Peace

Tied again! What a show of home dominance this best of seven.

Yes. We did.

TORONTO, ONTARIO -- Whoa! Quite frankly I don't think anyone thought the Toronto Legion would be tied with the Calgary Wranglers four games into the playoffs. In fact I think most of the league thought this series would have been over now, or at the very least a 3-1 CGY lead... but here we are. In quality italic words the series blatantly reads: Series tied 2-2. "Toronto scares me more than Vancouver," a Calgary player was quoted saying before the off-season began -- which was also said during Toronto's unfortunate eleven game tumble off a rocky cliff. I guess he was justified. Toronto went 3-5-1 against the Victory Cup champions this season, so the Legion have displayed that they're a competitive team to go up against, and the teams star players [or what would be considered the teams best] have shown up for the series. Chad Magnum has five points in four games: three goals and two assists, including a game tying goal. Teemu Lethinen Jr also has five points in four games: a goal and four assists. Fredrik Elmebeck has five points as well, sharing the same stats as his teammate mentioned above (1G-4A), while also scoring the game four game winner. Anthony Matthews has potted three goals in four games, tied with just two other Legion players. Dissanayake and L. Gutzwiler both have four points from the blue line. Scoringsonn has lived up to his name, potting three goals himself, including a game winner. Jaxx Hextall has been solid when he needed to be, battling hard through adversity to get his team tied against Calgary. Erik Killinger has been a physical presence on the blue line. He's registered 23 hits in just four games, tied for second in the post-season. Kristopher McDagg may be hoping for more production, but his disciplined defensive play is helping the team achieve victories. Let's see if the Legion can take a 3-2 series lead.

While there are so many great things to write about the current 2-2 series between TOR and CGY... I'm just going to put in my second claim.

And that is now Plenty of Fish / another dating service’s new slogan for their female registered users. Y’all know it’s the sad truth.

CLINCHED! Over Calgary too! We don't win this game, Vancouver takes the last spot. Fuck yeah, Legion!

Alright time for some new PCs. 1. So those last eleven games before the victory... what do you think went wrong? 2. Would you say it was poetic we won against the team chasing us to end the free fall? 3. Do you think we remain in a playoff position with our lead over Vancouver just a single point now? 4. How disappointed are you in TOR G? 2-8-0 in his ten games he gets credit for... 5. Do you think we go on a winning streak now after gaining some confidence against Vancouver? 6. If we make the playoffs (we will!) how do you think Toronto fares against Calgary? @Anthony Matthews @11 Eleven @Corco @Laflamme @Viperxhawks19 @Sixersfan549 @ng1291 @DaftRaincloud @Gwdjohnson @nethi99 @ROOKIE745 @Kachur @goldenglutes @NyQuil @joeg @JDGraves @LastOneUp @ngine4

Seixteen minutes have passed in the first period, and the Toronto Legion are dominantly established in the attacking zone. It feels good, the pressure is mounting and the Wolves are getting frustrated with surprisingly sloppy defensive play. Chad Magnum takes a shot -- the puck sails wide of his mark -- careening behind Spyro and back up the boards to Kristopher McDagg. He lets a shot loose, and the puck screams wide with a thud! on the end boards. It rolls all the way back to the blue line, and Erik Killinger wrists one towards the net. He misses, just like the two Legion players before him, but the defencemen collects his own mistake before making a quick pass to Anthony Matthews. Penalty is drawn on the play. Manzer is gone for two after boarding the unsuspecting Legion player. Toronto's Teemu Lethinen Jr wins the face off and cycles on the offensive zone, but a pass is intercepted and sent back into the Legion territory. They collect it, press the attack, but the Wolves stand firm and intercept another pass -- they fire it back into the Legions' zone, and now they're forced to retrieve the puck. Thirty seconds have elapsed on what appears to be just another pathetic excuse for Toronto's power play of recent. But they break in. Kristopher McDagg takes a shot... rebound! Erik Killinger pinches in from the point with a slap shot, but Spyro makes the save and covers up. Anthony Matthews wins the face off back to Fredrik Elmebeck, who sends it over to McDagg. The Legion cycle the puck between players, looking for the best opportunity to get on the board, and a pass to Erik Killinger is one-timed from the point. Saved with no rebound, and the Wolves take the steam out of the attack by clearing it back into Toronto's zone two more times before their next attack, where Teemu Lethinen Jr sends a shot on net that is covered up by Spyro. Toronto wins the face off, but the Wolves take control and get it out into neutral ice. Toronto mounts a steady defense, but eventually the play ends with Spyro covering the puck. Magnum wins the face off after Matthews is ejected from the dot, the puck collected by Killinger, then quickly over to Elmebeck. He sees Magnum setting up on the wing -- slap passes the puck over to the open skater -- and it's all over now. Magnum snaps a pass to an open Kristopher McDagg and he easily deposits the puck into the back of the net. It's now a 1-0 Toronto lead from a power play goal, and boy does it feel good. Matthews wins the face off, a few plays are made by both teams, but Toronto is once again on the attack. Shot! SCORES! 2-0 Legion -- Matthews gives his team a two goal lead less than half a minute after the power play goal. This would be all they needed to carry the momentum into the second period. Shaposhnikov scored his ninth goal of the season, putting his club up 3-0, while early in the third period Erik Killinger would score on another power play to ensure a 4-2 win over the Vancouver Wolves. The cord was pulled. The streak is over. It took eleven games to get a victory, and the Legion know this cannot happen again.

Toronto picking thirteenth. I like the confidence but common, 0-9-1. ?

TORONTO, ONTARIO -- A nightmare would be too timid to explain the horrors the Toronto Legion are experiencing, and that's putting it relatively politely, as the Legion fell to 0-9-1 after their most recent defeat against the top team in the conference. The situation is pretty bleak, but there is still hope within the Legions' unusually silent locker room. It's only a small glimmer, but being one point up over the Vancouver Wolves gives them an opportunity to correct themselves and recover from this inane free fall. Someone has to pull the cord -- be the hero the club desperately needs. Whether it's a Hextall, a Magnum, a Lethinen Jr, a McDagg, Killinger -- the list goes on. For now though let's look at a recap of these ten losses. HSK 2, TOR 1; 0-1-0 Toronto was competitive this game, but it honestly boiled down to a goalie battle between Hextall and Johnson. Both goaltenders performed superbly, so the only true negative for both clubs would be the undisciplined play. Once again -- despite warnings from his general manager -- Erik Killinger finds himself in the box with three minor penalties for six total PIMs and that is completely unacceptable for a team just entering what they were hoping was a small slide. McDagg scored the lone Toronto goal, also the first goal of the game, assisted by Erik Killinger and Fredrik Elmebeck. PRA 7, TOR 5; 0-2-0 Perhaps the Toronto Legion have warn out Jaxx Hextall -- it should have been expected after he carried the team to a flying start earlier this season. Unfortunately for the young promising goaltender, the Toronto Legions crash back into an unkind reality has hurt him the most. Beyond the disappointment irradiating from the entire Legion roster at the conclusion of this game, it was an offensive display and fans certainly got their money worth even if their favorite team didn't win. Down 3-0 in the first period, Toronto stormed back to tie the game 3-3 in just over four minutes from goals by Teemu Lehtinen Jr, Gabriel Gutzwiler and Chad Magnum. Unfortunately for the surging Legion, the Phantoms would score twice in less than ten seconds to end the first period up 5-3. They proceeded to pull ahead 7-3 early in the second, before goals from Kristopher McDagg and Anthony Matthew made it 7-5. TOR G relieved Hextall in the first period. NYA 5, TOR 2; 0-3-0 What seemed like a great hockey game until 3:16 in the third period, the Toronto Legion remained fairly competitive against the team just ahead of them in the conference. Both teams had similar shot totals, effective penalty kill, but the Legions' defensive efforts were simply overwhelmed by the third period. Hextall recovered from his rough night against Prague, he was amazing at certain points in this hockey game, but with an overwhelmed Legion defense being cycled by an aggressive New York team it was just too much. Bjorn Scoringsonn and Kristopher McDagg scored the two goals for Toronto, putting them up 1-0 in the first period and tying the game 2-2 near the quarter mark of the second frame. DCD 5, TOR 4; 0-4-0 Had the Legion started Hextall from the start, you could reasonably argue this would have been a 4-0 victory for the Toronto Legion instead. TOR G -- the Legions' often venerable backup goaltender -- simply let the team down after letting in a trio of weak shots by the Dragons. While it is true they were pressing hard, most of the shots against the Legion were either straight misses, deflections on net from outside scoring zones, or a redirection from fortuitous bounces off the back boards. The Legion drew within one after battling back from that 3-0 deficit when Bjorn Scoringsonn and Teemu Lehtinen Jr scored roughly a minute apart to bring them within striking distance of tying the game. Unfortunately TOR G would let another in, so the Legion were chasing to start the second period. Kristopher McDagg would draw them back within one, but the Dragons would score again, resulting in TOR G being yanked from his start. McDagg would score another, but Toronto would never tie the game. MAL 5, TOR 2; 0-5-0 Hextall wasn't the issue in this game, and that's without a doubt in my mind, apparently the Legion came across a hot backup goaltender too... what was the issue was the Legions' inability to solve a backup goaltender while going oh-for-three on the power play. It should be noted here that Toronto still had a healthy point lead over the Vancouver Wolves at this point in the slide, but that lead -- as you now know -- would quickly disappear under the Wolves individual victories during the still ongoing collapse of the Toronto Legion. Gabriel Gutzwiler and Anthony Matthews would both score for the Toronto Legion in the second period, but they trailed 2-1 and 3-2 at those points, and never truly regained composure after a 2-0 deficit after the first twenty minutes. MOS 3, TOR 0; 0-6-0 In all fairness this was a solid game from Moscow. TOR G played fantastic... surprisingly... and limited the Toronto Legion from building any offensive pressure. There's really nothing more to say CGabout this game, the Legion didn't play terribly, it was just a solid offensive and defensive effort from the Menace. SEA 3, TOR 2 (SO); 0-6-1 How fitting would it have been for Toronto to end their slide against Seattle? It would have been monumental I reckon, considering the bleeding was just getting worse and the Wolves were creeping up on their playoff position. The game itself though was neck and neck, hence why it needed a skills competition to solve it, where Seattle's Rayz Funk denied all three Legion shooters in the shootout to secure the win for his club. Bjorn Scoringsonn and Anthony Matthews -- two names we're seeing quite frequently on this partial breakdown -- scored to tie and take a 2-1 lead in the second period. NYA 2, TOR 1; 0-7-1 Honestly this is where Toronto should have come up with a victory, but a remarkable performance from Guy made it difficult for the Legion to secure any goals. Erik Killinger would score in the third period (eventually) but it just wasn't enough, despite Matthews, Scoringsonn and Magnum all recording plenty of shots and creating numerous scoring opportunities. This is the game where a beacon of light exists in what is surely near perpetual darkness. Hextall played fantastic, too, and denied every NYA opportunity in the second and third periods where his play strengthened Toronto's attempt at tying the game. DAV 6, TOR 5; 0-8-1 If you extrapolated that this game was a back and forth affair based on the score... well you'd be correct. Both clubs exchanged leads, ties, runs and more. Toronto tossed nearly fifty pucks on net, and were honestly rewarded fairly often. Leon Gutzwiler scored the first goal of the game to bring the Legion ahead 1-0, while Fredrik Elmebeck would tie it up 2-2 about six and a half minutes into the second period. Gabriel Gutzwiler and Anthony Matthews would score back to back to bring the Legion back into the hockey game 5-4, and Erik Killinger would score early in the third to keep them within one with a 6-5 DAV lead. Unfortunately that's all she wrote, and the Dynamo skated off with a W. CGY 5, TOR 1; 0-9-1 Another game where you have to consider starting Hextall over TOR G could have netted better results, but the truth is we'll never actually know, even if we could replay the game in its entirety. The variables would never match again, but TOR G couldn't keep it together and was yanked at the tail end of the third period. Toronto's offense, however, was creating opportunities but ran into determined Lafontaine who denied 31 of 32 shots against him. So now we are here. Toronto leads Vancouver with a single point. New lines have been submitted and the team is eager to get back on the right track. We hope they do.

I can hear the sudden sharpening of pitchforks and the soft crackling flames in the distance.

What in the actual fuck is this?

You're denied.

TORONTO, ONTARIO -- Externally it might seem like an easy decision for the Ontario hockey team, but the Toronto Legion are still privately discussing who to protect from expansion while they still have the opportunity to discuss it. All options are being explored, and all avenues being exhausted, but it's important for the team to be smart about their protection list. They're in the playoff bubble, but their roster isn't quite strong enough to be considered defenders. Vladimir Shaposhnikov's recent contract extension might reveal one member who was protected by the team, or perhaps there is alternative motivations behind the single season extension for the steadily developing depth forward. "Personally this expansion draft is an entirely new experience," GM Rylan Peace admitted. "In the VHLM we never really had prospects we had to protect, since the minors was fairly turbulent on the rosters. You generally protected your top players, so that much has remained the same, but there weren't really any 'prospects' to really protect. It kinda went against the whole reason of the VHLM -- you were there to promote activity and growth into the big leagues." The Toronto Legion released the names of three players that they've confirmed to be protected from the expansion draft, but there should be absolutely no surprise these individuals were protected from expansion, they're the core of the surprisingly competitive S72 Toronto Legion that find themselves within a playoff position: Chad Magnum, Jaxx Hextall and Erik Killinger have all been secured by the team and -- as we've already implied in this paragraph already -- that's not surprising at all. Chad Magnum is judged to be the teams top forward by numerous VHL talent analysts, and is currently enjoying a career season with 47 points in 52 games. His twenty three goals are second on the club, while his twenty four assists tie him for fourth on the Legions team scoring. He is on pace to finish with sixty five points -- a twenty point improvement over his sophomore season -- and he's a far more dangerous player than ever before. Jaxx 'Stud' Hextall has earned his nickname, occasionally reinforced by fans of the Toronto Legion, and is arguably the most important piece of the Legions success this season. The young goaltender has improved greatly over his rookie season, improving in all major categories and the season isn't over yet. His .920 save percentage is better, his 2.74 GAA is better, and he's on pace to finish over thirty VHL victories. He should absolutely be in individual award categories, and if there was an award for biggest backpack, Hextall would firmly win that award. Erik Killinger is the teams top defender despite swapping over to the position in the off season, and we'll be the first to admit it's a rewarding experience to witness the product of his hard work -- and aside from his glaring discipline issues -- a refreshing can-do attitude that puts the team first over his own success. Killinger's taken a goal hit, that's for sure, being cut from twenty eight in his rookie season to just nine so far in his first as a defender. Point wise, however, he -- like other members of the Legion -- is set to end the season on a career note.

TORONTO, ONTARIO -- Legion defensemen Erik Killinger has doubled his penalty minutes after moving to defense for the Toronto Legion, which wouldn't surprise anyone considering he's developed an irritatingly more aggressive play style after a relatively disciplined rookie season; Killinger sits fifth in the league among defenders in hits, and remains in that position when we look at penalty minutes by defenders with more than twenty six games as well. His aggressive nature also has him heated, perhaps a reason he's been released before a game to go fishing, but most recently -- during a 6-4 loss to Seattle -- the sophomore VHL'er told a referee to kindly go away and shove a boot up where the sun doesn't shine. He received five separate minor penalties. "It's frustrating," Killinger commented. "I feel like every time I lift a stick, they're saying I slashed the dude, or when buddy takes a dive they call me for tripping." GM Rylan Peace was seen screaming from the press boxes in Seattle, apparently telling his top defender to stay out of the box. Relations between Killinger and Legion GM Peace have stabilized, so we've been told, however we believe there is tension between the two -- nothing impacting the teams performance on the ice, but the two of them seem to be at each others throats within the confines of a closed door. GM Peace wants him to take less penalties and smarted up, and we've seen a touch of effort to watch where his stick is going since the earlier loss. Time will tell.

Shaka makes fancier press conferences. I'm lazy, but here they are! 1. Toronto is currently sitting in the final playoff spot. Vancouver trails behind the Legion -- and even after selling most of their core -- they still have a decent lineup. Do you think Toronto will remain in a playoff position, or do you think there is a slight chance of Vancouver catching them with twenty games left? 2. TOR G still needs to start four more games for the Legion -- how do you think that'll impact the position we're in? 3. Toronto sits seven out of twelve in offense, and despite a negative goal differential, we still have more wins than losses. What do you think has contributed in this somewhat intriguing stat? 4. In a similar light, Toronto's forward-to-defense core sits sixth best in the league in goals against. What are your thoughts on that? 5. Jaxx Hextall is keeping up with his competition despite facing nearly two hundred more shots than some of the leading goalies. He's been a key piece in Toronto's current successes, so do you think he has a shot at winning an individual award? 6. GM Rylan Peace didn't make any moves at the trade deadline, and it was actually extremely quiet. Did you expect that, or did you expect more splashes? @Anthony Matthews @11 Eleven @Corco @Laflamme @Viperxhawks19 @Sixersfan549 @ng1291 @DaftRaincloud @Gwdjohnson @nethi99 @ROOKIE745 @Kachur @goldenglutes @NyQuil @joeg @JDGraves @LastOneUp @ngine4

Venus Thightrap, eh? Nine months later... ?

Dedicated to the entire Toronto Legion team. I'm proud of you guys, this team has been underrated for so long and yet we're maintaining a post-season berth. To those who I know well, and to those I know little -- thank you.

I'll join this. Good on you, @Advantage! Here are some things about me: - I currently weigh 320 pounds on the bathroom scale. - I drink about four to five litres of water every day. - I have not been avoiding unhealthy sugars like pop, candy, and what not -- that changes now. - Diet is sporadic, honestly. I won't eat for a day and a half, but then I'll overeat whenever I do have a meal. - Started exercising (pictures below) by doing things I enjoy more. - My father is helping me stay motivated by providing fishing lessons and rides, he is a pro fly fisherman so hey! - I recently gained a size of both shirt and underwear, which was both embarrassing and uncomfortable when I was making the purchase. Out of those things I would say what absolutely needs to happen is restricting the amount of sugar I intake and correcting my eating habits. Instead of going a day and a half and then gorging out on a meal, or alternatively over eating an entire day because god damn it was good food should be replaced with structured meals with healthier foods and proportions. I do have one thing going for me though, and that's my father willing to help me develop some stamina again so I can walk more than half a block before being winded, gasping for air and sucking down an eighth of my inhaler. So in comes fishing. We start in the morning, and we go until the sun sets, and we're walking everywhere at the locations we're in. I don't have a fit bit or anything, but my phone estimates I burn just over a thousand calories a day because of my weight and how many steps I am taking while out fishing. My targeted goal is to get back to what I was in high school: 180. So fish on!

1. Honestly -- with Vancouver selling and DCD fishing at the bottom of the NA Conference -- I think Toronto looks like they could make the playoffs this season. I have no idea why the Dragons are so low in the standings, they've got a competitive roster, but I'm not sure a resurgence would enable them to kick Toronto out at this point in the season. 2. Hard work and some decent lines for STHS I suppose. 3. Oh absolutely. We're 2-4 against Seattle, and 2-2 against Calgary, so we might be able to steal a few games in the playoffs. I'm not sure about winning them just yet though. 4. Magnum has been awesome, but he's only one piece of the puzzle that is the S72 Toronto Legion. Honestly, the entire team is performing superbly, and Magnum is obviously a big part of that as Toronto's highest TPA forward. 5. I don't think so, no, I think that the general improvement of the team made the difference. Our moves in free agency and trades brought us some valuable players, and our core keeps developing into players that are more competitive against the league. 6. Simply put? We wouldn't be here if it weren't for Hextall's fantastic performance.

Hey Killinger. Can you stay out of the fucking penalty box, please!

I'll take Moana over Lilo and Stitch or Frozen (both one and two), honestly. I can't strand the songs from those movies anymore.