Kendrick

ARCNA gonna be rockin

Are Potatoes Better With Age?
 

 
Spud made himself eligible for the Season Thirty-One Victory Hockey League Entry Draft a draft with many names that turned out to be superstars, including Kameron Taylor, Remy LeBeau and Sergey Brovalenko. Spud was eventually picked up by the Vasteras Iron Eagles with their second pick in the first round, Seventh Overall. Spud was the third defenseman picked on that day but as the Season Thirty-One draftees time winds down in the league, Spud looks to be the best defensive pick out of that draft.
 
After the draft Spud headed back to the VHLM in Season Thirty-One playing for the season for the Bern Royals.. He has an impressive offensive season finishing the season with twenty-seven goals and fifty-two assists, good enough to lead all defenseman on the team and to sit second on the Royals entire club. Spud's VHLM career and his season with the Royals would end when they were eliminated by the superior Vasteras J-20 in six games. Spud would quickly shift focus to now wreck havoc on the VHL.
 

 
Spud was very excited to start his VHL career with the Iron Eagles, hoping to prove his worth as a top draft choice. The season was sailing along with Spud hovering around the point per game mark with the club, then the Iron Eagles who were looking to upgrade their forward corps found a willing partner but they wanted the young defenseman included in the trade. Spud and Henrik Larsson were shipped off to the New York Americans, while winger Nikolai Chershenko headed back to Vasteras. Spud spent less then a season with the team that drafted him, but Spud headed to the powerhouse New York Americans with his head held high. Spud put up twenty-six points in those thirty-four games with the Americans, but majorly improved his defensive game with a plus forty-three. The Americans headed into the playoffs as underdogs against both Conference foes, but in the end it was New York hoisting the Continental Cup over their heads with convincing wins over Quebec and Calgary, before coming from behind against Riga in the finals.
 

 
After winning a championship in just his second season in the VHL, Spud was feeling good about where he was career wise, but before he knew it that high was hit with yet another trade. Spud was headed back to the European Conference along with Troy Athera to the team they just defeated in the cup finals, the Riga Reign. Spud and the Reign were playing in a fairly weak Conference in Season Thirty-Three, so they were basically handed a playoff spot behind the mighty Helsinki Titans. The team struggled to find secondary scoring and Spud himself had a down year compared to his first two. Spud would finish the season with just sixty-one points and was one of the only two players on the roster to register a minus. The team entered the playoffs six points ahead of the Dynamo, but fell into a quick hole with the Dynamo picking up three out of the four first games. Spud and the Reign roster knew they had to show up each and every game from there on in and they did that and more. The Reign would win the next three games to win the series over the Dynamo then proceed to do the exact same thing next round against the Helsinki Titans. The Americans and the Reign would face off for the second straight year in the Continental Cup finals, and again Spud found himself on the winning side of the equation.
 

 
 
For the first time in his career Spud was to begin a second season with a single VHL club in Season Thirty-Four, another weak season for many clubs playing in the European Conference. The Reign finished second in the Conference with eighty-one points, but scored just six more goals then they allowed. Individual stats reflected the six more goals scored then allowed and Spud was not excluded from that list. Spud had another down year in Riga putting up just fourteen goals and thirty-six assists, which was better than just two roster players. They Reign again headed to the playoffs where they easily disposed of the Cologne Express in four games before meeting up with the Titans again for the second straight season. There was no Cinderella magic this time for the Reign as they went the distance with the Titans but this time it was Helsinki who would move on to the cup finals. Spud played considerably better in the playoffs putting up fourteen points in eleven games. The Reign were now in full rebuild mode heading into the Season Thirty-Four off-season and Spud knew what that meant for his career once again. The Cologne Express came calling about Spud during the fire-sale that Riga has having and were told of the steep price tag for the two time Continental Cup champion. The Express finally ponied up with the offer of two mid round firsts for a return of Spud and a low first round pick. Spud was headed to Germany to start another chapter in his VHL career.
 

 
Spud found himself in a different position when he came to Cologne, as they team was just starting to see their young core develop into everyday VHL players. Spud was the undisputed number one defenseman for the first time in his career and this seemed to re-spark that old Spud the league seen in his first few seasons. Spud put up eighteen goals and fifty-one assists, while also improving his plus minus to a plus forty-eight. Spud was once again headed to the playoffs in the VHL, once again in the European Conference. The Express meet the Dynamo in the first round and Spud experience some Cologne history when they won game five against Davos and won the club's first playoff series. The Express would go on to fall in six games in the next series against Helsinki, but the play of Spud and the entire Express roster had Germany's fourth largest city excited headed into Season Thirty-Six.
 

 
 
Season Thirty-Six was a first for Spud when the Express stumbled out of the gate and fell behind Vasteras for the race for the final playoff position. The team bonded together down the stretch going winning twenty-one of their final twenty-nine games of the season to squeeze into the playoffs just three points ahead of the Iron Eagles. As always Kameron Taylor led the way for the Express, but surprisingly to many in the VHL Spud was second on the Express in scoring with eighty-nine points, while also leading the team with seventy-two assists. The Express would enter the playoffs as huge underdogs against the Titans, who were on their farewell tour and would fall in four straight games against the veteran club. Unsure of what the following season held for hockey in Cologne, Spud headed home during the off-season to hit the gym hard in hopes of helping carry the club to another playoff appearance in Season Thirty-Seven.
 

 
As we sit just past the half-way point during the thirty-seventh season in the VHL, Malcolm Spud is having yet another stellar start to his sixth VHL season leading the entire league with forty-three assists, while also leading all defenseman in points with fifty-four. If Spud continues to play this way in the second half of the VHL season their should be no doubt in anybody's mind that the young man from Burlington Ontario, Canada should win the Labatte Trophy come seasons end for the first time in his very storied career, which would come as no surprise to the people that know Spud best including current team-mate Kameron Taylor.
 
 
Quote Not my Words

Recruitment Crew Coming Back

I have officially taken over the recruitment crew after years of bitching about it to everyone who would listen. I have been waiting for someone to take it over and run with it, but it is a difficult task. Some say it is impossible to increase recruitment beyond what we are already doing. To be fair too, we are already doing a lot more than we used to do, but we can and will do more now. So let me detail what I plan for the new crew.


Recruitment Drive Every Season During Week of Trade Deadline

I like this idea initially posted by Devise that we hold an anuall recruitment drive. I have added some intrigue to the drive, in that all recruitment points will be doubled for recruitments made during the drive. Additionally, we will also be giving out a real life monetary based prize every season. My idea currently is the NHL video game or a gift card or tee shirt awarded at random to one member. Each member who recruits someone else during this time will be entered into the draw.

New Member Survey

The new member survey will be a tool we use to gain some important knowledge about the introduction to the VHL for our new members. I think we currently do a pretty piss poor job of retaining members, but I don't know why. I guess it is because this darn place is too overwhelming when you first join. So after a week each new member will be sent this survey and if they will it out, they will be entitled to 5 uncapped TPE as an award for the feedback.

Draft Rankings

A few members had the idea to start doing entry draft rankings weekly again like Kendrick used to do. I really thought this was valuable addition for new members as they got some much needed spotlight for their players. Mike will be tasked with doing this exciting new series each week, complete with an official draft board ranking. I think this will be a welcome addition to the league.

Other Ideas

I am going to be running a fairly large crew because I still believe recruiting is a task of all of us here. I plan on hiring two explorers who will work off member ideas in the brainstorming thread to explore new recruiting tools for the league. This job will provide a lot of variety and excitement, so look out for that posting soon. I have also started giving TPE away to each member who uses our sig on another forum. Look in the recruitment section under creat a player for more details.

Continued Brainstorming

The first goal of this crew will be recruiting new members. The second will be retaining those members. The third will be continued innovation and brainstorming. A lot of our members have great ideas for the league. A lot of new members also have great ideas. Listening to people about what we can improve and make easier will be key. We brainstorm regularly on the crew and you are welcome to do so too.
At this point, I would like to note that I typed this media spot out on my phone entirely and my phone is a big piece of turd. I would like to hear some of your ideas, comments, hate and questions about the recruitment crew and what this is all about. This is something I have been pushing for for a long time and now I have decided to take it on to try to get a spark lit for our great league because the true lifeblood of this place are the new members who come in and blast us all away. Every idea will be appreciated.

Thanks for your time!

Connor Low, though.

And there's talk of Low winning the Labatte!
 
Seriously though, both Collier and I are going to have a great shot at winning our respective awards.

In honour of your overlord's (that's me) birthday, everyone who likes this post gets 1 TPE.
#teepz #lovevictator #tpeinflation
 
Edit: for anyone still here, check the date. This is a decade old and is no longer valid, please don’t try.

wtf

Toronto, 24 march 2014.
 
Remy LeBeau called out a press conference today and due to being late in his career many had expected this to be the announcement of his retirement. When he came to the microphone he had the following to say.
 
 
 
Quite an announcement of Remy LeBeau who with this announcement is stepping in the footsteps of Ethan Osborne who is retiring to be there for his family after this season. A true baby boom in the VHL is upcoming?

lolololol

HELSINKI TITANS PLAYER CARD SERIES


 
1.1 - Kimmo Salo - Goaltender
1.2 - Dexter Morgan - Winger
1.3
1.4
1.5
 
The Helsinki Titans have been struggling as expected. In order to generate some hope with fans they've announced that they will be revealing a new series of collectible cards. They will feature Helsinki Titans players and prospects. It is said that fans who collect this entire series will get major discounts in future years when the Titans make playoffs. Some fans consider this a good investment, as there are early signs that this rebuild is well on its way.
 
 
 

Hi.

Kendrick is a god among mortals, in case anyone was ever in doubt of that.

I'll be sure to have Katy perry make an appearance in the next one...

And apparently I have my facts wrong

I was roaming through the HFBoards looking to get back into a league, and luckily stumbled across the VHL link. It had to be fate. 

Being elder is figurative, you could be older than anyone here for all I know. More importantly though it's just to point out that Jardy and company have been here for longer and unlike you who are relatively new here, have put in countless if not hundreds of hours into the league.

It's not the job of other people to decipher your vocabulary usage and guess what you mean. You are the new one here, it's your job to give us a good understanding of you. Just like any workplace, the company doesn't adapt for the first new employee, the new employee adapts to the organization.

I'm not trying to beat you or win against you. It's not something I'm keeping score of. I think you have valid points and reasoning, I'm just asking you in a nice way to consider how you are communicating to people that have put in a lot oftime and effort into this league. If flipped around and you are the admin, wouldn't you expect the same from a new guy coming in here?

Sterling: Man Zimmer sometimes drove me over the years edge lol. Anderson was always pretty respectful to me I thought, when he wasn't trying something underhanded heh.

Cologne Welcomes Season 37 Draftees
 
The recent VHL Entry Draft saw the Cologne Express select a flurry of players. With two picks in the first round, four in the second and three in the third, the teams was able to welcome a total of nine draftees to the organisation. All these players will spend another year in the VHLM before they are planned to enter the VHL next season. After already looking at some of the draftees last week (http://vhlsim.invisionzone.com/index.php?/topic/6128-cologne-welcomes-season-37-draftees-part-i/), we will now continue with part two of our article presenting you the newest members of the Express organisation...
 
Ron World Peace
Defense – Bern Royals – 12th Overall – 6’8/250 lbs / 72 GP – 20 G + 54 A = 74 P – -7 – 154 PIM – 197 HIT – 138 SB


 
The Express fans have seen their fare share of hometown heroes over the past few years: Klaus Müller was a great player for them late in his career, David Collier grew up just about 200km from Cologne and Kameron Taylor, despite being Canadian, is probably more German than many of the people actually born here. But none of them have more of a local factor than Ron World Peace, who was born in the very city he hopes to start his VHL-career in and is also the first German the Express have actually drafted themselves. The towering all-around defenseman was one of the most impressive players in the VHLM last season, but some work ethic concerns and rumors about a possible retirement lead to him dropping in the draft, until the Express picked him up at 12th Overall. World Peace has described himself as a more of an offensive defenseman, but given his physical tools he has the potential to be a very effective player in his own end as well. He has shown some great progresss so far in the weeks following the draft, if World Peace continues developing at that pace we will probably see him in the VHL next season.

Kai Randal
Left Wing – Bratislava Watchmen – 16th Overall – 6’4/201 lbs / 72 GP – 9 G + 28 A = 37 P – +48 – 34 PIM – 89 HIT – 4 SB
 


The Express staff couldn’t hide their smiles when they entered the stage for their third pick in the second round, the 16th Overall selection. GM Alexander Schneider as well as his scouts couldn’t believe that highly talented winger Kai Randal was still on the board so they picked him up without any hesitation. One of the most highly touted prospects early in the season, Randal had dropped a bit in the rankings over the course of the year but was still seen as a early second rounder, borderline first round talent by pretty much every scout. He didn’t get as much ice time as many of his peers, playing on a very deep Bratislava Watchmen squad, but was still able to show his qualities as a two-way player and as a playmaker. Randal has had some consistency issues in his young career, but in his short time in Cologne the coaching staff did have nothing but praise for his work ethic and his leadership qualities. There is still a long road ahead of the left-winger, but with the way he has looked lately Randal is a legitimate first-line caliber talent that will get all the time he needs to develop in the Express organization.

Kez Kincaid
Center – Bratislava Watchmen – 20th Overall – 6’1/215 lbs / 38 GP – 2 G + 1 A = 3 P – +18 – 14 PIM – 48 HIT – 3 SB
 


Kez Kincaid didn’t have a very impressive first year in the VHLM, but the Express scouts still saw some VHL-potential in him so they picked him up with the last pick in the second round. Only playing limited minutes on a stacked Bratislava Watchmen team undoubtedly hurt Kincaid’s scoring numbers, but he settled into his bottom-six role nicely and put in an honest defensive and physical effort whenever he was sent on the ice. The young Irishman projects to be more of an offensive player though and he has already shown what he can do when given more ice-time, after only 3 points in 36 games last year he has almost tripled that output already this season, putting up 8 points in his first 10 games for the Turku Outlaws. Kincaid has shown some nice work-ethic this off-season and even though he is probably a few more seasons away from VHL-duty, he still has top-six potential and the Express are very happy to have picked up a player like him that late.

Rick Ross
Left Wing – Yukon Rush – 22nd Overall – 6’8/250 lbs / 10 GP – 1 G + 1 A = 2 P – -1 – 13 PIM – 12 HIT – 3 SB
 


Right now it looks like Rick Ross will a very hard time ever making it to the VHL. After only having 2 points in 10 appearances last season he has yet to suit up for a game this season and hasn’t shown up for training camp either. He still might be able to turn it around and find his niche as a physically imposing winger, but right now the chances for that look slim.

Kristian Stormborn
Left Wing – Bern Royals – 25th Overall – 5’7/179 lbs / 72 GP – 10 G + 13 A = 23 P – +18 – 38 PIM – 96 HIT – 8 SB
 


Can Kristian Stormborn be the biggest steal of this VHL Entry Draft? Many scouts seem to think so. When he was drafted by the Cologne Express in the middle of the third round, 25th Overall, nobody seemed to have any expectations for the pick, but Stormborn has since turned it up and left many people impressed. At training camp the 5’7 small Norwegian showed up in surprisingly good shape and he has put in a lot of work since being drafted. Stormborn projects to be a pure offensive forward at the VHL level and even though he is still a few seasons away from being an impact player in the big leagues, he has the tools and the work ethic necessary to make it in the VHL. The Express will certainly be patient with him and give him all the time he needs, as they are just happy to have found a player with a realistic chance to make the VHL one day that late in the draft.

Maxwell Dorian
Left Wing – Yukon Rush – 26th Overall – 6’2/220 lbs / 6 GP – 1 G + 3 A = 4 P – +6 – 0 PIM – 2 HIT – 0 SB
 


Maxwell Dorian has only played 6 games last season but in those 6 games he had 4 points and was a +6. Enough of a sample-size for the Cologne Express to pick him up with their last pick in the draft, the 26th Overall, but right now Dorian is a longshot to ever make it to the big leagues. He hasn’t shown up for training camp so far and has to secure his spot on an VHLM-team first before we should even start to speculate about a VHL future for him.
 
[if you find any mistakes please let me know so I can correct them, didn't have a chance to get a proofread so far]

I don't really see what this changes though. I can still acquire a bunch of draft picks in one draft and just release everyone on my team who's inactive. Teams like Turku (and Yukon to some extent) that have 3 full lines of players are the exception, not the rule. Going back to S32, no team that won the Founder's Cup had more than 2 sets of forward lines and defense filled with players of worth. Some teams may have had semi-active waiver players at best or low TPE inactives filling out the 3rd or 4th line, but taking these players off of the Super Teams and moving them to any other team does nothing to change the balance of power in the VHLM.
 
I know you said you hated the rule Jason, but if we really want to promote parity in the VHLM, then I really think you have limit the number of picks (specifically 1st rounders) that a team can have in any given season.
 
S36: Bratislava (4)
S35: Ottawa (4)
S34: Yukon (3)
S33: Bratislava (5) Also worth noting that Kolari had 3 1st rounders in this draft.
S32: Oslo (4) Also worth noting that Ottawa had 6 1st rounders in this draft.
 
These were the Founder's Cup winning teams in each season. The number in parentheses is how many 1st round picks they had in that season. The only team that won that wasn't at least tied for most picks in the first round was Oslo in S32. Coincidentally, the team they beat was Ottawa.
 
Because of the nature of the VHLM where the best recreates spend one full season in the minors at most and most first-gen players spend two, you're going to have a ton of turnover each season. If we really want parity in the minors, I think we have to go back to limiting first rounders in a single draft to at least 3, although I would suggest 2. This way, if a team really wanted to stand out, they'd have to focus on keeping their 2nd and 3rd round picks active, which is something that has historically been hit or miss depending on the strength of the draft.

Games are uploaded, but I have to run to hockey right now.  If someone wants to post them, feel free.  Otherwise I'll do so when I get back in a couple hours.

“It is not always about the goals, I mean you need to score to win, but you also have to be able to prevent the other guys from doing the same. Who cares if you score six if they score seven? You still lose the game. This is what I don't understand when I talk to my peers these days. It's always go, go, go, or score, score, score. There is little development time spend working below your own blue line.” - Lars Strummer

Recently at a scrum during training camp in Koln, Germany, Lars Strummer went on a rant about the amount of one dimensional forwards that seemingly come out and try to make the “big time”. For a player like Lars, playing in his own zone and being able to get the puck away from the opposition is a vital part of his game.
 
Looking across the league, very few forwards have ISA (International Scouting Agency) ratings above 40. A quick look around their ratings page shows Yukon forwards, Konstantin Azhishchenkov (50) and Lars Strummer (69) as well as Oslo player, Johan Hallstrom (55) are the only real noteworthy prospects that have shown any ability to play on the defensive side of things. Also a quick look at ISA ratings show Strummer (60) and Azhishchenkov (67) as being the only forwards that have spend time working on their face off abilities.
 
So why is defensive presence largely ignored? Well the answer have multiple answers that considered both independently and as a sum can be considered accurate. The easy answers are simply two-fold. First off, VHL coaches and general managers don't emphasize playing in their own end. The VHL is a league of scoring, where the only (or easiest) way of checking on a players progression is looking at the score sheet. Which leads to the second obvious answer. Scoring is sexy and easily measurable. What do people want to talk about? The guy that is sitting at 70% in the face off circle? Or the one that scores at a point per game pace? I know where most people sit on this topic, so don't lie to yourself. The vast majority of you guys look at points and emphasis that more then other items in judging a players success or lack there of (see: VHL HOF).
 
With this in mind, the question can become, is it worth spending time to create a forward that isn't a black hole when playing defence? In short, probably yes, however to a point. Being able to strictly defend will not get you anywhere in a league where metrics and bonuses are measured by point production. Look at the bonus structure in the VHLM, it favours the guys that can score more. So a strategic build with emphasis on all areas is really what the goal should become so the player can not only set up and finish plays, but can also start and create them.
 
In the end, when a forward has spend many hours perfecting their craft, the hundred foot game comes naturally. After all everyone has ceilings and when that apparatus is reached, focus must be shifted to another area. So in the end, perhaps this entire defensive awareness topic becomes a moot point? Or perhaps it does not? I have seen enough builds and going back a few years did a few myself to know what happens. It seems that more often then not, defensive styles will wash out for a more sexy style. Very few agents have been able to represent a defensive forward in the VHL. Perhaps this is a trend that can be broken in the future? Maybe, maybe not. However it would sure be interesting to see someone try.

I can tell from your handwriting that you prefer to share your bed with the company of men instead of women.

also always LOVED this one:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a2VSDTmJ_0

I just love some Marvin Gaye so I have to share him with the world

Which GM do you fire for the member that is new and waiting for a team. I just think the first 72 hours are the make or break for new members and we do a really piss poor job of helping new people out. Moreover, its a real mess to jump into fresh. It seems really overwhelming for sure.

I'm a part of the Rookie Mentor Committee in the SHL and I know I've been assigned to a couple of new members and have received positive responses from the few I've spoken to. I know the sample size is not very big since I'm one of many, but I have helped some new guys get used to doing things over there. 
 
I've been around on here for a 6-7 seasons and I still don't have the hang of things around here. I know I usually ask a bunch of questions to people I am closer to in the chat, but if this would have been around when I joined, I know I probably would have had a better time adjusting to the league. I'm saying this as someone who was part of the SHL for a while before coming over. Most new recruits don't know the concept of player sim leagues and could use the help.
 
That's just my 2 cents though.