TacticalHammer

VHL Top 25 Players
 
Part 1: 25-21
 
The Season 71 draft class has found their new homes, as have the free agents. We've had some trades, said goodbye to some legends, and recently immortalized two more. That can only mean one thing: a new season of the Victory Hockey League is just around the corner! Naturally, with a new season on the horizon, it is time once again for VSN's VHL Top 25!
 
This season, VSN top dog @FrostBeard, writers @Doomsday, @Erik Summers, and @McWolf, along with multimedia specialists @Berocka and @Esso2264, put their heads together to determine just who the Top 25 VHL players are going into Season 71. They are joined by @Mr_Hatter, VSN's VHLM aficionado, for the write-ups. For our first installment, covering #25 to #21, you'll be reading about some tough defensemen and forwards, along with a goaltender who may only be scratching the surface of his potential. 
 
25. Jerry Garcia, D
 
Starting off our list we have one of the top defensive defensemen in the league, Malmo’s Jerry Garcia. Garcia has been somewhat of a mystery in the VHL. Currently, he sits at fourth in the TPA charts for defensemen, third in TPE, but he has thus far struggled to break out onto the forefront of VHL stardom. His highest point total in a season remains at 60 from his S68 season in which Malmo made the finals, in part thanks to having Matt Thompson on the end of his passes. Hopefully, with the addition of winger Acyd Burn in the offseason, Garcia will once again shine as his playmaking can really control the tempo of the game. He just needs a team around him which can support that, something I think Malmo has built for this season.  While struggling to find points has been somewhat of an issue for him (he has still reached 40 points in all but his rookie season), his defensive contributions have been unquestionable. His shots blocked totals over the past five seasons consistently rank him in the upper echelon of defensemen, and he isn’t afraid to get physical, reaching a career-high 236 hits this past season. Keep an eye out for Garcia to make his mark on the VHL in S71 and propel Malmo to fight for the top spot in the European Conference. 
- Mr_Hatter

 
 
24. Roll Fizzlebeef, C
 
With 66 points last season, Roll Fizzlebeef came one short of beating the record for most points in a season by a Prague Phantoms skater, a record set in their inaugural season by Zeno Miniti. His 29 goals also rank him second in the three-year history of the most recent expansion team. He failed to reach the 30-goal mark, which he did the two previous seasons while playing for the Calgary Wranglers, but we won’t hold it against him, because he only missed by a single goal. One other area where the Canadian centre has always shined is the hits column, evidenced by the fact he levelled opponents 214 times last season, making it the 2nd time he broke 200 hits in his career. Now, with his team fresh off their first-ever playoff berth, Fizzlebeef is looking forward to establishing on-ice connections with offseason acquisitions Thomas Landry II and Joel Ylonen, as he enters the penultimate season of his career as, once again, the star of the Phantoms. As the supporting cast around him solidifies, we expect Fizzlebeef to take a step up as well. 
- McWolf


 
23. Berocka Sundqvist, D

It would be hard to overlook a player who has been playing amazing after switching his position from being a tough grit grinder on the forward side to an amazing two-way defenceman in just a single season. As a forward, he absolutely dominated VHLM and had an amazing performance in S67 when he was able to get 100 points with Minnesota Storm. He already in VHLM showed great promise on the physical side of hockey and clearly showed that he can block shots and be a truly hard hitter. His career has been interesting as in 3 seasons he has spent up in VHL, Berocka already has 2 Continental cup wins. As a rookie in the Playoffs, Mr. Sunqvist didn’t perform very well but still was able to contribute and help his team win it all. His next two seasons in playoffs were absolutely amazing as he improved his game and with the switch do defence, he was able to be 2nd in shots blocked in S69 playoffs and 5th in the same category in S70 playoffs with significantly fewer games played than players on the top of the list. We can only predict that his game will improve and this season he will unleash his ability to be one of the truly better defenseman in the league. My take is that he will be a Top 10 defenceman easily, just how high in the Top 10 is a mystery.
- Frostbeard


 
22. John Frostbeard, RW
 
A generational talent, John Frostbeard has been remarkably consistent in his four seasons in the VHL. Starting his career in Yukon, John had a successful VHLM career as a point-per-game or better player through two seasons. Even with the Rush, it was clear that he was going to be a powerful two-way forward. The only time this wasn’t true was in his season with the Philadelphia Reapers, where he was called into a more scoring-first mindset. Frostbeard was drafted by the Calgary Wranglers before being dished to Seattle, a decision Calgary undoubtedly regrets at this point. Once he arrived in Seattle, John returned to his true calling as one of the foremost 200-ft forwards in the league. After winning two cups with the Seattle Bears, Frostbeard left to join the fledgling D.C. Dragons in their third season in the VHL. Now having played for half of the North American Conference, it is exciting to watch whether or not he will be able to elevate the Dragons to take a conference title and maybe even a shot at the cup in the near future. Last season, Frostbeard played a much more physical game with a career-high 165 hits and 58 penalty minutes in the regular season. Meanwhile, his shooting percentage dropped significantly as he was tasked with much more of D.C.’s offensive responsibilities. I expect him to balance these aspects of his game in the coming season, which will turn him into a dominant force in the league.
- Erik Summers


 
21. Raymond Bernard, G
 
In his third season in the VHL, Raymond Bernard enjoyed a breakout season, setting career highs in games played, wins, save percentage, goals allowed average, shutouts, saves and minutes played. Getting his start with the Season 67 Ottawa Lynx that won both the Prime Minister's and Founder's Cups, Bernard was drafted 11th overall the next season by the Moscow Menace. He saw limited time as a rookie, appearing in 25 games, compiling a 16-8-1 record with a .896 record and a 3.1 GAA. Bernard became the starter in Season 69 (nice), appearing in 45 games, improving his save percentage over .900 and his GAA down to 2.81 on his way to winning 22 games. A trade by Moscow at the trade deadline for HC Davos Dynamo goaltender Finn Davison, however, effectively put Bernard's season on hold. Season 70, however, belonged to Raymond Bernard. Playing in 64 games, he was now the unquestioned starter after Davison was moved following the previous season. The Menace cut through all who opposed them, winning the Victory Cup. Bernard, however, had saved his best for last. In 15 playoff games, Bernard won 12, with a 9.37 save percentage and a 1.83 save percentage, with two shutouts as Moscow won the Continental Cup. For his outstanding play in the postseason, Bernard was awarded the Daisuke Kanou Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. Entering the prime of his career, this could simply be the beginning of Bernard's dominance, as the Moscow Menace look to continue their reign of terror on the VHL. 
- Doomsday
 
Some excellent players are already on this list, and we're just getting started. Did VSN get it right? Is somebody already too low? Too high? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. Our next installment will be featuring some big offensive talents, so you won't want to miss it!
 
Players Mentioned: @GustavMattias, @Beketov, @Acydburn, @TacticalHammer, @Zeno, @Doomsday, @Esso2264, @Berocka, @FrostBeard, @Mr_Hatter, @Poptart

Sadly, you have been abandoned by your Nation/Region.
Honestly, I was so surprised to see some of the names on the list. Quite a few were vets so I wanted to give them a platform for their final hoorah.
With pleasure, I'd like to announce this years Mercs roster.
 
@HulkHogan is my AGM baby.
 
Forwards:
Kronos Bailey @Quik
Roll Fizzlebeef @TacticalHammer
Mat Tocco @Matmenzinger
Aleksander Rodriguez @Jtv123
Ryan Sullivan Jr @Advantage
Dalton Wilcox @Dalton Wilcox
 
Defensemen:
Apollo Hackett @Renomitsu
Brady Stropko Jr @Bushito
Jeff Downey @JeffD
Jagger Philliefan @Philliefan
 
Goalies:
Kallis Kriketers @hedgehog337
A Red Guy @.sniffuM
 

Well I think I’m gonna start from just the random, and that’s because I don't wanna write this for the Legion because they’re that bad, and at least with Davos they had active guys. So this will be about Prague a team with solid players, but not so much a solid team. They got swept in the playoffs, but they are a recent expansion team, but no excuses, but congrats on making the playoffs however. 
 
1st star: Roll Fizzlebeef - my guy Roll Fizzlebeef, and I hope Prague is treating you well, because other than point wise you’re doing better than you did for Calgary. Anyways Fizzlebeef was acquired in a trade for a S70 3rd and a S72 1st, the 3rd looks like a bust, but the 1st looks like it could be pretty good, especially if Prague does terrible, and maybe Calgary gets a guy like SS Hornet, who ends up being a great generational(?) talent. That would benefit both sides, but talking about  Fizzlebeef, he’s a 60+ point player per usual, but he added a new edge to him with a career high 214 hits and 113 PIM, and if he continues to shoot until he can’t stop shooting like he did last year, he might just go back to that 30 goal scorer. Roll also has a career high in 37 assist, but that’s not surprising consider its one off from his other high. He also lead the team in Powerplay Goals, and he did it with a crazy 10! Sadly he’s bound to retire by S73 if not earlier, and maybe he’ll Wanna hang up the skates with Calgary, or maybe he’ll stay in Prague or maybe he'll go to another team, but I think if he goes to a contender or if Prague becomes contenders in the long run he’ll have 75+ points, and maybe that’s a hot take, but who doesn’t love hot takes. 
 
2nd star: Wolf Stansson JR. - Wolf Stansson Jr. a fellow Icelander, and he’s actually a great player, while he hasn’t lived up to his rookie season, it’s just a known fact that scoring is quite low this season and the one before, but in 72 games he had 48 points, and he actually is 1st in Prague's all-time assists which is a fun fact, and 2nd in shots blocked all-time, and Stansson is just a guy who I can see captaining on that blue line, and maybe he’ll win an award or two, and I do think he should learn to handle the puck better, but nonetheless he’s still a great player, and he actually had a career high in goals with 17, with the least amount of shots in a season, and had he highest shooting % of any Prague defensemen. The Prague are very lucky as they also have him locked up until the S75 season for only 2.5 million $, which shows signs that he wants to stay long term, and honestly he could go down with as one of the best contracts in the league, and the best player in Prague History. For the next season I can see him being top 7 in defensemen points, and score from anywhere from 55 -> 65 if he takes that offensive stride even more. 
 
3rd Star: Cinnamon Block - Block has become a reliable defensemen for the Prague Phantoms, and has been a great defensive defensemen, and she has been an amazing 1st overall draft pick. Block has really stepped up her offensive game, as she went from 39 points to 46 points, and has taken a charge t9 score as she has her first 10+ goal season under her belt. Unlike the other two players here Cinnamon had a massive offensive rise, and the others got worse or stayed the same offensively. Block is also 5th all-time in Prague's and is the only player top 5 in that category to play 144 games or less, and she is 3rd all-time in shorts blocked, but I definitely see that staying the same unlike hits where I can see block being top 2 all-time in hits. Block also is going to be one of the future core pieces of that Prague blue-line, and she really has Jake Wylde-like progression, and maybe she’ll take one or two home, and if Block doesn’t look long term that could be scary as hell for the Phantoms. I could really see her just being a 50 point scorer with over 220 hits, and just lead that blue line. Now we head to the honorable mentions. 
 
 
Honorable mentions:
 
Brick Wahl - Easily Prague's greatest goalie of all time no debate, and a massive reason why they made the playoffs, and if he played more games he could’ve possibly gotten up to the 30-32 win range mark, and just an overall steady reliable guy, and hopefully He can make the most out of his last year. He’s definitely a big part of them making the playoffs, and maybe he can help them make a deep run the next year. 
 
Willie Dredge - Another future amazing talent for the team, and just a great playmaker, who can occasionally score some nice goals from here and there, and most likely will be locking in long term come this offseason, and that’s just what Prague needs. He could literally stay on pace for 40+ points again, or he could score 50 or 60 or maybe just go crazy and go for 70+ points during the season, you just simply don’t know especially since he hasn’t had steep incline or decline. 
 
Seabass Perrin - better than dredge, but the honorable mentions aren’t ordered, and he really was a tough decision between him and block. He seemed to definitely decline last season, but this season he’s just looking like his rookie year, and he went off though his defense could be better, and he could score 10+ goals he just has that two-way defensemen upside. 
 
Summary: This team just has a great future, and is a playoff team, and that combination is really scary, and we’re seeing it with the Wranglers who went from the worst team to being in the cup finals, and hopefully this team can do exactly that. (But not actually win cause Calgary needs that bad boy.)
 
(1055 words 2 week claim)

players mentioned: @Cornholio, @BladeMaiden, @TacticalHammer, @omgitshim, @sjs88speed, @Sebster03

If all else fails, at least we don't have to live in Moscow. 

If all else fails, at least we don't have to live in Moscow. 

If all else fails, at least we don't have to live in Moscow. 

If all else fails, at least we don't have to live in Moscow. 

Playoff Previews
First Round: Moscow Menace vs Prague Phantoms
     
Season 70 playoffs haven’t even started yet, but there are already some storylines that make it one of the most interesting seasons in recent memory, one of which being that this the first time that both the D.C. Dragons and Prague Phantoms reach the playoffs after they joined the VHL in Season 68. However, it would be surprising to see the Phantoms come on top in their first-ever series, as they are facing the Victory Cup-winning Moscow Menace, arguably the favourite team to capture the Continental Cup, which would incidentally make it the first time they make the Continental Cup Finals.
 
     
Road to the playoffs
     
The Moscow Menace has just won the first Victory Cup - handed to the team with the best regular-season record - in franchise history and are not looking they are stopping their dominance anytime soon. They finished 1st in the whole league and earned home-ice advantage for the whole duration of the playoffs thanks to an impressive haul of 250 goals, giving them an average barely lower than 3.5 goals per game played, almost a full goal over the league average of 2.6. They have also been strong defensively, which allows them to hold a league-high 68-goal differential. On the other side of the playoffs spectrum, we have the Menace's opponents: the Prague Phantoms. They are the 8th team in - and actually finished behind the 5th-ranked North American Conference team - meaning that they hold the worst record among the 8 teams competing for the Season 70 Continental Cup. They are also the only team still playing with a negative goal differential, as they have allowed 24 more goals than they have scored.
 
     
Why the Moscow Menace should win

The Menace will win this best-of-7 series because simply put, their offence is firing on all cylinders. Their roster bears 4 of the league's 5 best scorers and a whopping 7 players over the point-per-game mark, including two-time Sterling Labatte Trophy winner - and this season's favourite to win it again - Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen. Jet Jaguar paced all skaters with 97 points, while Randoms' 44 goals outscored every other VHL players. Forwards Mat Tocco, Dan Baillie and Gritty, and defenseman Vladimir Pavlov round out the team's high octane core. In net, Raymond Bernard has been great for them too, holding a fine save percentage of .915% while notching a league-high 45 wins. It looks like there's nothing to stop this well-oiled machine, as they look forward to reaching their first-ever Continental Cup Finals and maybe be the first of the four 60's expansion teams to be crowned as VHL Champions.
 
 
Why the Prague Phantoms should win

The most encouraging fact for the Phantoms coming into this series against the Russian juggernaut is the fact that they were able to win both games played in Moscow during the regular season. They did lose their three games presented in Czechia, but it still shows that they can compete with them. The real question, however, is 'can they compete with them over a 7-game series'? Looking at both team's rosters on paper, the answer seems towards 'no'. Veteran Roll Fizzlebeef and youngsters Willie Dredge and Alex Pearson will need to catch fire and convert all their scoring opportunities if they want Prague to stand a chance. Their inexperienced defensive core of Cinnamon Block, Wolf Stansson Jr and Seabass Perrin will also need to step their game up to a whole other level to give a chance to recent free agent signing Brick Wahl to stop Jaguar and co. 
 
 
This series is as one-sided as it gets. Moscow are the favourites to win it all and, well, Prague would basically need some voodoo magic to incapacitate their opponents if they want to make it through to the second round. This is only a transition for the more recent expansion team though, as this is surely a first of many playoff appearances and they should enter the next couple of post-seasons with better odds of coming out with a Continental Cup. It should be a fun experience for their young core, though. Enjoy it!
     
Players mentioned: @flyersfan1453 @gorlab @hedgehog337 @Matmenzinger @wcats @eaglesfan036 @Victor @Mr_Hatter @TacticalHammer @sjs88speed @Jayrad28 @omgitshim @Cornholio @Sebster03 @BladeMaiden
     
VSN Writer McWolf

@TacticalHammer @Sebster03 @Jayrad28 @Bucky___lastard @BladeMaiden 2nd overall as a team, top 5 in 4 out of 5 events

Prague:
Hardest Shot: Teagan Glover @Bucky___lastard
Shooting Stars: Roll Fizzlebeef @TacticalHammer
Fastest Skater: Seabass Perrin @Sebster03
Accuracy Shooting: Alex Pearson @Jayrad28
Save Streak: Brick Wahl @BladeMaiden

Prague players: I want you guys to know I did this by a formula, based on your existing attributes - in the one case I had to tiebreak, the guy I didn't pick I feel like will be a top choice for 2-3 categories next season, whereas the guy I did pick was more specialized to the one thing. I'll outline this in the discord in a minute.

Checks media spot subforum
 
Sees I'm out of claims
 
Screams internally
 
So welcome to another article! Here we'll be taking a look at how every VHL team is doing--now, yes, but more importantly, into the future. We'll see who's sticking around, who's leaving, how each team is set up for the draft, all that good stuff. If you like overly wordy analysis that takes up half your computer screen to say what could be said in two lines, you've come to the right place. So, let's get into it, I guess...
 
 
 
NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE
 
 
 

Calgary Wranglers
On Pace For: 44-20-8
Current Standing: 3rd
GM: @Bushito
 
The Present: Calgary looks good this season, and that's thanks to a solid veteran core with one of the best defensive games in the league. With five players over 600 TPA and a blueline where the average exceeds 700, they're a hard team to crack. Among the veterans, center Tyler Barabash Jr, defenseman Brady Stropko Jr, and goalie JB Rift provide the team's strongest statistical showings, though talent in Calgary is very much spread across the board--despite the Wranglers' record and standing, you'd have to go to 19th on the points list to find Barabash, and the same or similar may be said about many other categories, indicating that there is no sole savior of the team and that it is working well as a whole.
 
The Future: How the Wranglers look now is nothing compared to what they might look like in a few seasons. Prospects Sigard Gunnar, Hiroshi Okada, Kris Rice, RJ Jubis, and Jacques Lafontaine are all a season or two old and max earners (or close to max earners) on the brink of busting their careers wide open, and that's not even taking into consideration the two top picks in this past draft, Mikko Lahtinen and Edwin THE Encarnacion. If you think they've got a good team now, just wait--especially when they've got two first-rounders in S72.
 
Best Case: "Best case" is wonderful to think about for a team in a situation like this. Calgary's got five players over 600 TPA right now, and they've managed to put together a solid roster that can win games already. I'm counting seven significant earners on this list alone who are ready to move to the next level, and that's not even looking at the rest of the roster, many of whom are respectable earners in their own right. So, best case scenario? Bush builds a dynasty out of this, going on a long run of success and winning a few cups.
 
Worst Case: It's difficult to imagine what could possibly go wrong with a team that already seems to have completed a rebuild and are enjoying the post-tank success with much more and potentially much greater to come. A good look at the portal, though, combined with the questionability of some recent events, could even put Calgary under in a few seasons, though that assumes that all that can possibly go wrong does. For one, only four players are signed through S72, and none are signed through S73. For the Wranglers to keep any of their players past that point, they'll need a few good re-signings--though, admittedly, chances are low that everyone decides to bail. The team was briefly put in jeopardy for a brief period of time last season, though, when a large part of the roster retired due to internal conflict. Though the team looks to have sorted things out since, it will be necessary for management to continue to monitor its locker room in order to actively avoid the worst.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

D.C. Dragons
On Pace For: 29-33-10
Current Standing: 9th
GM: @Enorama
 
The Present: At the moment, D.C. is a bit below average, but that's a good deal better than they were a couple seasons ago when expansion hit. They actually have more players above 600 TPA than Calgary, at seven compared to Calgary's five, though the pieces aren't quite fitting together in the same way. Next to nobody is seeing individual success--Mikko Aaltonen, the team's point leader, is 23rd on the league leaderboard, while in categories like hits and shots blocked Dragons are barely breaking into the top 40. Even Kallis Kriketers is having his worst season since S64. D.C. does have a roster that looks good on paper, though, and that much is contributing to a just-about-average level of team success.
 
The Future: D.C. is one of the league's youngest teams, with almost two-thirds of the active roster being either S68 or S69. Whatever's going on there with player retention is working--Luciano Valentino and Mikko Aaltonen are already signed for the rest of their careers, while John Frostbeard just picked up a two-season extension. In the S69 draft, too, they were able to pick up Benny Graves, who stated before the draft that no matter where he was drafted, he planned to stick with them long-term. Other notables picked up in recent drafts, too, include Guy Lesieur and Ricky Johnson, while prospect Derek Eriksson continues to maintain a respectable earn rate in the minors and Eno's GM player, George Washington, is another career-long Dragon at forward. While they've got a first-round pick in both of the next two drafts, it's imperative that they select a goalie if they can't get one in free agency--Kallis is out after this season and backup Pekka Pouta doesn't have future face-of-the-franchise potential.
 
Best Case: The best case for D.C. is that career signings and player retention are what will lead to them winning. While the Dragons have a couple picks to work with, it really won't be much, so maintenance and growth of the current roster will need to be management's number-one priority. If it works out, though, and they're able to free up some cap space by letting a few inactives go and securing a good goalie before long, D.C. will be a team to be reckoned with in a season or two.
 
Worst Case: Career signings are a double-edged sword. On one hand, you're quite possibly locking up the future core of your team and ensuring its success for seasons to come. On the other, though, now you've got a massive contract on your hands that can limit cap space and make movement difficult. There's also the question of goaltending--will the Dragons be able to find a legitimate, long-term starter in time to catch their roster in full swing? The future doesn't look bad, but D.C. will have to jump through a few hoops to get there.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

New York Americans
On Pace For: 35-29-8
Current Standing: 6th
GM: @Esso2264
 
The Present: New York looks pretty good on paper--nine players above 600 TPA and a good crop of young talent--though they're currently enjoying a fairly average place in the standings because for some reason they keep losing to Davos. Fellow baguettes Joel Ylonen and Joseph McWolf make up the team's veteran leadership, and while New York is yet another team barely cracking the top 40 in points (only two players in that range, with none in the top 30!), goaltender A Red Guy is enjoying a reasonably decent season, coming in at .918 SV% and 2.36 GAA. Overall, not half bad with a decent shot at playoff success.
 
The Future: The Americans are a young team who look like they've got a bright future--S67 steal and TPE whore Boris the Forest is locked up for the rest of his career, and with recent selections like Lance Flowers, David OQuinn, Soren Jensen, and Owen Nolan leading the prospect pool, New York will break the curse of the S60s and will once again become one of the teams to beat. There's one obvious concern, though--a huge portion of the roster is in their contract year this season. Notable names that could be out the door next season include A Red Guy, Thorvald Gunnarson, Lance Flowers, and Ryo Yamazuki II, and that's not even considering forced retirement of McWolf or the tragic departure of Elmebeck, which will cut out half of the Americans' blueline. If players can be re-signed, this might not be a big deal, but it's a definite concern nonetheless.
 
Best Case: In short, New York re-signs the players that matter and make a good choice with their first-rounder in this offseason's draft, maybe cashing in on defense. If this can be done, there shouldn't be any major concerns going forward--having so many contracts end in one season does raise concerns, but it also allows a team to decide who to keep and who to move in a much more flexible manner. Next season's cap should be easy to navigate, and if the right players are convinced to re-sign, the Americans will continue to be a threat.
 
Worst Case: You can probably guess the worst case by now--basically, everyone leaves and New York gets thrown back into the void only a couple seasons after crawling out of it. They're in danger of losing both of their goalies, all but one defenseman, and two active forwards, and if all this happens, New York will find it difficult to stay afloat. Their last first-round choice was a bust as well even though I told Esso to pick him, as Iangenere Risteneen hasn't been seen for a while. So, if the next draft sees a similar miss, it's difficult to imagine the Americans remaining competitive, and even more difficult to imagine them finding legitimate success.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Seattle Bears
On Pace For: 38-29-5
Current Standing: 8th
GM: @Banackock
 
The Present: There's no time like the present to be in Seattle. Winners of the last two cups, the Bears are feeling good behind (as I'm holding back snarky Hounds-related comments) a strong showing from their S67 draft class. Acyd Burn, Ambrose Stark, Henrik Zoiderberg, Scott Greene, Sundqvist, LeGrande, Hogan, Funk--they're all S67, and only four members of the current roster aren't. There's a good chance that they'll continue to find success this season as well--with nine players above 600 TPA, they're a much better team than their eighth-place standing suggests.
 
The Future: When most of your roster is S67, and six of them are signed through S73, you'll be in the running for a while. Though Seattle doesn't have any prospects in the minors at the moment and won't have any homegrown replacements for its current players for a while, they also don't have much to worry about at the moment. The main concern for Seattle, at the moment, is cap--salary goes up as more TPE is earned, and if the season ended today and restarted tomorrow, they'd be $1.5 million over the cap, even if Jack Lynch is left to free agency--and that's assuming nobody else goes into a higher bracket (a few are close right now and will likely break it by then). They'll be in deeper trouble cap-wise if they use either or both of their two first-rounders in the coming draft on players who will be playing up. So, while the future is still bright, there will need to be at least one cap dump trade to get there.
 
Best Case: The best thing that can happen to the Bears here is trading away an older, more expensive player (best choice would be Slade, though he's got a no-trade clause) and then using picks to fill in the gap left in the lineup by that player. Then, by the best-case model, that player fits in nicely and the Seattle machine keeps running. Keeping every asset will be impossible, so the best case is simply a smooth transition past the inevitable loss of current strength that keeps the team moving forward and on top.
 
Worst Case: Sure, Seattle will end up temporarily a little bit worse after this coming offseason. As has been said a million times here already, someone valuable has to go. Worst case? Robbie chooses to exercise the no-trade clause and takes up $4 million in next season's cap space. If that happens, Seattle enters cap hell and needs to offload someone right on top of their career, in their fifth season. At that point, they've taken a step into "sell players for future assets," which is a major step running contrary to the current plan. It won't be the end of the world, but it could knock the team out of elite level long enough for the S67 class to start depreciating--and at that point, it's time for this team to start finding replacements.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Toronto Legion
On Pace For: 26-36-10
Current Standing: 11th
GM: @Peace
 
The Present: There isn't much to be said about Toronto's roster at the moment. They're plagued with inactives, have only one first-round draft choice, and have a thin prospect pool with a few inconsistent welfare earners. The lone bright spot on the current roster is Chad Magnum, this past season's 5th overall selection and a max earner who was shipped off to Toronto as part of a large players-for-picks deal that saw Toronto's first-rounder in the coming draft go to Davos (let's not talk about what I did with it after that). Other semi-actives on the Toronto roster include Nethila Dissanayake, a former Saskatoon player who may remain loyal to current Toronto management, and Aron Nielsen, a S66 first-rounder making a recent return from inactivity.
 
The Future: It generally isn't a great sign when the most impressive player out of the "present" group is also the most impressive player in the "future" group, but here we are. Magnum is the only player currently owned by Toronto who has future star potential. One player retires next season, and all but three are set to enter free agency, with only a few able to be re-signed as actives. Though the Legion's late first-rounder will almost certainly be burnt for Erik Killinger, Peace's player sitting near the top of the S71 class, Killinger and Magnum are the only two definite pieces they've got in place at the moment and more than time will be necessary to make them competitive.
 
Best Case: The few active prospects they have ramp up their earning game enough to at the very least provide solid depth, and the rest is done through creative trading, free agent signings, and smart drafting, if it takes long enough to do that they'll have the picks to do it. They'll likely go through a couple more rough seasons, but will be reasonably well-set for the future in good time.
 
Worst Case: Management is unable to make anything happen within a few seasons. Magnum becomes impatient with the consistent lack of success and leaves in free agency, or he sticks around and the process takes long enough that he and Killinger don't have many prime years left when Toronto begins to compete. 
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Vancouver Wolves
On Pace For: 47-18-7
Current Standing: 2nd
GM: @Beaviss
 
The Present: There's a lot to like about the Wolves. They've got a small roster of only twelve players, but ten of them are over 600 TPA and two--HHH and Freeman--are over 1,000. Those two sit in the league's top 10 in points, spearheading the Wolves' current success. Goaltender Greg Eagles is enjoying a fantastic season in net, and there isn't a weak spot on the team that would lead one to believe that it might be going otherwise. 
 
The Future: Though Vancouver is a bit older than some of the other teams on this list, that's certainly no major concern at the moment. They'll have Freeman, Downey, Eagles, and very likely HHH through S73, they have not one but two max earners in net (backup Jimmy Spyro says hi), and to go with a long list of draft picks, they've already got prospect Griff Manzer maintaining a respectable earn rate in the minors. The Wolves have pretty much reached any GM's dream spot--to have a good team and the future assets to keep it going. Cap shouldn't be an issue next season, either, as 5-million-dollar defender Tzuyu retires and they'll be able to trade a lower-TPA player like Jerry Wang or let Kevin Low go to free agency if that isn't enough of a discount.
 
Best Case: Beav continues to lead the team to success and smoothly transitions it into the next era. They're perfectly set up for this, and if this is done right they'll be a consistent threat to any other team in the league for, well, as much of the future as can be reasonably imagined with their current assets. Manzer comes up and continues earning well enough to become a legitimate part of the gameplan, either Spyro or Eagles is flipped for big-time draft capital or a star at some other position, and the team cashes in at the draft with some solid picks.
 
Worst Case: It's very tough to imagine a worst case here, but one thing or another might go wrong. Tzuyu is out the door, and Kevin Low might be, and if both leave, the roster is left without a fourth defenseman--and the third will be Manzer, who will still be relatively low on the TPE chart. Micheal Gary Scott satisfies his lifelong dream of going off to Seattle in free agency, and Vancouver whiffs on its first-rounders in both of the coming drafts. These are still events that the Wolves will be able to recover from, but it won't make the transition between solid teams a simple handoff.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 
EUROPEAN CONFERENCE
 
 
 

HC Davos Dynamo
On Pace For: 18-42-12
Current Standing: 12th
GM: GM Himself, @GustavMattias
ego grows audibly
 
The Present: OK, fine, let's talk about how Davos is doing right now. We suck! But that's OK, we've got our actives. As far as this season goes, Davos player leadership consists of a few older and largely inactive individuals--Materazo (our only player above 600 TPA, but at least that's one more than Toronto) is putting up great numbers on both ends of the ice, while John Madden and Anthony Matthews represent the other two pre-S66 players contributing to our game at forward. On the back end, goaltender Samuel Ross recently returned from inactivity and has been earning well since. Overall, sure, we're last in the standings, but it's a rebuild, so that is to be expected.
 
The Future: Oh boy, the future. That's what we're all about. Let's talk about that--four first-round picks in the next two seasons, and five seconds. To go along with that, we've got a couple Davos-for-life players on defense in Fernando Jokinen and Andrej Petrovic, and there's also Milos Slavik at forward with the potential to be a decent second-line player on a good team. Winger Alex Bridges leads the pack among prospects, with a decent earn rate and solid team activity.
 
Best Case: The best case is, obviously, that I nail it in the draft and build the best team in the league. There's nowhere for this team to go but up, and there's potential to go way up if things are managed well. We've got the prospect pool and the younger players to build a future support structure already, but the star power needs to be obtained from somewhere else, and the draft is where we'll do it.
 
Worst Case: I run the team into the ground by being an idiot, making stupid decisions, and not drafting well. If I do, too, it's entirely my fault--I was handed a perfectly set-up team and now it's on me to work with that. And if I'm stupid enough, it won't happen quite the way anyone here in Davos is hoping. I'm still unproven as a GM on the VHL level, and if it turns out that I suck at it, that will be the team's greatest enemy.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Helsinki Titans
On Pace For: 37-30-5
Current Standing: 7th
GM: @Jubo07
 
The Present: The Titans sit in seventh place at the moment, and they're hanging on to the last bits of their former glory days. Julian Borwinn, Joey Boucher, Sidney Crosby, and Alexander Pepper are all in their last seasons, and it looks like Helsinki is doing what they can to make the best of it. They've made some moves to secure some players from S66 and later--Ben Hafkey, Erik Draven, Erik Summers, and Guillaume Fontenette come to mind--and have built a decent roster with dreams to compete and bring what's left of the @Quik era to an end with a bang.
 
The Future: I came into this one thinking that this segment would be all about how the Titans need to rebuild, scrap everything, become the next Davos and all that stuff. It turns out that that isn't really the case, though--Helsinki has easily the best pool of VHLM prospects that the league has to offer, and many of their players from S66 or after will be sticking around for a bit. Though a step back is expected, it won't be nearly as drastic as one might believe. Virgil Ligriv will likely take over in net, while the others mentioned above will make up the future core. Among the prospects, Jared Spaz and Ike Bennett come to mind as two that do 6-point tasks with a decent earn rate, and there are many more welfare earners who should be up in a season or two. It seems that a retool, not a rebuild, is in order, and for that Helsinki management is grateful.
 
Best Case: Though it's unrealistic to expect Helsinki not to take a step back, a best case scenario leads one to believe that they'll be able to emerge from the transition in only a season or two without ever tanking or being at the bottom of the league. They'll have at least two solid earners next season, and likely a bit more than that, with a first-round pick in the draft, another first-rounder in S72 when Jubo's recreate comes up, and the cap space to accommodate some free agent signings or perhaps a big-ticket player or two in a trade. If all goes well, the Titans will once again stand atop the league with an entirely different roster in not too much time.
 
Worst Case: The worst case scenario in this instance is simply that the retool might not be done in a matter of one or two seasons. It might take a bit longer to develop the prospects--assuming, of course, that they all continue to develop and none go inactive--and by that point players like Hafkey, Fontenette, and Ligriv will be significantly affected by depreciation and well on their way to retirement. Assuming Helsinki does attempt a successful retool--and I maintain that they should, regardless of what the worst case scenario says--their prospects need to maintain their earn rates. If management isn't able to flex their player retention muscles, the Titans will be left with yet another aging roster, this time with nowhere else to go but a complete rebuild.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Malmo Nighthawks
On Pace For: 31-38-3
Current Standing: 10th
GM: @Advantage
 
The Present: Malmo is the league's most unlucky team, and (I hope) I'm not just saying that because I play there. With eight players above 600 TPA, right up there with the more above-average teams in the league, they've still managed to be...not that great, currently sitting in 10th place. Much of the roster is in the S66-S68 range, with players like Jerry Garcia (ahem), Phil Marleau, and Michael Johnson representing the first generation of the team's history. Further supplemented is the blueline, with the likes of Condor Adrienne, while the forwards lines are graced by the presence of Aleksander Rodriguez and Dan Wilinsky. There's a solid roster there, but one that simply is not working.
 
The Future: If you thought D.C. was notorious for career signings, then take a look at Malmo's finance page and think about how wrong you were. Every player in the S66 class or after on the 600-TPA-or-more list is locked up for most or all of the rest of their career, leaving Malmo (on paper) very set up for the future. Though Dan Wilinsky is retiring this season and Ryan Sullivan Jr the next, the Nighthawks will see first-round prospect Lewis Dawson promoted next season and will then have the cap space for a move or two to be made, and perhaps a signing as well. 
 
Best Case: Everything finally clicks for Malmo after two seasons of underwhelming sim results, and they're able to enjoy success because of it. Marleau finally finds his place on the team, Garcia stops taking so many penalties, and the Nighthawks are back on top of the league with seasons to go on the big-boy contracts. Management hits on the first-rounder in S72, and all is well. 
 
Worst Case: SimonT continues to vomit all over Sweden and Malmo's current roster simply doesn't do the trick. The career signings given to half the team begin to hurt the team rather than help it, as moves should be made to bring Malmo back to where it should be and it becomes difficult to ship people off elsewhere, particularly now-inactive Rob Mattalex, who will cost any team taking him on $4 million per season, even after depreciation hits. Malmo is unable to scrape together enough prospects for a successful retool and goes the way of the Helsinki worst-case.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Moscow Menace
On Pace For: 48-17-7
Current Standing: 1st
GM: @Victor
 
The Present: "Top of the League" is really all that needs to be said about Moscow at the moment. They've got eight players over 600 TPA, and while that isn't top of the league, they're making it work. A veteran core including Jet Jaguar, Randoms, and the venerable Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen lead the way at the moment, and there's a ton to like on the leaderboard--six out of the top ten point scorers are from Moscow: Jaguar, Randoms, Smitty, Gritty, Mat Tocco, and the highly underrated Dan Baillie, a player who isn't a household name but has contributed almost a point per game in his Moscow career while also showing his two-way ability by consistently reaching impressive hit totals. Moscow is dominant this season, and it's hard to imagine anyone getting by them in the playoffs.
 
The Future: The future looks good in Moscow, more so than one might expect from a look at the finances page. Though Smitty and Gritty are officially set to enter free agency after this season, neither one has historically been prone to leaving a team, and it's easy to see both re-signing. As far as younger players go, the Menace don't have much in the way of prospects, but they do have a good amount of draft picks in the coming drafts, as well as TPE whore Raymond Bernard in net, active long-term signing Nate Telker at forward, and GM player Vladimir Pavlov on defense to keep the ball rolling (or, "keep the puck moving," I guess?) into the next generation of Moscow players.
 
Best Case: Smitty and Gritty re-sign and stick with Moscow for the rest of their careers, as does Jaguar. The Menace make some good draft choices and maybe a signing somewhere along the way, and remain a good team for the foreseeable future. One can afford to run the team conservatively at the moment, too, as more than enough cap space will be freed up by the retiring Randoms to retain the current roster should they decide to stay where they are.
 
Worst Case: Smitty and Gritty decide to take their orange fur elsewhere and the Menace aren't as menacing in S71 after, well, not making signings like Smitty and Gritty. They remain mediocre--think of a big buff dude grimacing at you rather than scowling in terms of menacing quality--but aren't top of the league. They'll have space to work with, both cap-wise and draft-wise, but Victor, being the idiot that he is in this worst-case model, somehow manages to screw up both, missing signings and picking busts, until Moscow has an aging and top-heavy roster ready to tip over. As you can see, this worst-case scenario takes a whole lot of screwing up to achieve, but it's the most realistic out of everything as there isn't really much that can go wrong.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Prague Phantoms
On Pace For: 37-25-10
Current Standing: 5th
GM: @diamond_ace
 
The Present: Prague is getting off to a better start than the other S67 expansion, D.C., and they're doing it with a super balanced roster. With only two players above 600 TPA, but tons in the 500-600 range, the Phantoms are making a name for themselves through depth, teamwork, and a little bit of sim luck. Current Prague veterans leading the way include Roll Fizzlebeef and Brick Wahl, though the roster runs a bit deeper with many noted players from S66-S69 seeing themselves in supporting roles. Though it could be argued that they're playing a bit above their caliber at the moment, the Phantoms are a decent team that happens to be very, very balanced.
 
The Future: Prague's got three players--Alex Pearson, Jacob Perry, and Wolf Stansson Jr--signed through S73, with Seabass Perrin and Cinnamon Block representing a couple young bright spots on defense with solid earn rates and bright futures. Solomon Crawford isn't the fastest earner, though likely figures to be the starting goalie once Wahl is out. The Phantoms don't have many draft picks, with one first-rounder next season representing the only significant pick held by the team, but if the current roster is able to be retained successfully, they could be in more serious contention in a season or two.
 
Best Case: The best case here isn't really as dynasty-ish and high up as some of the others, but it's still an optimistic one. Prague's future lies in retention--if they lose some players to free agency, which is possible, they may end up making some signings of their own, but the smartest way to develop the Phantoms is simply to just wait for the current roster to develop and reach a higher level of competition. After a hit in the coming draft's first round, the Phantoms sit back and wait--the defense breaks into the next level, Pearson steps it up at forward, and Prague earns a spot near the top of the league in an undisputed manner.
 
Worst Case: Prague picks a bust next season and growth of the current roster proves to be of questionable effect. Block, Perrin, and Stansson should stick around, but most others on the team are welfare earners with second-line potential. The team also has no real star power at forward, a part of the ice a good deal more important in this league than the blueline. In this case, we'd see less of management running the team into the ground and more of the team running itself into the ground--most of this plan is dependent upon the team's ability to improve itself, and if it fails in that regard, there won't be much to see in a few seasons.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
 

Riga Reign
On Pace For: 42-23-7
Current Standing: 4th
GM: @hedgehog337
 
The Present: Riga's got seven players above my arbitrary 600-TPA standard, and as has been the norm as long as I've been in this league (since the prime days of Preencarnacion and Cast), plenty of star power. They seem to have transitioned well between rosters, keeping Ryan Kastelic, the TPE whore who makes most other whores look like nuns by comparison, throughout that entire period. The current stars of the team include Kastelic, Lincoln Tate, Apollo Hackett, and former Davos franchise goalie Finn Davison, acquired this past offseason in a deal which gave Kallis the chance to be shipped out to D.C.. The Reign are strong as always, and though they aren't on top of the league, no major concerns are present as far as this season goes.
 
The Future: Oh, look, Riga has a good team and a good set of picks again. I'm hardly surprised--this has, of course, been the case for most of the time I've been in this league. With three first-rounders in the next two drafts, Riga is there to make a big splash with their selections, and they'll be strengthening an already good team with a decent prospect pool--they've got a few decent earners in the VHLM, but forward JaredN and goaltender Nicolas Fomba, who projects as a solid backup, are the top two in that regard. With the current roster, the entire blueline is signed through next season, though only two forwards will be around for sure--with the rest either retired or hitting free agency, an overhaul up front might be necessary.
 
Best Case: Hedge re-signs who he needs to at forward and Riga solves their goaltending problem, either through the draft or a trade. He's able to use some free cap space left in the absence of Kastelic to seduce bring in a solid player up front, and Patrik Tallinder and Guy Sasakamoose continue on their young talent track and develop into legitimate stars. Solid draft choices are made, Riga continues to be a good team, and nobody is surprised in the slightest.
 
Worst Case: For a team where everything has gone right in recent times, what could possibly go wrong? The worst that can happen to the Reign at the moment is a loss of just about their entire forward personnel--Kastelic will be forced out, and should the others choose to exercise their right to test the market, it could thin the team out quite a bit more. Davison retires before Riga is able to find a legitimate replacement, and the team effectively becomes limited to its strong defensive core only. Though this situation is unlikely, some smart management will be necessary to avoid it.
 
Players mentioned:
 
 
Word count: 5,711. Apparently it's a 20-minute read too, hope you enjoy it. Thank God for multi-claims, because I might need them in the next few weeks.
 
See you in a month!

Loser point, I'll take it. 

Good game boys

Glover with two shootout GWG

so far

LETS TURN THESE EVIL PREGNANT SATANIC NEGATIVITY ORBS AND TURN THEM INTO MAGICAL POWERS OF LOVE BEAMS! 
 

 
At the end of the day, I’m more on the side of disagreeing with you. It didn’t effect me massively. It’s sad to see but what effects me more is seeing the other people in pain like SHAQ, his family etc. Almost like watching it, you let yourself feel and their pain is heavy and it’s sucks. Fuck. I can’t even imagine. For whatever reason, seeing that always gets me and it breaks my heart to see. 
 
However, I do respect you being able to have your own opinion. It amazes me daily how much we as humans are so very much the same, but at the same time so extremely and incredibly different.
 
PEACE OUT, ROBERT. @BluObieZ GG keeping it PG-13, dude. I appreciate you for that!  Fu wanker

That's cute, it was nicely composed and im sure it will effect the masses that hate the shit I say. I understand you need to appease the masses because you are a GM and you standing up against the asshole that is me looks good on you. While I am on your team now, I won't always be so people won't hold siding with me against you. So I get it. This isn't the media's fault. This is everyones fault for holding these people up higher then others. Looking at them like gods. So when they die people fucking react like this. Crying and in utter shock. Boo fucking hoo, he was human like the rest of us. He's gone. Forget him and move on. There are other really good basket ball players that didn't die like MJ

I’m not even a basketball fan really but seeing someone with Kobe’s status was unfortunate to see - as well as entire accident itself. I think the magnitude of focus was just blown up because of who he is, how big he was and just how big of an impact he had on the NBA + Lakers. That and the media. Even afterwards, he was an incredible human doing incredible things for people and the game of basketball. 
 
Look at Gord Downie. He wasn’t that big at all - especially outside of Canada but man holy fuck did you get fucking chills at his concert. The girlfriend and I went to the Edmonton farewell show and while not a huge fan, there’s still 5-10 songs I enjoyed and man... I had tears. It was amazing. All of Canada got behind him. 
 
It’s what people do. I definitely see your side of it. I don’t think you should be shaming the people, Robbie... if anyone, it could be the media and how it impacts people’s reactions but even then, it’s pretty harsh. Kobe inspired and motivated thousands of young kids in the game of basketball - even current stars in the games and small kids and adults that’ll never make it but drain the 3’s on the outdoor courts shouting “KOBE”. 
 
When Gretzky passes, which hopefully is a long ass ways away, think of Canada, the Oilers and the game of hockey as an entirety. It’s not really a bad thing at all to celebrate great people who leave great lasting impacts and inspiration on people. 
 

like i said in part 1.
 
people mourn because of the connection to basketball rather than war. Both should be equally mourned but one gets more attention because we get to see basketball on tv rather than war. Plus Basketball like all sports is entertainment and a way to get out of the dreadful feeling of say a war. With the coverage basketball gets and the information out there regarding sports players its easy to do research and find a connection to players. You can't look up a war veteran and look up his stats to find that same connection. Which is why people are more inclined to mourn a sports icon or 'idol' than someone who went to war sadly. I understand why though because without that war vet, we can't live freely like we do.
 
there are points to agree and disagree with but you shouldn't shame someone for how they feel. if they feel the need to mourn then let them, they can't control how they feel. 

CAN I GO 3/3 IN ROBBIE ARTICLES?!?!?!

You really like attention huh?

@BluObieZ Has been issued a 2 week PT Update ban (January 26 to Feb 9) for repeated offensive language warning and priors. He may resume earning PT claims Feb. 10.

Well, at least you got one thing right.

Welcome to the first edition of VSN’s S70 Weekly recap (Games 1-48).  We’ll cover a host of things in this recap each week including highlights of important VSN happenings, three stars of the week, power rankings, rookie profiles, and anything else of importance.
 
Recap

And just like that, another season is upon us. We have gotten our first look at this season’s competition with many new faces and old faces in new places. Several rookies have set out to make names for themselves. Jimmy Spyro was flawless in his VHL debut with a shutout against Toronto. Patrick Tallinder beat the snot out of Phantoms’ enforcer Blake Laughton. And Erik Summers leads the Titans in +/-. Meanwhile, several free agents have made waves on their new teams. Codrick Past has already scored two short-handed goals for Riga. JB Rift shut out the New York Americans in his second game as a Wrangler. And former Calgary tender, Brick Wahl, has put up impressive numbers in Prague.
 
It is hard to say that anyone is performing above or below expectations so early in the season, but I think a couple of teams stand out. You can call it a cup hangover or you can call it cap space hell, but I don’t think anyone expected to see Seattle scraping the bottom of the North American Conference. Hulk Hogan even lost a fight! What has become of the reigning champs? On the other end of the spectrum, after the intense locker room drama of S69, the Calgary Wranglers are leading their conference early in the season. Time will tell if they can hold it together is S70, but it has certainly been a promising start. Also of note, Davos… doesn’t suck? I think we all expect great things from Gustav, but turning around Davos this quickly is certainly a shock. We will have to wait and see if they can continue to contend for a playoff spot in the European Conference.
 
As far as league news goes, it has been a fairly slow week. The only major change made this week affects a relatively small selection of players. Players claiming pension will now have to have two players at 700 TPE instead of the previous 400 TPE. This inflation is allegedly a response to uncapped TPE becoming easier to acquire in recent seasons. It seems that teams are still trying to get settled into their new rosters and find their identities. I expect in the new week or so that we will start to see teams begin grappling with whether they intend to contend this season or look to start moving their upcoming FAs to teams that are in the hunt for the cup.
 

3-Stars

First Star
Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen (MOS) - 3 Goals, 10 Assists
Second Star
Julian Borwinn (HSK) - 7 Goals, 10 Assists
Third Star
Owen May (TOR) - 0.936 SV%, 1.83 GAA
 

Power Rankings

European Conference
Moscow Menace - They haven’t played any top teams outside of Vancouver and they went 1-1 with the Wolves. However, leading is leading, and it is hard to argue with results. Prague Phantoms - Prague could be number 1 on this list, but losing to Davos was a bad look for the Phantoms. They are going to have to prove it if they want to win my confidence. Helsinki Titans - Helsinki doesn’t lead the league in much, but they do have more goals than anyone else. If they can start winning close games they will start racking up points. Riga Reign - They beat Davos and lost to Helsinki, then they lost to Davos and beat Helsinki. Riga has been starting their backup goalie a lot so far, so expect them to improve soon. HC Davos Dynamo - 3 OT losses mean Davos might not be behind Riga and Helsinki in the standings, but they are still losses. That being said, the 3, 4, and 5 spots are tight right now. Malmo Nighthawks - Second fewest goals in the league and the second-most goals against. It is hard to know where to start with the Nighthawks problems.  
North American Conference
Calgary Wranglers - Calgary has the best record in the league and they played real teams to get it. At the moment, they are the team to beat if you want to call yourself the best. New York Americans - The top two teams in NA have already played each other five times. The Americans only won two of those games and find themselves in second as a result. Vancouver Wolves - Vancouver is good, beating Moscow proved that, but how good? Getting to play D.C. three times already may indicate that their record is better than they deserve. Toronto Legion - It is a testament to the strength of the NA Conference this season that Toronto is this low. Don’t be fooled, this is a team that can and will beat anyone. D.C. Dragons - Defense is a real concern in D.C. They have the worst point differential and the most goals allowed in the conference. Seattle Bears - The cup hangover is real in Seattle. Don’t expect them to look this bad all season, but for now, they are at the bottom my NA power rankings.  

Notable Games

Game 39 Calgary Wranglers vs New York Americans
Game 5 of the series between the top two teams in the North American Conference, this match certainly lived up to the hype. Both teams came into this game with two wins over the other so we had a rubber match on our hands. It got extremely chippy, with both teams giving up seven power-play opportunities, but Calgary was able to take advantage with the only PP goal of the game. The Wranglers walk away from this one with the conference lead… for now.

Game 40 - Vancouver Wolves vs Toronto Legion
I chose this game at the beginning of the week to highlight a series between what I expected to be two of the top contenders in the North American Conference. It seems I may have overestimated Toronto’s talent and I considered cutting it from my notable games list. However, one thing made me keep it in, goaltending. Rookie tender, Jimmy Spyro has won all three of his first games, including a shutout and one three goals allowed. Part of that is due to Vancouver having one of the best defences in the league, but it is hard to overstate how impress Spyro’s early performance has been. 

Game 46 - Moscow Menace vs Seattle Bears
Last season’s champs against one of the favourites for the cup this season! This game was a clear showcase of the difference between a team that was good but lost a couple key pieces and team currently in their prime. Moscow dominated every facet of this matchup. Moscow has been one of the harder teams to figure out early on this season, which meant even this matchup was in question. They have a good record, but that is mostly from beating up on the worst teams in the league, they go 1-1 with Vancouver, and then they get shut out in their last game against Malmo. Honestly, I want to see them play a couple more real contenders before I’m convinced they’re as good as their record suggests.
 

Events of the Week

Fights
Game 15 - Tallinder beats up Laughton The first fight of the season and it is a fresh face dropping gloves against a seasoned veteran. Tallinder cleanly hit Teagan Glover, but Blake Laughton took exception to the hit and dragged Patrick into a fight. Not only did he take a beating, but Laughton also got a penalty for instigation and ejected from the game. However, the fight inspired the Phantoms, as they went on to score twice shortly afterwards and went on to win the game. Game 16 - Graves beats up Hogan Graves takes the belt! Hulk has a reputation for fighting, and it looks like Benny was in search of some clout of his own. Seemingly unprovoked, Graves dropped gloves and challenged the fighting champion. Never one to back down from a fight, Hogan obliged, but the fight did not go his way. Benny got an additional penalty for instigation and an ejection, but, just like in game 15, the team who went down a player responded with a quick goal and an eventual victory. Game 24 - Aaltonen draws with Stark After sustained offensive pressure in the Dragons’ zone, Aaltonen was able to change things up by dropping gloves with Ambrose Stark. Although the first didn’t really go anywhere before it was broken up, it helped change the momentum enough to bring the Dragons back into the game. D.C. went on to win in the shootout, and they have Aaltonen to thank for the much-needed change of pace. There have been two fights between these teams in the first week of the season, keep an eye on this developing rivalry in the near future. Game 27 - BRAWL! After a high stick from rookie defenseman Shawn Glade Jr., Seabass Perrin took exception and jumped him. Glade didn’t put up a fight, but his teammates stepped in on his behalf and we found ourselves with our first all-out brawl of the season. John Madden, Edward Vigneault, Milos Slavik, Roll Fizzlebeef, Andrej Petrovic, and Willie Dredge all paired off. Although none of the fights had a decisive winner, Dredge went on to score in the early minutes of the following period. His goal became the game-winner, so it would feel wrong to call anyone other than the Phantoms of the winners of the mayhem. Game 44 - Vigneault draws with Nolan Both teams forgot to play defence in the first period. After going up 3-0, Prague let New York come back within one with just over a minute left in the first on a penalty to Roll Fizzlebeef. Taking exception to the call, and to the non-stop scoring, Edward Vigneault and Owen Nolan sought each other out as soon as they got on the ice. Although the fight didn’t really go anywhere before being broken up, it seemed like it might have finally slowed things down… for exactly ten seconds, before the Phantoms scored again.  
Hat-Tricks
Game 21 - Pat Svoboda The first hat trick of the season, Svoboda’s work went to waste as Riga decided to keep their back-up goalie in until Helsinki had put up six goals. However, this is very promising for the Reign’s leading scorer. If he can score three goals against Pepper, he can do it against anyone. Game 22 - Bjorn Scoringsonn Scoringsonn lives up to his name with the first 4-Goal game of the season. Bjorn took over a third of his team’s shots in this game, so Toronto’s game plan seems pretty clear, get the puck to Scoringsonn and let him shoot. Nethila Dissanayake has two primary assists and a secondary assist on these goals, so look for more big games from this duo. Game 43 - Julian Borwinn At first glance, it would be easy to chalk this one up to facing a back-up goalie, but after a closer look you’ll see that Finn Davidson came in just nine minutes into the game and gave up two of Borwinn’s three goals. When you start your backup goalie and go one for four on the penalty kill, you know you are going to have a bad day, but Borwinn put an exclamation point on this one with his first hat-trick of the season.  
Shutouts
Game 7 - Calgary vs New York From zero to hero, JB Rift allowed five goals in the first game with the Wrangler, but he more than made up for it in the second game of their series against the American with the first shutout of S70. Game 18 - Vancouver vs Toronto What a way to start your VHL career! Jimmy Spyro was perfect in his first VHL game for the Wolves. Spyro has an exciting season in front of him if he continues to play like this as a backup goalie. Game 33 - Riga vs Davos It was like watching a VHL goalie face off against a VHLM scrub for the first half of this game. Finally, Riga decided that their backup goalie just wasn’t cutting it but the damage was already done. Davos walks away from a win and Samuel Ross gets his third career shutout. Game 34 - Vancouver vs Seattle Not to be upstaged by his backup, Greg Eagles locked in a shutout of his own, giving Vancouver two shutouts before most teams even have one. This was almost a scoreless game until Julius Freeman was finally able to get on the board with a power-play goal late in the third. Game 41 - Moscow vs Malmo This was certainly an unexpected result. Malmo has struggled early this season, but having to face Moscow over and over makes them look worse than they actually are. That being said, Michael Johnson only had one win in six games going into this matchup, and to walk away with the shutout in this one is a good confidence builder for a team in desperate need of inspiration. Game 42 - D.C. vs Seattle Kallis Kriketers has had a bumpy start to his time in D.C. with the lowest SV% and the highest GAA he has seen in years. Kriketers isn’t unfamiliar with having questionable defensive talent in front of him and every once in a while he just does what he does and puts a whole team on his back. The Dragons seem like 85% of a team and the moment, but they are going to be a real threat if their veterans can continue to play as they did in their peak.  

Rookie Spotlight

Jimmy Spyro

At this point, I’m done saying there is anything Jimmy Spyro can’t do. Becoming the starter for Ottawa halfway through his first season in the VHLM, Spyro scraped together only four wins in thirty-two games that year. However, the Mississauga Hounds saw something they liked and snatched him up that off-season. He went on to lead the team to second place in the regular season and a cup final with a 0.885 SV% and a GAA just a hair over 2. Jimmy Spyro became the shutout master, racking up 10 shutouts throughout S69.

Probably more impressive than his time in the VHLM was Spyro’s performance at the WJC for Team Asia. Taking home silver and the tournament MVP award.
“Coming in as an underdog and being passed off to Team Asia by his qualifying country Jimmy Spyro decided to make a name for himself. Going 7-0-1 with a .932 save percentage in the round-robin and going 1 -1 with a save percentage of .903 in the medal games.” - WJC Commissioner Acydburn

What do you know? He continued his reputation with a shutout in his first VHL game. Facing the veteran Owen May, each goalie faced 36 shots, and Spyro stopped every single one. If Jimmy sees more than the 8 games minimum that is required from a backup, he may even see some votes for Rookie of the Year.