find it that nice compared to other kits out there. Here are a couple that I've always liked or started to like. Happy hunting folks!

If you have a Reddit account you need to help us out. We need to use it to recruit again but the last time I did this people down voted it. Hell I think some from this site even down voted it. We need to juice this up and have our posts on steroids. So if you have a Reddit account, here are the places you need to UPVOTE and comment on! Leave a little blurp. If you don't have an account, create onesimply to help us out like Instagram! http://redd.it/2e10qk http://redd.it/2b9i10 http://redd.it/2e12s6

Player Name: Mason Richardson Previous Club: Oshawa Generals (OHL) Position: Defense Handedness: Left Height: 6.04 Weight: 215 lbs Age: 18 Citizenship: American Born in Riverside, California, Mason Richardson grew up in a hockey household and if the family wasn't home they were all watching Mason at the roller hockey rink. In fact Mason came from a family who has a rich professional hockey tradition that he hopes to carry on through the Victory Hockey League. Mason was born in Riverside but his family made the move to Lloydminster, Saskatchewan when he was 16 years old. When Mason was growing up in the small Californian town the ice hockey teams were such a rare group that the boys usually played roller hockey. Special leagues for the sport go all the way up to the professional level and that’s where Richardson was scouted. Mason alongside his California friend and current Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonathan Blum, were both noticed by U.S. scouts. Unfortunately, Mason was not allowed to move from the area after being scouted as his parents needed help with a family emergency. Luckily though the family was given help by a family friend and Mason was allowed to carry his hockey career to the next level. Mason was scouted by teams in the WHL and the OHL for both the leagues respected bantam/midget drafts and priority selections. Kameron got the call from the Oshawa Generals a short time after being noticed down south. Richardson would pack his bags and go to unchartered territory for him in the Canadian city. Mason was lucky enough to grow up with some guidance from someone playing at a high level. Mason’s cousin is Joe Pavelski who plays for the San Jose Sharks in the National Hockey League. Joe has continuously helped guide Mason through drills during their summer months and allow Mason to increase his strength and endurance. Various other National Hockey League stars such as Brad Stuart, Jason Zucker and Cal Clutterbuck have also helped Mason during the off-season months. Mason feels that because of this he has gained an edge when it comes to building the right stature for a professional player and someone that can do damage in the NHL or the VHL. Pavelski has taught Mason the fine points of the game such as how to dig the puck loose in the corner and getting your hands dirty in front of your own net minder. Joe prides himself on not allowing Mason to escape the facets of the game that come in handy through crunch time. Richardson was taught a lot of mental aspects that come in handy in late game situations. It somewhat makes sense as Joe Pavelski has always been known as a playoff performer. Mason learned the ways through Joe and others that nothing can ever be taken for granted whether it is in the game of hockey or out in the hallway. Mason and his cousin Joe Pavelski in California Mason got a lot of attention in Riverside that at 12 years old a roller hockey team based in the town called the Riverside Cougars asked him to join their squad in the CRHL (California Recreational Hockey League). Mason spent four seasons with the squad and became a bit of a legend in the small town because of his story. During his tenure in the Cougars system he posted the second most assists all-time by a Riverside player. Mason's story was heating up and more scouts were starting to notice his performances. When he started as a 12 year old to when he left as a 16 year old Mason saw over 14 different Canadian Junior Hockey scouts take a look at him in the small Californian town. The only issue going forward was if he could survive on skates and throw contact into his game. After fours years where he ended up with 189 points in a career 104 games with the Courgars he was selected by the Oshawa Generals in the OHL priority selection. Before leaving Riverside he was honored by the team when they placed his name on a special banner alongside many other Cougar greats. After bringing home the league championship once in his time with the Riverside based team he was going up to the big junior league to pursue his dream. Mason mother and father were happy to have a son who wanted to succeed at something that cousin Joe had had so much success with. In his first year with the Generals, Mason would see action in 34 games as a young rookie. D.J. Smith was the coach in Oshawa when Mason got there; so luckily he had one of the best up and coming coaches teaching him every facet. In those 34 games Mason showed to his team and to Oshawa management that he could play with the rest of the teenagers. His 10 assists in the first 20 games was impressive for a guy that was told at the start of the season to focus solely on positioning and stick checking. In addition to those 10 assists Mason also added his first two goals as an OHL rookie. He would have to wait until his last game of the season to record his first ever fight in the OHL. The Generals won that game 2-0 late in the third and Richardson contributed on one of the goals with an assist. It was the start of something special and something fans could look forward too on the Generals squad. Season 1 (Reg. Season): 34 GP, 2 Goals, 11 Assists, 13 Points, +3 and 40 Hits After Oshawa failed to make the OHL playoffs in his first season the Generals lost players to OHL graduation and the NHL entry draft. Thus opening the door for the young Riverside native to take control of a regular second line role down the right side. Mason would go into the season as the number four defenseman and wouldn't look back. The California kid led his team to the second spot in the OHL overall standings and slid them into a first round playoff matchup against the Erie Otters. The series will always go down as the one Mason would like to forget. In the General second game in Erie, Mason was checked from behind in the second period and would break his right arm. However, the Generals would not let their previous seasons failure get in the way as they would eliminate the Otters in seven games without Richardson. Oshawa's series clinching goal came off the stick of Vancouver Canucks draft pick Cole Cassels. The Generals would have to go on and face the Plymouth Whalers in the next round. The Whalers were a higher skilled team and were bolstered by their number one centre Rickard Rakell. Rickard as well as the rest of the Whalers were too much for the Generalss to handle and they won the series in five games. Season 2 (Reg. Season): 50 GP, 5 Goals, 24 Assists, 29 Points, +15 and 75 Hits Season 2 (Playoffs): 2 GP, 0 Goals, 0 Assists, 0 Points, +2 and 4 Hits Mason is currently in camp with the Oshawa Generals awaiting the start of the young OHL season. His selection by the Saskatoon Wild in the S39 VHLM Dispersal has helped him progress and make big strides into becoming a professional player in the VHL. Richardson's injury resume isn't very long but some scouts will question whether his arm strength is really there. Scouts love his dedication and ability to get his hands dirty without getting caught out of position. His size and smarts can create mismatches for forwards down low and he prides himself on protecting his crease. After his two seasons in Oshawa, Mason looked poised to crack the Saskatoon roster and so far has been a mainstay there. Some have said he needs more work and that it would be better for him to get that in Oshawa where he still has eligibility left, but the decision will fall on the Saskatoon management team. Mason has a great mind for the game and sees the ice like none other on the Generals roster. One issue that was brought up was his lack of strength, as at times he seems to shy away from hitting and laying the body. That simply issue can be credited to the fact in roller hockey their is no body contact and he must remain shy from opposing players. OHL Statistics: 84 Games Played, 7 Goals, 35 Assists, 42 Points, +18 and 115 Hits During his OHL career he was noticed by the National team from the United states but because of the depth in the program he had to wait out a bit to catch on. With the ability to be coached by former Rockford IceHogs Mark Osiecki, it gave him a whole new insight on how to play the game. Osiecki showed him how to get away his shot quicker and with more velocity. They would constantly go over film of Osiecki's favourite coachable player Erik Johnson. Richardson would go on to compete for the United states in two international competitions (the U18 World Championships as well as the U20 World Championships). U-18 World Championships: 5 GP, 1 Goal, 2 Assists, -2 and 7 Hits U-20 World Championships: 6 GP, 1 Goal, 3 Assists, +3 and 12 Hits Mason in his time with the U-20 United States squad Knowledge – Scouts have said that Mason really knows how to work the corners and force the puck loose off a forward's stick. The intelligence when it comes to deflections and direction of the puck off the boards is a hard thing to teach and he has a good grasp of it. His ability to read a play also comes in handy as he can spring a forward on a breakaway. Puck Handling – Mason has the ability as a defenseman to maneuver the puck in whatever way he wants. It's a skill that a player of his stature would normally have trouble with. At 6'4" his size would normally give him a disadvantage. Joe and Mason have worked on the ability to shield the puck away at certain spots on the ice. Quick Release – With Osiecki by his side he learned a new style of holding his stick and getting the shot off. On the powerplay he is used perfectly by setting up just above the faceoff circle. Richardson has a quick release that makes the puck hit the tape of the stick and off within a split second. This ability allows more chances to get the oppositions goaltender out of position. Speed – At times it appears Mason tries to take off but is slow in the acceleration process and it doesn't allow him to create room. With the puck at his stick he is strong but he needs to get open to be able to even have that chance. Bag skates and acceleration drills are recommended for this youngster to get his game complete. Penalty Kill – Mason is sort of a wasted talent on the penalty kill as his shot blocking ability is nothing to be desired about. Sacrificing his body is a rarity and when he does he doesn't plug up the proper shooting lanes. With his timid physical play it pairs for a very negative aspect in his game, one in which coaches will have to improve on with him. Attitude – Richardson's attitude when the negative areas of the game hit him is very poor. Mason needs to refocus his attitude and not get too down when things are tough. Often times when his team goes down a couple goals he seems to get down on himself and his squad. If he wants to be the ultimate professional he will need to turn the page rather quickly. Mason Richardson has the tools to become a top pairing defenseman but he needs to push himself more and adapt to the physical game. If Richardson expects to make the big dance he needs to put on some muscle and work more with his strength and conditioning coaches. It will be interesting to find out if his arm injury further decreases his value in the draft. His attitude and strength are two issues that professional coaches will need to work with him on. However, if Mason can put all the pieces together we see him turning into a very formidable player who could potentially be a cornerstone for any franchise. NHL Comparison: Shea Weber

Saskatoon had a players only meeting this past weekend to discuss their ongoing battle with the North American conference this week. The Wild players were all stoked to find out what to expect when they came into the locker room. What they saw was a chalkboard with the word "Brampton" on it. It is no secret the two teams are battling it out for the top spot in the North American conference. The main difference being that the Blades are largely inactive and the Wild have been pumping out their training sessions like nobody's business. Brampton is in a sad state of affairs for activity and although they may be skilled, their General Manager has nothing really to be proud about. His team has not shown up this season and it's sad that not more has been done. Saskatoon has now made it a mission to unseed the Blades and take their rightfully position on top of the VHLM world.

Blades of Steel: Episode 22 Link "Time for Boobs to take over" I covered questions from the Mailbag and go over a little Nostalgia #TwoGamesforBeatingAWoman Blades of Steel Game Link Note: 40+ Minutes Intro Song: Come With Me Now - The Kongos Closing Song: Words As Weapons - Seether

Blades of Steel: Episode 21 Link "Oh there you are Peter!" I covered questions from the Mailbag and go over the One-Hit Wonders #YouSaidYoudNeverGrowUpPeter Blades of Steel Game Link Note: 55+ Minutes Intro Song: Two Princes - The Spin Doctors Closing Song: Short Skirt, Long Jacket - Cake

Have you ever met a post that you tried to like, but a time to click the button the site wanted you to wait? Let me tell a story about my situation, about a post written out by #TurnerNation. The way that I saw this post was on board at the Donations centre, he had a post donating money to the site for real. I just got online relieved of the heat and sweat, I was viewing the board and look what I see. I tried to like his post so he could feel a sense of achievement for his actions. He donated twenty-five dollars to the overall funds and blah blah blah. I said why won't it allow me to like his post? The site gave me an answer that I just had never seen. Come on, i'm not even going for it. This is what I'm going to say: You got what I like, but you say my quotas filled, you say my quotas filled? Oh baby youuuu got what I like, but you say my quotas filled, you say my quotas filled. Like this post, because you need to reach your quota!

Every year players are obviously thrown into the spotlight if they are a prospect waiting to be drafted. Players who are told they will most likely be a top pick are even more under the microscope. As a player who doesn't really care about spotlight (unless he generates it himself), Mason Richardson sat down with Farhan Lalji to discuss his thoughts surrounding VHL squads. Farhan: "If we were to give the VHL franchises three tiers of interest, divide all ten teams up within their respected tiers. Imagine all 10 teams had a chance at the 1st overall and that you were the consensus number one pick." Mason: "Top tier is fairly easy to come up with for me. I'd say Helsinki is in the top tier along with Cologne and New York. The general interest around these teams comes from the direction they are headed. Their General Managers seem to be the most aware of league happenings and are usually on the ball. The middle tier is a hard one to come up with as some of these teams may be higher or lower depending on different aspects. I'd put Quebec City in the middle tier along with Davos. The middle tier is a challenge and thats why only two teams make it in. Davos doesn't excite me exactly, but they don't really turn me away. Quebec is a nice team, but very very limited resources because they had to sell the farm years ago. The bottom tier is fairly easy to predict. Most of it has to do with mismanagement of assets. Calgary, Riga and Toronto are fairly close in terms of what I expect out of them in the long run. Seattle doesn't and shouldn't attract anyone nowadays, but that's not a surprise. Vasteras, do I need to say more?." It's not that I am picky, it's just that I want to go to places that have a grasp of how to speak to people and how to manage the assets they have properly. From the history I've seen with the league, that's generally what attracts people.