TacticalHammer

Back once again for another VHL chess tournament and this time I’ve decided to write about it! Our last tournament winner was @Caboose30 after taking down @jhatty8 and upsetting the fan favorite @hedgehog337 in the semifinals.
 
The former champ did not participate in this season tournament but with new challengers entering the tournament there would be not shortage of talent and entertainment. 16 contestants, split into groups of 4, all competing for one thing, that is to be the VHL S77 Chess Tournament champion. 
 
In Group A was the fan favorite who’s playoff run was cut short in the semifinals last season and is back this season finishing at the top of their group with a perfect 6-0 record, @hedgehog337. Finishing second in Group A, making their first VHL Chess tournament appearance, finishing with a record of 2-2, @Berocka. Finishing 3rd in Group A, the reason you are all here, with a record of 1-3, yours truly @N0HBDY. Then finishing dead last, the tournament director, with a record of 1-5, @Ricer13.
 
In Group B, from placing as runner-up in last season’s tournament, leading the pack, back for revenge, a record of 6-0, @jhatty8. Closely following him In Group B, beating all other opponents other than hatter, with a record of 4-2, @ColeMrtz(JCole). Finishing third in the group, with a record of 1-4-1, being apart of the only stalemate of the tournament, MattO. Then finishing last in Group B with a record of 0-5-1 is @Ledge_and_Dairy(Ledge).
 
Onto Group C who for some reason all played an extra game than every other group. After losing in the Quarterfinals last season to the Champion, they came back with a very strong performance in Group C finishing 6-1, @Vat. Finishing second in with a very creative name, a record of 5-2, BobNutting. Third in the group with a record of 2-5, with the most points a 3 seed in the tournament has, @TheCHEESE(Cheese). Then lastly in Group C with a record of 1-6, @Alex_J32(Alex).
 
Then finally the last group, that being Group D. Finishing first with 5 games played and a perfect record 5-0, one of the WJC commissioners, my favorite person of all time, @bigAL. Secondly for Group D, after being eliminated in the semifinals last season by Hatter, not showing as strong of a tournament, and just clawing their way into the 2 seed with a record of 2-3, @TacticalHammer (Tac). Finishing third with only 2 games played and a record of 1-1, you wonder if they had just played more games if they would’ve clinched that 2nd seed, @RedSus. Then last in Group D and to finish all the round robin recap, with a record of 0-4, @Siddhus(Sid). Now that I believe everyone involved that I could find is tagged, lets begin!
 
We move into the bracket stage of the newly formatted tournament where there are two sides to the bracket, the A side and the B side. All this being given to us by a nice homemade, handwritten, and very lovingly detailed bracket by Ricer.
 
In the first matchup for “A” side is yours truly N0HBDY versus Ledge. The second Matchup is MattO and tournament director Ricer. Third matchup was Cheese versus Sid. The final matchup of “A” side being RedSus versus Alex.
 
Then on “B” side and in my opinion the stronger side of the bracket the first matchup was fan favorite Hedge versus Cole. Second Matchup being JHatty versus Berocka. Third Matchup was Tac versus Vat. Then the final matchup of BigAl versus Phil.
 
Now for the first round “A” side recap. A 30 minute battle between two 700+ rated players N0HBDY v Ledge. Ledge wins game 1 of the best of 3 series and then after a quick dinner break by N0HBDY. Ledge then takes the series in a 2-0 sweep to move onto the second round for “A” side. As for the other matchup of “A” side featuring MattO v Ricer, the tournament director stays humble and refuses to give himself any kind of advantage over others in the tournament, MattO takes game 1 and then proceeds to take game 2 two days later for another 2-0 sweep on “A” side. The third matchup of “A” side Cheese v Sid proceeds with Cheese taking game 1, Sid comes back to take game 2 and send the series into this season first three game series with Cheese coming out victorious. 
 
While the first round of “A” side is going on, “B” side begins as well with Hedge v Cole. Both games being knocked out in under an hour as fan favorite Hedge sweeps Cole 2-0 to advance. The highly anticipated match JHatty v Beroka ends with beroka dropping out of the series due to uncontrollable issues happening in Beroka’s life, to which he was replaced by Zetterberg. But in the end the replacement wouldn’t make it any more difficult for Hatty, winning the series 2-0. With plenty of more chess the third match of “B” side, that being Tac v Vat. With neither giving out game by game scores there isn’t any real game by game recap but for the series and to advance to the second round Tac beats Vat 2-1. Finally the last matchup for the first round with BigAl v Phil. Again there were no scores given out by either competitor for this matchup but in Ricer’s bracket it concludes that Phil beats BigAl to advance.
 
Now folks this is where the bracket may become a little tricky to understand, but I will do my best in explaining it briefly here. If you lose in the main bracket you are not done, you would drop into a sub bracket where you would then fight against other loser for a chance at the 5th place game. If you lost another game in the sub bracket you would drop to a sub sub bracket where you would compete for 7th place. Now what I will do for the recap is explain from the bottom up if that makes sense, so that I can not only write more and claim this for more weeks, but to keep you invested and hold the best for last.
 
Now moving into the second round of the “A” side bracket we will start at the bottom as said before. The first match in the sub bracket for 5th place was between Siddhus and Redsus. Unfortunately Redsus dropped out of the tournament therefore making Siddhus the victor and moving him into the 5th place game. Siddhus’s opponent in the 5th Place game will be decided in a matchup between the tournament host Ricer and your very own N0HBDY. Ricer would pull out to an early start in the series taking game one, but then would lose game 2 of the series making it 1-1. After much anticipation the third game was held and the victor who would move onto the 5th place game to play Siddhus was Ricer, taking the series 2-1. Then I must also add that with the dropping out of RedSus there was nobody for N0HBDY to play in the 7th place game, therefore N0HBDY was awarded 7th place on “A” side!
 
Now we will move onto the “B” side’s losers bracket with a matchup featuring Vat v BigAl, the teacher bragging earlier about wiping the floor against the kids he teaches is beaten 2-0 by BigAl reporting the score as “Vat a lot - 0 BigAl.” Showing quite an upset ending to the series. Then with the other matchup supposed to be Zetterberg v JCole, Zetterberg drops out of the tournament and tournament director decides to give BigAl a “Redemption series” against JCole. BigAl seizes the opportunity, beating JCole with a vicious 2-0 series to move on and play the person that had just eliminated them, in the 5th place game on “B” side. Also another thing to add that due to Zetterberg dropping out of the tournament there was no opponent for JCole to play in the 7th place game, therefore tournament director Ricer officially awarded the 7th place finish to JCole!
 
Now we jump to the winner’s bracket quarterfinals, featuring “A” side bracket first. The first of only two matchups in this quarterfinals match features Ledge v MattO. This series being knocked out in one day had MattO taking game one, and then proceeding to take the series 2-0 to go to the championship and send Ledge to the 3rd place game on “A” side. The second matchup of the quarterfinals was Cheese v Alex but sadly no scores were given of this series so I can only tell you what I know and that is that Alex defeated Cheese to proceed to the “A” side championship and send Cheese down to play Ledge in the 3rd place match.
 
Now just hold on folks because the end is almost here, we’re at the “B” side quarterfinals. The first matchup and quite an exciting one at that featured fan favorite Hedge v Jhatty. Hedge starts strong taking game one over Jhatty but then game 2 of this series end with a stalemate making the series 1.5-0.5 in Hedge’s favor. If Jhatty could win the next game he could force the tournaments first ever game 4. But Hedge with ice in his veins he cuts Jhatty’s hope’s and dreams down by ending the series 2.5-0.5 advancing to the place he failed to go last year, that being the championship. With the last matchup of the quarterfinals in general now we had another exciting series, this time between Tac v Phil. With the first game of the series ending in a stalemate they would move onto the second match where Tac would come out on top and then proceed to take the series next match and move on to play Hedge in the “B” side championship.
 
Now the stage is set, if you have read all 1600+ words so far, props to you. Both 5th place, 3rd place, and 1st place matches are set and I will begin with the 5th place matches and work my way up.
 
On “A” side the 5th place match is set between Siddhus and Ricer. After a not so strong first match by tournament host Ricer he gives up game one to Sid. After a brief period of time and a Canucks game, game #2 commences between Siddhus and Ricer. Another not so strong performance by Ricer will lead to his demise as he falls to Siddhus in the 5th place match 2-0.
 
Now to the “B” side 5th place match between BigAl and Vat again, with this series being possibly the most exciting of the entire tournament. Even after BigAl has openly admitted to cheating to get to this match he will play on and lose the first game to Vat. BigAl will quickly strike back in the series right after dropping game one by taking game 2 over Vat to tie the series 1-1. The two competitors move into their 3rd game of the afternoon right after which ends in a stalemate forcing the tournaments second game 4. They decided on waiting till the next day for the game to happen as to be best prepared and in game 4 of the “B” side 5th place game Vat would come out on top to win the series.
 
Now that the lower matches are finished it’s time to get to the matches you may be more interested in. I’ll start with the “A” side 3rd place match between Cheese and Ledge. Sadly as much as I would like to make this as dramatic as possible there was no single game score given, only a series score to report the winner, but I will make due with what I can. Game 1 between Ledge and Cheese I can only assume went in Ledge’s favor as well as the second game because Ledge sweeps Cheese 2-0 to take the “A” side 3rd place title.
 
With the last series before I get to the championship games I’m sure you readers out there are just dying to know who won. I will get to that very shortly but every match matters. The “B” side 3rd place match was held with Phil taking on JHatty. But yet again there was no single game score given each time but luckily there was no random order this series could have gone as Phil defeats JHatty 2-0 to claim the “B” side 3rd place title.
 
Finally folks the moment you have all been waiting for. The championship matches, with “A” side featuring Alex v MattO, and “B” side featuring Tac v Hedge.
Thank you for reading this please feel free to critique my writing skills, it will get better in the future. Thank you to @Ricer13for hosting such an amazing tournament that I truly look forward to competing in each season.
Stay tuned for PT.2 of the recap!
 
 
2,174 Words - 4 week claim
 

Ah yes final day of season is coming and unfortunately I don’t think we make it this season into wild card or playoffs. However it was a fun season and we brought in some good players with having no expectations it was a hell of a fight that we made it close into wild card as of now but came up short I think sadly. either way your Calgary Wranglers will hit the good old booze tonight and have a party to celebrate how far we’ve come this season
 
- brought in guys like @Phil who really broke out and did amazing for us. 

- @Ricer13 first season as a gm and did one hell of a job

 
- got @tinafrombobsburgers in and yes we did feed our lovely fat lard. You were just a blast to have in the room and for being on the team. 

 
@TacticalHammer   you made your rookie season something to give the future of this team to be excited about. You will be the one leading when we’re gone and old. Keep earning and getting shit done. 
 

@Eso for being fun  and being absolutely rock solid especially down our stretch (and for sharing your wife  )  loved having you in the LR. Keep grinding the tpe! 

 
@GooningitupI think this team owes you one big time. I’m sure you know how I feel about you but you stood on your head this season to get us to where we are and stole some games for us. You had one hell of a season to be proud of. From all of us thank you for being the tender we needed. You were the MVP on this team.

 
@Greg_Di   you on the backend leading the team and being a leader helped us put up the fights we needed in those big moments. Having you on the blueline and being on a pair was something I enjoyed. Keep up the good work as always your having a great career my friend. Keep being that solid piece for us. 

@Jtv123   LUKEEEE amazing work and I’ve enjoyed being in the Lr with you, you were here when I arrived and welcomed me with open arms and have really been what I’d call Wrangler blood. Keep earning and being active you have a great player, personality and overall fun to be around. I’m excited for your season next season. I think you’ll be even better. 

we’ve done quite abit and came along way from having no expectations to being a bottom team too pushing to wild card till then end and I honestly can’t wait to see what the future of this team holds for us. Anyways win loose we hit the booze fellas and then come back ready for next season better then ever! You all did a great job and I think we all can only build off and get better to gear up for a better season into the next.
 
 
Thanks for the enjoyment and just being good Lr. This team has been nothing but fun to be on and having no expectations for next season makes it even more interesting and fun to be apart of. Remember to keep grinding the tpe and to enjoy some time off with our lovely gross sponsored hot dogs! Cheers fellas!!!
 
To the rookies coming up, be ready. Your going in for a ride! Let the offseason begin!! 

“Since I didn't make the Top-10 in the draft, I have a new Top-10 list now - a Hit List of those who were drafted ahead of me. I'm coming for you.”
 
Those words were uttered by Malmo rookie right winger Druss Deathwalker at his post-draft online press conference after being selected 11th overall in the S77 VHL Entry Draft. Many scouts felt the huge power forward was guaranteed to be selected in the first ten spots but a run on defensemen saw him drop just outside to 11th - a fact he was not happy with.
 
“To be frank with ye, I was fairly mad - and still am,” said Deathwalker during a recent post-game interview. “I haven’t forgotten. It fuels me. I wasn’t joking - I have that hit list and I’m crossing off names.”
 
When asked if his fellow S77 draftee was serious about the hit list, teammate Brendan Telker nods vigorously. “He’s completely serious!” he confirms. “I’ve seen the list hanging in his stall. He has the upcoming games circled on a calendar and the list right beside it. Only four names are crossed off but you’ll have to ask him about that.”
 
Deathwalker is indeed crashing his way through the league. With only 12 points to his credit to date, he hasn’t lit the scoreboard on fire yet, but he is climbing up the hits leaderboard and currently sits 8th with 274 hits which leads all rookies and the Nighthawks.
 
League game files show that Deathwalker's hit list got an early start as he crunched Davos’ 2nd overall pick, Reylynn Reinhart in Malmo’s sixth game of the season. 3rd overall pick, Duncan Idaho of Moscow was the next name off the list, getting hit by Deathwalker five games later. Then it was Toronto’s Asher Reinhart (6th OV) who got smacked twice in Game 115. Idaho’s Menace teammate and 1st overall pick Paul Atreides was the latest victim as he was sent flying by Deathwalker six games ago in Game 472.
 
   
Deathwalker lays the boom down on Duncan Idaho and Asher Reinhart.
 
There are four names left for this season as New York’s Zeedayno Chara (4th OV), Calgary’s Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr (7th), Helsinki’s Aurelien Moreau (9th), and London’s That Dude (10th) have thus eluded Deathwalker's intent. Riga’s 8th overall pick, Jan Hlozek, has yet to play in the VHL this season. Malmo has games remaining against New York, Helsinki, and London but their series against the Wranglers has finished so Deathwalker will have to wait until next season for a chance to cross Fizzlebeef Jr off his list.
 
Meanwhile, in spite of trading away key veterans Marshall John Frostbeard and Chris Hylands, the Nighthawks find themselves squarely in the playoff race as they are tied with Davos for the last play-in spot but Riga and Moscow are also within three points.
 
“I want to play my best hockey,” said Deathwalker. “I won’t let my personal vendetta get in the way of us potentially getting to the playoffs. But, if the opportunity presents itself, to cross another name off of my list, I won’t hesitate to lay them out. As for Fizzlebeef and Hlozek, just know I will take note of our games next season and I will be ready and waiting!”
  
Mentions: @Telkster @Mr_Hatter @Ricer13 @OrbitingDeath  @Jubis @rjfryman @TacticalHammer  @Bojovnik @Frank @Cornholio @FrostBeard @Hylands
 

How was being back for 35 minutes

~900

yeah we all just text "i'm here" now

I know I’m rarely around anymore, but good to see that my 1+ seasons as VHLM GM and subsequent loss of big time interest in the VHL, may not have been just a problem with me lol

In a season of change for the Calgary Wranglers much of this season is uncertain, but that does not halt the motivation of the General Manager and his young star studded team. 
 
Eight games into this season the Wranglers sit 3-5-0 ( 6 points ) with a minus twelve in goal differential and second last in the division. “We have a ton of new faces this year and it might take some time getting used to each other and finding that right chemistry, but this is a great group in that locker room; I’m positive we will figure it out” said captain Luke Thornton. 
 
At this point in the season there is a four way tie for team lead in points ( 8 ) which includes - Forward Jonas Stormsson , and three DEFENCMEN!! Cowboy Prout , Tom Eagles , and Rolf Fizzlebeef jr.  Behind them with 7 points in 8 games this season is first year Wrangler Nathan Perry; “it has definitely been an adjustment coming to Calgary from across the world in London but Ricer really went out of his way to make me feel comfortable and welcomed! I really like what we are building here” 
 
Calgary’s special teams is running at a respectable 14.71 percent for the powerplay and 79.49% for the penalty kill, I believe the coaching staff knows they can improve on both these fronts but it is not necessarily their down fall to this point in the season.  
 
In net goaltender Vsevolod Askarov is sporting a .897 save percentage and 4.50 goals against average; “I need to be better... bottom line, I know I’m capable of more and I think I can be the best in the league” said Askarov after his teams 6-3 loss to the Los Angeles Stars. In reality Askarov is far from the problem, he is getting peppered with shots game in and game out; he can only do so much while he waits for the rest of the team to catch up to the competition. 
 
General Manager @Ricer13 was recently interviewed about the current state of his team.   “ The first two weeks so far with the team have gone better than expected. Everyone on the roster has bought into the fact that this will be a developmental season for us. Our 3-5 record is something we are proud of not disappointed with”.  
 
@Ricer13would go more in depth on what he realistically expects this season and what he and his staff expect in the near future; “My expectations for this season are for everyone to put the work in to improve each and every week. It’s going to be a group effort to get this team to where we want to be. If each player can buy into that then next season we could be making our way into the playoffs. As for this season from a standings perspective we have no expectations set for ourselves. We want to compete every night, make life miserable for our opponents, and if we manage to sneak into the playoffs then that’s an added bonus. It’s going to take a group effort to achieve a goal like that this season!” 
 
 
 
The Wranglers are primed to get better and better as this season goes along and it won’t be a long wait until they’re into the playoffs and making some noise, maybe even by seasons end. 
 
 
594 words! 
 
 

you've seen master apology posts, now get ready for: master /thank you for your contribution/ post!!! There are too many pages at this point for me to quote people's responses because it's incredibly inconvenient to do so, so stick with me as I try to figure out the best format.
 

@Devise, you said, "Sure, I have no problem clarifying, and for the record when I said hyperbole I mean the use of specific phrases. I genuinely think this is a constructive media spot for the most part, I just feel like phrases like that coming from staff with access send a larger message than you may be intending. As an example, when you say "We don't know what's going on in the BoG" the uninformed, who haven't seen the update your talking about use that as a narrative to say "the BoG is hiding what they are doing and never has released an update about their accounts.""
 
Thanks for the clarification. It's helpful for me to understand how my words are being interpreted, and I appreciate that you brought this to my attention. I'll keep it in mind moving forward.
 
With that being said, @Advantage, I've realized that my post may have come off as "you were doing this thing, then stopped, so you suck." I hope you know that was never my intention. I've greatly appreciated the BoG updates that you've shared, and by bringing them up, I was hoping to give you a hat tip for the work you've put in. Thank you for your contributions to this thread and the community through your updates!!
 
@Fire Vigneault, you said, "I feel like there's some sort of mystique about the BoG or people thinking we're more important than we are."
 
After reading the responses in this thread, I think I have a better understanding to where this sentiment comes from. One of my goals with the post was to understand why BoG members kept saying this. In my very humble opinion, it feels condescending to hear, "well, we're not paid, and it's not really a big deal that we exist/who is on the Board." There's an inherent degree of privilege that comes with sitting on the Board of Governors in the same way that there is privilege in being a Commissioner, staff member, or GM. Those groups have access to information that isn't available to the general public (and I'm not necessarily saying that it should be different); smaller groups mean that individual voices carry more weight.
 
"It's literally a group of individuals who are able to have focused discussions about possible changes to the league. Key word is "focused" - there's a reason that not all discussion or decisions is opened up to the league at large. It becomes much harder to stay on topic and keep a focused conversation about a single topic." from @Fire Vigneault
and
"BoG is not perfect and never will be. It's a conglomerate of minds who are used as opinions to help Blue Team make a final decision. They are advisers and had only have power on HOF and Awards really." from @Rayzor_7
 
These are two of the best explanations of the Board that I've seen. It helps me understand where you're coming from when you say that the BoG isn't that big of a deal and why you all feel that being distinguished from the rest of the community is inappropriate. Thank you for these contributions, they're really helpful for me to get your perspective on the conversation.
 
@Quik thanks for your post, pal. We've chatted a bit about it and what you mention in your post is pretty similar to the thoughts already shared. I appreciate your contribution.
 
@bigAL, you said, "Yeah but everyone else on here is arguing for everyone to be on the governance committee (either by abolishing it or opening every BoG discussion to the public for unfettered input)."
 
I surely hope this isn't how my post is being interpreted. I never said that we should get rid of the Board, nor did I say that your discussions should be open to the public. Someone else also commented with a similar sentiment, suggesting that I (or someone else) proposed that all discussions be opened up. I'm just clarifying: that's not the case. Advantage's posts were a great example of how to keep the community in the loop without leaving a whole lot of room for the general membership of the league to feel that we should have a voice in those discussions.
 
As the conversation continues, I'm going to put a couple additional notes about things I said in my OP.
 
First, the idea of public votes is shit. I'm taking it back. There's no good way to do it, and until the community trusts the BoG (and vice versa) to make the best decisions that they can, public voting isn't the move. Those of you who pointed out that it could be memed to hell may be right or wrong, I don't know. I want to believe you're cynics, but at the end of the day, I agree that public voting raises a handful of serious and valid concerns that simply don't need to be an issue. Thanks for the feedback on that idea.
 
Second, a few members (again, I don't really feel like going to find exactly who, so hopefully you're reading this) pointed out that the BoG hasn't been doing much lately, hence the lack of updates. That's fine. Cool cool cool. However, I'm asking you to realize that I didn't (and still only have a shaky idea) know what kinds of topics you're involved in the conversation with, e.g., GM hirings. If I don't know what kinds of topics are discussed, then I can't know whether conversations are happening. Therefore, I can't know whether we haven't received an update because conversations simply haven't been happening or if we're being left out of the loop.
 
Third, as @GustavMattiaspointed out in one of his posts, "This is why I'm saying this debate is a two-way street--I want to help the community and so does everybody else. I want to listen to constructive criticism and so does everybody else. Points that aren't points at all but are rather just "lol stupid BoG is dumb and bad" accomplish neither of those things."
 
Nothing can change if members on both sides of the conversation are willing to listen and compromise. This means that attacking the Board is an ineffective way to try to force change. Memeing about nuking the BoG is fun, yeah, but I'm worried that the meme has gotten to a point where the community has trouble taking the conversation seriously. Members of the Board of Governors ought to be open to feedback, which, from this thread, I would say that they're obviously listening; on the flip side, non-members need to understand that sometimes our ideas are misplaced or simply not the best option. As with any discussion, it's difficult to accept that sometimes your own ideas aren't the best ones. It's also difficult to separate the negative feelings that some people have about the Board from what they're saying - the Board responding to my post isn't them necessarily being defensive (though, let's be real, neither side of the discussion has been perfectly behaved). I made a post about the Board, the Board responds. Exactly as it should be.
 
Finally, although I hoped it would be made clear in my OP, I am reiterating that this post 1) is by no means an attack on the BoG and 2) aims to bridge a gap that we have created. Regardless of whether you think that the gap is warranted, I think we can collectively agree that conversations about the Board of Governors get hot very quickly. I don't see a need for that. If members are voicing concerns, the BoG ought to listen. As we saw with the simming complaints, they'll respond as they see fit. Does that mean that I agree with every decision? No. That's not the point - the point is that there's no good reason to create a divide between members of a community intended for enjoyment.
 
At this point, I still think the league would greatly benefit from a formal post that is readily accessible for future reference from the Board of Governors (or Commissioners) explaining your role. I now have a better idea of what that is, but I think the community would greatly benefit by having that information shared publicly. BoG members consistently say that the community had made the BoG mystical, but I think that is (in part) due to the fact that you all exist, and there's not a whole lot of easily accessible information about your role here.
 
I appreciate the constructive feedback I've received so far. To those who have given it, thank you for your patience.

Before I go on my little tangent/opinion piece I'll say it for y'all: Oh look a GM and Ex-BoG member who's part of that asshole Seattle crew
Okay with that out of the way
 
A lot of what I was going to or wanted to touch on was already done or touched by another great member in the likes of Beketov, Gustav, Devise and so forth but I'll go anyways.
 
"I think the BoG should be abolished or at least drastically downsized" ~Dmax
So I don't really get this. BoG is an advisory role. Blue Team has 100% power (unless somethings drastically changed) and can ignore BoG if wanted. That said the tendency was to find a middle ground. Size of BoG should be kept to sub 15 imo and it is as such atm (from my count).
 
"as a regular everyday user, can have even a tiny bit of input to be made into consideration" ~Jiggs
You can and do. What can be public is public. You could chime in on the BoG update threads or open up a suggestion thread. I'm sure you want to hear you can have more direct but it's nye impossible to open it up without giving the entire league an option. 
 
"we just got an update in February. And, well, quite a bit has happened since then" ~Fishy
Touched on by another member but I'll reiterate. Yeah we had 4 GM changes and a commish step down. Historically BoG had some ability to input suggestions but commissioners have the final shortlist and final say. I can't speak on anything else but doesn't seem like much else would be going on atm
 
"It's literally a group of individuals who are able to have focused discussions about possible changes to the league. Key word is "focused" - there's a reason that not all discussion or decisions is opened up to the league at large. It becomes much harder to stay on topic and keep a focused conversation about a single topic." ~Flyers(?)
To put it simply: Fucking Ditto
 
"I bet there’s a BoG thread telling all members to assemble in this thread to defend the board" ~Dasboot
Based on history there wouldn't be a thread but it would be mentioned/discussed. But never encouragement to to go *Defend the BoG from the public*. Just what can/should we do to understand/address what's going on
 
"This is why I'm saying this debate is a two-way street--I want to help the community and so does everybody else. I want to listen to constructive criticism and so does everybody else. Points that aren't points at all but are rather just "lol stupid BoG is dumb and bad" accomplish neither of those things." ~Gustav
Again just one I want to Ditto on and reinforce
 
So for my little TLDR:
BoG is not perfect and never will be. It's a conglomerate of minds who are used as opinions to help Blue Team make a final decision. They are advisers and had only have power on HOF and Awards really.
BoG isn't out to get you or anyone else
BoG's "We've discussed that before" is actually true almost every single time. I've been there and been through the entire history of what's accessible to BoG. There's not much that hasn't been suggested before. BUT, that's not to say that those suggestions should be dismissed. There are times in the past we had told someone it's been suggested before and then brought it up internally to run it through again in a new capacity to confirm it doesn't make sense now as did it then.
 
BoG get's shit on and thrashed far more than is needed and I don't understand where all of the hate sprouted from. They're good people and do their best to improve and help manage the league as a whole through their input.

Not as much as you might think that would require an update. As we have mentioned before there’s a large discussion going on in regards to potential roster room issues but we aren’t ready to discuss our actual plan for that yet. Outside of that there was a small discussion about tiebreakers but that’s about it. End of the season is when we get into HoF and award discussion and voting so that takes up a lot of time and effort.
 
As @GustavMattias alluded to there isn’t as much going on in the BOG as people like to think. Not having weekly updates doesn’t necessarily mean a lack of transparency, it could easily just mean a lack of things worth updating.
 
Ultimately the issue with transparency (and I don’t mean I want none, just that it can’t be an open window) is three-fold.
 
First, that if everyone in the league is involved in every decision nothing will ever get done because there are too many opinions. So if we give every bit of information out on paper it’s great, everyone gets to be involved, but in practice it’s a nightmare of too many cooks in the kitchen. For example, just in the “limited” group of the BOG the Miami expansion had a 9 page discussion, at least 4 pages of which were just arguing over the logo because everyone has different opinions on what is too detailed or too “e-sports” or whatever. 9 pages for a single team; and that’s not about the expansion draft or rules or anything else, those were basically already set in stone. That was just the location, name, and logo amongst like a dozen people. Take that discussion and add 200 more opinions, it all becomes noise. Now take that noise and apply it to a more major discussion and you see the problem of too many voices being involved.
 
Second, the league can maintain absolutely no surprises. For some this may be a bonus but let’s be honest, people on the whole like hyped up announcements a big surprises and shakeups. You get none of that if everything that’s open for discussion is laid out on the table. Trust me, I used to get much more hyped for big changes when I didn’t know it was coming than I do being the one to announce it.
 
Third, and Gus kinda touched on this, there is a certain degree baseline level of anger, be it trolling or otherwise, aimed at the BOG from the moment someone is added. Doesn’t matter that their behaviour and opinions don’t change, as soon as they get in they get a target in their back because some members like to think of the BOG as some kind of secret club that only the elite get into. How is this a problem with transparency? Quite simply that too much transparency means risk of this baseline anger being directed at a specific member for holding a specific opinion. Get that enough and your will to have an opinion, or at least voice it, diminishes.
 
I’m not trying to be argumentative here and I know Gus and @Devise aren’t either but there is definitely a certain level of “transparency” being a moving target in the league. People demand it, we make changes, and then still get screamed at that it isn’t enough. I get if people are frustrated but it’s good to remember that the frustration goes both ways. On the whole the BOG are just active members taking time out of their day to try and better the league (with no pay for it I might add) so it tends to come off harsh when the finger gets pointed at them for not doing enough.

That's more an issue of a voter abusing their power than an issue with the system itself. Which is the primary reason people want more transparency in the voting process to prevent those kinds of malpractice. Not everyone is going to agree on every award, and there's always going to be some element of bias (even if it's just subconsciously, that's human nature) but voters should be able to give reasoning to their votes. If someone isn't participating in discussions or giving their reasoning elsewhere, then they vote in a direction that is vastly different than the ways the conversation was going, then chuck out their vote. 

Feelings will be hurt.

Smh the disrespect. Fizz going top-5 or he retires.
 
(Jk fantastic article)

There has been monumental change in Calgary this offseason; From a roster that includes 7 new players to a revamped discord locker room, it has definitely been an adjustment period for the team under its new management. However, what remains untouched is the irrefutable pride that is felt from top to bottom in this organization. General Manager @Ricer13 just concluded his first VHL draft, which comprised three draft picks. In this article, we will take a closer look at the three selected players and their outlook for the upcoming VHL/M season.
 
D - Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr @TacticalHammer  
For the second straight season, Calgary opted for a defenseman with their top pick. At 7th overall, they selected Las Vegas’ Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr. This is an exciting pick for the franchise, as Fizzlebeef can step up and immediately make an impact with the big club. He is a steady two-way force on the blueline, and can be relied upon in any situation. After a 57 point campaign with the Aces in S76, the Canadian blueliner will round out the top four for the Wranglers this season; This unit also contains Kosmo Kramerev, Tom Eagles, and the recently extended Cowboy Prout.
 
On top of the immediate impacts that come with this selection, let me put things into perspective for the long run. Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr is one of only seven S77 players to have never missed one capped TPE since creating, and that would suggest that his growth is easily sustainable over the long run.
 
TacticalHammer’s last player, Roll Fizzlebeef, was a Wrangler for five seasons. He amassed 1113 TPE and 433 points in that career, and will look to top those numbers with his new player. Here’s to hoping that this run in Calgary will be even more successful than the last!
 
D - Joe Madison @Brewins15 
Following a 14th overall selection from the Wranglers, Joe Madison would go on to be chosen 5th overall by Mississauga in the VHLM Dispersal Draft. Madison will look to improve on his 21 points in S76 as he slots into the Hounds top four right away. 
 
It is no secret as to why Brewins15 and Joe Madison are such a hot commodity in the draft for any VHL/M team. Madison is a steady TPE earner who has averaged 10.25 TPE per week since creating, and he has a solid build as well. He is sure to be an important part of the team’s defense after a development season in S77. Brewins15 is also a fine member who leaves a positive footprint everywhere she goes. She was already in Calgary’s locker room prior to being drafted there, because when Ricer wanted to spark life and conversation into his new team’s locker room, she was the first one he called upon.
 
Also the AGM in Los Angeles, Brewins15 is a fantastic addition to this organization considering everything she does. Calgary is ecstatic to have this player and member, and they will hopefully achieve great things together.
 
RW - Russell Dixon @Rjdixon01 
With their only pick outside the first round, the Wranglers took American winger Russell Dixon. Ricer was familiar with Dixon from his time as GM in Miami and knew he would be a worthwhile pickup.
 
The 37th overall pick has a very balanced build, with many attributes hovering around the 50-53 mark. If he keeps earning TPE consistently through portal claims and press conferences — and perhaps even more through other mediums — Dixon will provide Miami with crucial secondary scoring in a competing season. He will be playing for tinafrombobsburgers in Miami, who is their AGM and additionally a member of the Wranglers squad with his player. Not to be forgotten, Wranglers prospect ClapbombsRUs will also be in between the pipes for the Marauders. It is safe to say that Calgary will have a close eye on the team this season, even ignoring the obvious ties from Ricer’s tenure there.
 
Russell Dixon may need a season or two of accruing TPE before he joins the big leagues, but he is definitely a really exciting name to keep an eye on in the future. The Wranglers truly believe that they have struck gold with this pick, and they have a ton of confidence in the young winger.
 

 
Calgary is poised for greatness in the coming seasons, and this draft is just building the foundation upon which they will do so. I wish all of these players the utmost success in S77, and I hope you all enjoyed reading this article!

This comment makes me uncomfortable. 

Welcome to the VHL class of 77. Hope you enjoyed the draft.

This comment makes me uncomfortable. 

@Prout@TacticalHammer@tinafrombobsburgers@Eso@Ty343@Boragina(Sorry no more place for one more) @Firekiss@Lilpfigher

Salutations VHLiens,
 
Welcome to the league's most anticipated VHL.com written article of the season, with the 8th-annual Bust or Lick draft review. You know the rules, there aren't any. I decide if the players are going to be good or not, based on logic and reasoning I don't have to back up or even divulge. Basically it's VHL Award voting if it were just one person and it was a draft review instead of awards.
 
Let's get it.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
*** TRIGGER WARNING ***
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
*** TRIGGER WARNING ***
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BUST OR LICK - S77 VHL ENTRY DRAFT
 
 
 
1.  Paul Atreides - @Mr_Hatter - I haven't even looked at picks 2/3/4 yet but this strikes me as the obvious #1 choice of the draft class. BoL has never had anything but licks at the 1st overall position, and that.......... IS FINALLY OVER. I got love for Hatter and he had an exceptional first-gen career. To not be long-winded, here's why it's a bust. The actual good MOS core is now gone with the mastermind of it all, Big Vic, stepping down. Hatter had a great rookie career, but it was on the backs of actual VHL legends like the philly bros and a certain iconic member who hatter also robbed of trophies. MOS under someone besides Victor is nowhere near the same tier of aura that Raymond Bernard was a part of. Hatter looks to build his first skater and should also sophomore slump in terms of career quality, just because that is very possible of happening on a team I think is not looking to revive the S70 glory days anytime soon. BUST.  *shocked gasps* 
 
2.  Reylynn Reinhart - @Ricer13 - Davos slides in with a lotto pick here and Gustav manages to probably fumble the bag with a BUST. I still haven't looked at who's pick 3/4 but here's the problem with this pick.... Ricer13 is well-liked and his name hold weight in the VHL community, but he's a fucking VHLM legend. His time and energy is dedicated to whatever goes on in the VHLM. There's no problem with this, and VHLM legendary members like him are necessary and do great work, but it doesn't translate to VHL success. I had to look up his last player (Kris Rice) and saw a decent PPG but cobwebs in the trophy cabinet. 1 of 2 things happens here, his VHL player is average again cuz he's committing his focus on his VHLM duties, or he gets a VHL GM job and fucks your team over that way. Bag = fumbled but it could be worse depending on who's left in the 1st round. Edit: It's far worse now that I saw pick 3.
 
3.  Duncan Idaho - @OrbitingDeath - Oof. This pick ruined BoL S77 for me, personally. Legendary VHL member who really isn't even visibly active on VHL yet still cranks out dominant HoFer after HoFer. This pick does dilute some of what I wrote about MOS in pick 1, as Green brings a monstrous aura to any team and has winning pedigree. However, I'll stick with my claim and hedge my bet on MOS without Victor being meh and predict this plays out as a Condor Adrienne situation with Green statpadding individual awards but no major team success. You obviously can't give this pick anything other than LICK status though. So the full-BUST-draft dream ends here.
 
4.  Zeedayno Chara - @Jubis - Yes! One of my original BUSTs has come full-circle to re-appear in the BoL rankings! I guess it makes sense since this is the 8th edition, but it didn't dawn on me until this pick. Jubis is a member with kind of a mixed reputation amongst the VHL, but for my money he's pretty good shit. I assume this is his second go at a career, and he comes with a big d-man build. There's something about esso's aura that gives me hope for NYA, but I've been saying that for like 8-10 seasons now, and it's gone absolutely nowhere. Definitely has the ability to crank out a HoF-tier player, but how can I give Jubis anything but a BUST? He never got a chance to throw player1's career back in my face, so I'll give him another chance with Zeedayno here. 
 
5. Brendan Telker - @Telkster - Very solid pickup here from rookie GM hylands, and I have some good history with Telkster as he was a part of Moscow's glory years as a very solid role player and iirc might have been the man to wear the C after Jaguar. Telkster is much like green IMO, a pretty grey-man type VHL member who doesn't cause much drama on the league stage so is kind of underrated but is committed to their team/player. I think hylands is capable of steering Malmo to success, so this is an interesting pick for me. I hope Telkster's second career is more all-star-tier calibre instead of role player, but I have to be convinced. BUST.
 
6.  Asher Reinhart - @rjfryman - Massive oof here for picks 2, 4, and 5. fryman coming for his second career after a dominant showing with career 1. Can't go with anything but a LICK here even though he's going to a cursed franchise. Peace with possibly his first good 1st round pick of his tenure might have a player to build a team around here. Haven't spoken too much to fryman lately, so only thing that could go wrong here is him getting disillusioned with VHL and leaving. Look for Reinhart to leave TOR and win cups in late career. 
 
7.  Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr - @TacticalHammer - Could be a decent depth pick here. I remember Roll Fizzlebeef, so I guess this is the same member? Don't know too much about them and it's Calgary.... BUST.
 
8.  Jan Hlozek - @Bojovnik - Hedge committed to his franchise model of unearthing the next great first gens. His sim-team philosophy clashes with mine, and that's okay! He's taken his vision and had success, albeit pretty spread out success, and his S77 first pick does not surprise me. It's a player/member I have never heard of before typing out this article. Good luck to you, young VHLer, may you be the next Mr_Hatter or rjfryman. I wouldn't bet on it though, and I love to gamble. BUST.
 
9.  Aurelien Moreau - @Frank - Great sneaky pick from Jubo here. Frank is a legendary VHL member and has been back in-forum-force lately. He's got the aura and he's been cranking out sigs like a madman so you know he's got the PT capabilities stacked up. Activity is definitely a question, but to try and envision a reality where Frank stays active on VHL is worth it enough for me to throw my dawg a certified LICK status. IMO is worth a top-4 pick in this draft so getting him at 9 is a nice little play by Jubo. Playername is questionable because didn't DaTrifecta have a player named Moreau recently too?
 
10.  That Dude - @Cornholio - Feel like I know this guy but don't know them. Possible SBAer? IDK why but he has the stink of beav on him so maybe his last player was on VAN? Either way, it's London, the player name is cringe, and I can't think of a single reason to support this being a lick so we'll go with the inevitable BUST.
 
11.  Druss Deathwalker - @animal74 - Familiar username but I'm drawing a blank. Could be a good role player for hylands, but this draft class is devolving quickly. Don't know too much about the member, and player name is kinda cool but kinda cringe. Lick detector is basically giving no response anymore. BUST.
 
12.  Gustislav Nasherov - @Vat - Hopefully Jubo knows something I don't because I literally know nothing about this pick/player which isn't a good sign for BoL determination. BUST but good luck to them.
 
13.  Miles Johnson - @Midnite - Pretty solid pick considering the last 3-5 picks but it's Davos and I can't quite piece who the member is together. Possibly an SBAer? Apologies if we have a relationship but I remember very little about sim league affairs. BUST but good luck to ya.
 
14.  Joe Madison - @Brewins15 - Another player/member I have no clue about. Like the last several picks, could be a rare first-gen HoFer but I sincerely doubt it. Probability is low. Good luck to him. BUST. 
 
15.  Hadrian - @bluesfan55 - This could actually be a snipe of a pick by muff. Pretty sure this member has been around sim leagues for awhile, could be an affiliate leaguer, I don't particularly know, or care, but I recognize his username. Obviously not giving a lick out at this point. This draft class looking garbo to me. BUST. 
 
16.  Barron Kruulenstien - @LefLop -  BUST... Just,  BUST. 
 
 
 
Thanks for joining me for another edition of Bust or Lick. Not a particularly strong draft class by any means, but we still unearthed a couple LICKS so nothing wrong with that. This may actually be the lowest number of licks ever given out in a draft class, which is a little unfortunate, but historic never-the-less.
 
See ya for S78 where we will decide the fates of the next generation of VHL stars! 
 
 
[ 3 LICKS  /// 13 BUSTS ]

Smh the disrespect. Fizz going top-5 or he retires.
 
(Jk fantastic article)

Hello everyone, and welcome to yet another edition of the VSN Mock Draft series.  As most of you know I'm MattyIce and I'll be bringing you the first round mock draft!  If you don't know me, I'm still MattyIce and its a pleasure for me to bring this mock draft to you.
 
It's my fourth season managing this list and this draft class was quite difficult to decipher, especially the order.  As I mentioned in my previous article, this draft has NO GOALTENDERS of note, so this isn't the draft to be looking to acquire some depth at that position.  However, there are quite a few gems available, you just gotta dig!  With the rosters filling up and GMs scrambling to get some breathing room under the $40m salary cap, teams are jockeying for position to get a quality player on their entry-level deals, so they can welcome them onto their roster without having to have a nervous breakdown worrying about the cap.
 
This first round class is quite exceptional, just take a close look at these sixteen players that made it to this exclusive list.  Some come from legendary lineage, while some are just beginning the VHL journey to hopeful stardom, or infamy, or whatever.  The point is...
 
Their journey starts, NOW
 
And they're starting it all together.
 
Let's not waste any more time and get to the good stuff...
 
P.S.  All players were interviewed briefly and asked who they thought their NHL comparable model was, some players just chose not to answer, leaving the mystery intact...
 
                                                                                          PAUL ATREIDES   C TPE: 343                                         @Mr_Hatter                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB One of the Houston Bulls gang finds himself at the top with his former teammates (or possibly not). What does Paul Atreides do well? Everything. His scoring prowess is reflected by scoring 42 goals and getting 106 points in his first full (and only) VHLM season, so alot is expected from him. Like Reinhart and Idaho, he comes from a background of success, so that furthers the expectations even more. Can he handle it? I think his development, season performance and a VHLM Founder's Cup Game 7 appearance has shown he's got the goods to acheive whatever he wants. HOUSTON 72 42 64 106 50 329 14 25 8 PLAYOFFS 16 3 11 14 10 60 0 6 7                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Sebastian Aho                                                         2                                                                                         REYLYNN REINHART   D TPE: 301                                         @Ricer13                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Asher Reinhart's twin sister Reylynn Reinhart is a defensive powerhouse. She ticks all the boxes when it come to playing defense. She shoots alot from the point, creating scoring chances for her teammates in the slot off of rebounds and deflections, that is, if the puck she shoots doesn't have eyes for the back of the net. Her shot is wicked, scoring 27 from the blue line and adding five more in the playoffs. Another indicative stat is 58 shots in 16 playoff games, so her ability to create scoring chances from the point is a valuable asset to have. Reylynn is ready, like her twin brother, to step up her game to the VHL level. HOUSTON 72 27 37 64 47 180 48 78 80 PLAYOFFS 16 5 7 12 -2 58 16 14 20                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Meaghan Mikkelson                                                         3                                                                                         DUNCAN IDAHO   RW TPE: 346                                         @OrbitingDeath                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB One of the top three ranked forwards in this draft, Duncan Idaho prides himself on his balanced game. He hits, plays defense and scores, not much to complain about. Except his penalty minutes. You cannot score from the penalty box. Besides that, he's a very fierce competitor, coming from a lineage that has won in the past. Idaho knows what it takes to win, and the Moscow Menace will get the best out of him. Expect him to hit training camp camp running with all that sweet banked tpe, the mold has only begun to take shape... HOUSTON 72 40 40 80 47 302 144 270 14 PLAYOFFS 16 10 8 18 9 71 42 55 4                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Alex Ovechkin                                                         4                                                                                         ASHER REINHART   C TPE: 343                                         @rjfryman                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Asher Reinhart, the twin brother of fellow draftee and Houston Bulls teammate Reylynn Reinhart, has all the tools for success. This youngster has an insane hockey IQ, you can literally find him anywhere he's supposed to be on the ice. Faceoff wizard - check. Two-way acumen - check. Physical strength - check. He has nothing left to prove in the VHLM and he's ready for the next step in his career. If history has shown what his rep can pull off, this kid will achieve Greatness. That's right. Capital G. HOUSTON 72 36 48 84 41 295 50 107 21 PLAYOFFS 16 7 13 20 7 50 8 29 2                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Eric Lindros                                                         5                                                                                         BRENDAN TELKER   LW TPE: 308                                         @Telkster                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Brendan Telker has made an impact since he joined the Minnesota Storm in season 75, getting over a point per game then, and nearly hitting the 60 goal mark and 115 points this past season. Another statistic of note is 367 shots on net, which is absolutely mind-boggling. He even put up nearly two points per game in the post season, that's just bonkers! Does he have anything left to prove in the VHLM? Not a single thing. He's ready to join the big leagues and when he does, expect him to play big and not disappoint. MINNESOTA 72 57 58 115 46 367 30 86 19 PLAYOFFS 8 5 10 15 11 39 14 10 3                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Kyle Connor                                                         6                                                                                         THAT DUDE   C TPE: 283                                         @Cornholio                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB That Dude is coming off a very nice season, racking up the goals with 35 and 239 shots. He likes to throw around the body as well and his defensive ability shines as well, staying at a +27 and getting 86 hits with only 30 penalty minutes. He's the epitome of a very balanced centerman that has a solid foundation to build upon. This offseason, he has the chance to fill holes in his game, or to further advance his strengths. That Dude is definitely a player to look out for in seasons to come, he could be a steal of a pick. MINNESOTA 72 35 40 75 27 239 30 86 10 PLAYOFFS 8 1 3 4 1 29 0 3 1                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE:     ?                                                             7                                                                                         ZEEDAYNO CHARA   D TPE: 252                                         @Jubis                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Another Greenlander in the mix here, Zeedayno Chara hasn't played a full VHLM season, but yeah he's already VHL ready. Which is astonishing in some cases, but Chara comes from solid representation by Jubis. He's a very solid puck-moving defenseman, best one in the draft actually, so I hope you're taking notes! Only two goals to his credit in 36 games, but 27 assists to his name show his real priority: moving the puck to forwards who can thread that needle. He's a quick skater, can handle the puck quite well and his defensive ability is of VHL top 4 caliber, so he can slot right in and defend anyone, except for the top tier elite VHLers. Give this youngster some time, he won't be left out of top defenseman discussion for long. MIAMI 36 2 27 29 -11 54 34 55 50 PLAYOFFS 6 0 4 4 3 9 10 5 10                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Zdeno Chara                                                         8                                                                                         DRUSS DEATHWALKER   RW TPE: 276                                         @animal74                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB This player is a special breed of hockey player. Just read his last name. Cross him and you might get laid flat out on the ice. Perhaps Druss Deathwalker's motivation is just to destroy people. With 335 hits and 153 penalty minutes, this 6'7, 250 pound beast of a player should be visible to anyone with the ability of sight, but that doesn't stop him from mowing anyone (potentially you) down. Don't think he's just a goon out hunting for his next prey though, he can score, defend, handle the puck, and yes, drag his massive carcass up and down the ice, seemilgly withe ease. He's what you want in a prototypical power foward, and he's not apologizing for nearly ripping your head off after laying down the hammer. He's the swiss army knife of this draft, so remember his name folks. Druss Deathwalker. Might be the last name you know. MISSISSAUGA 72 32 46 78 8 299 153 335 30                                         NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Milan Lucic (in his prime)                                                         9                                                                                         AURELIEN MOREAU   D TPE: 250                                         @Frank                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Another special breed of player here. Aurelien Moreau has a very unique skillset that sets him apart from most players. He skates extremely well, hits alot and hits hard, has pretty good hands for a defensive defenseman, and he defends his zone better than most. He pays almost no attention to scoring or passing, which is odd, seeing him put up 60 points is somewhat of a surprise. His -38 stat is also an anomaly, 176 shots from the point, 307 hits and 172 blocked shots are all somewhat not correlated to anything. What is certain about Moreau is that he's something special. His stats do NOT reflect what he can do in the future, so here's to more anomalies! MISSISSAUGA 72 14 46 60 -38 176 176 307 172                                         NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE: Devon Toews                                                         10                                                                                         ROLF FIZZLEBEEF JR   D TPE: 237                                         @TacticalHammer                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Fizzlebeef Jr sure made an impression last season, getting 50 assists with 57 points with the Las Vegas Aces last season. He's so close to being VHL ready though, so don't count on him staying down this upcoming season. Fizzlebeef Jr has all the weapons needed to provide at the VHL level, with quick skating ability and great defensive IQ. He prefers moving the puck quickly forward, but he can handle the biscuit too if he chooses. His -21 stat could be indicative of a weaker than usual Las Vegas team, but that doesn't mean he can't climb to the plus side of things in seasons to come. He would be a welcome addition to this squad who could use his youth and skill moving forward. LAS VEGAS 72 7 50 57 -21 107 89 101 115 PLAYOFFS 4 0 3 3 -1 6 6 10 3                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE TJ Brodie                                                         11                                                                                         BRUSSELS SPROUT   C TPE: 225                                         @Liberty_Cabbage                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Coming in as an oddly shaped 5'5 250 pound fella, he sure can move, and do other stuff as well. Brussels Sprout is quite the balanced player, but his season stats don't reflect what he can do. He was buried on a deep Minnesota Storm lineup, taking his reps when he could. Sprout was a plus 14 with only 18 points, showing he could be on a winning side. His foundation is solid, but he needs another season with the Storm to be ready for a potential season 78 call up, and that's where he can show off how much he will have grown. His skillset is more than sufficient to be dominant in the VHLM, but he needs a bit of work in all areas to get that call up. MINNESOTA 72 2 16 18 14 62 30 43 16 PLAYOFFS 8 0 2 2 3 6 12 13 3                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE Philip Danault                                                         12                                                                                         JAN HLOZEK   D TPE: 196                                         @Bojovnik                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB This diminutive Czech defenseman pretty much exploded on the scene, getting involved in any way he could. He put up an impressive 59 point rookie campaign, playing quite well at both ends of the ice. He also managed to throw the body around and block a decent amount of shots. It could have been anyone's guess that his size could have been an issue, but the naysayers were silenced and he slides close to the middle of the first round. His fundamental skills are very decent and provide a great launchpad for growth, which I most certainly belive he will do. Keep your eyes on this youngster, he has quite alot of potential in future seasons. Just one more season in the M and he will figure out how to be a force. SASKATOON 72 13 46 59 -5 116 96 146 93                                         NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE Zach Werenski                                                         13                                                                                         NIXON CALDWELL   D TPE: 189                                         @Kendrick                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Nixon Caldwell had himself a very nice debut season with the Philadelphia Reapers, and an even more productive postseason, besides being outed in the first round. Putting up 51 points in 76 is very nice, but ten points in five playoff games just shows how much Caldwell adjusted to the playoff battle of attrition. An insane +41 stat shows off his defensive IQ, I didn't even mention the shot blocks, just look to your left (LOL). He's a nicely built defenseman and has no real holes in his game, for the VHLM that is. He isn't VHL ready yet, but he will take it upon himself to reach that next level and be a dominant player. He also comes from a distinguished lineage that produced talented VHL players, so here's to Nixon Caldwell's future! PHILADELPHIA 72 5 46 51 41 66 52 79 96 PLAYOFFS 5 2 8 10 0 5 6 8 14                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE     ?                                                             14                                                                                         MILES JOHNSON   LW TPE: 190                                         @Midnite                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Probably the purest, non-VHL ready sniper available in the first round, Miles Johnson stops at nothing to get that puck to the net to get those scoring chances. Firing 265 pucks towards the goalie and 32 finding the twine, scoring is his specialty. His defensive game and his physical strength are very much lacking though, but he has some time to develop and fill out the holes in his game, especially playing without the puck. He's a great skater and a decent puck handler as well, so if he can solve his defensive lapses, he could be ridiculously effective. Another season in the M may do the trick, and here's hoping he does, because when he does, watch out.     MISSISSAUGA
72 32 28 60 -18 265 16 30 4                                         NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE Dominik Kubalik                                                         15                                                                                         BARRON KRUULENSTIEN   D TPE: 185                                         @LefLop                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Another defensive defenseman finds himself at the end of the first round, Barron Kruulenstien has a very good defensive sense which allows him to move the puck forward and quickly. He hasn't shown a proficient level of offensive IQ, which may or may not work to his advantage, but zero goals and a measly ten shots on net in a 72 game season does leave a lot to be desired. He did play lower in the lineup, so the lack of ice time may have contributed to that. His ability level though is growing steadily, so like most of the draft class, another season at the VHLM level paired with more ice time could see an explosion of output from him. He has the opportunity to improve all facets of his game and reach that next level quite soon. MINNESOTA 72 0 21 21 5 10 30 54 35 PLAYOFFS 8 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 9                     NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE Ryan Graves                                                         16                                                                                         KYLE GLASS   RW TPE: 199                                         @Tbeez99                                                 TEAM GP G A PTS (+/-) SHOT PIM HIT SB Kyle Glass has some really good tools at his disposal, showing what he can do in his first VHLM season with the Halifax 21st. Putting up 58 points and throwing over a hundred hits with only 42 penalty minutes, all while holding very close to an even plus/minus stat shows his hockey IQ to be quite formidable. Don't get me wrong, he's not VHL ready yet, Glass still has some work to do on his game. He could be a dominant player next season for the 21st if he trains properly. He's quite balanced over the board as shown by his play, but what's lacking most is his strength. He's a taller specimen, but still somewhat lanky at 6'3 195 pounds. His overall two-way proficiency isn't what's lacking, so he needs to bulk up and get some strength to muscle around and protect that puck when he's got it. HALIFAX 72 19 39 58 -1 208 42 101 13                                         NHL PLAYER COMPARABLE     ?          

10th? Smh the disrespect. 

10th? Smh the disrespect. 

Picks 1 to 3: https://vhlforum.com/topic/100164-mini-mock-draft/
Picks 4 to 9: https://vhlforum.com/topic/100396-continued-s77-mock-draft/
 
 
10th Overall - D.C:
Although right now this team has some high end players they do not have a lot of depth due to recent retirees. There one glaring weakness is at center where they don't have a player above 300 TPE. They could fix that issue in free agency if they want an immediate fix to stay competitive or they can look towards the future and draft one. imo I think they will go center here and maybe bring in another center to play above him until he grows. With that in mind I think they will take:
 
11th Overall - Malmo:
With there second pick of the draft I believe after bolstering there forward core with Telker they will go with a defensemen here to keep the balance in there roster. If Malmo does choose a defender I think then the decision is obvious. Malmo will take:
 
12th Overall - Helsinki:
Another team with a second selection in this draft. Helsinki is interesting because they are very strong in every position. They could go with another forward here to balance there roster like Malmo but personally I think they will take a risk with this pick and go back to defense where they will select the first "first gen" of the draft: