Fire Tortorella

1.) Well, usually the off-season is for end of season review...but that may not be the best choice this year, haha. Maybe a "where are they now?" for a semi-recent team. 2.) Not really. It's not really a secret that I like to play for either Ottawa or Philly, but I'm totally OK playing for any team. I'm a little surprised I've only had 1 team reach out to me about the draft, but it is still a little early. 3.) Always formal. Look the part, be the part. 4.) I certainly can't! That's getting into Jeevan Samuelsson territory. 5.) I'm gonna go with Ottawa because historically that's been my team - zero research, heart only. 6.) I like the fall - nice and cool out, not as rainy as spring, getting into the holiday seasons.

Fun thread - somehow I missed it when it started. I work in commercial insurance and underwrite something called "inland marine" for a US national insurance carrier - primarily buildings under construction/renovation, contractor's equipment, goods in transit, warehouse legal liability, etc... Tons of my family works in insurance, I went to school for economics thinking maybe I wanted to do that, but then realized it was too much math.

They are different strokes for different folks - I personally can never stay interested in money leagues because most of them pay based on word count (and can be prone to word vomit) and/or allow you to keep your money between players, which I am 100% against. You can also write 1,000 words for 2 weeks of PT, 1,500 for 3 weeks of PT, etc..., which is my preference (I found 1,000 words to be the sweet spot). There is also nothing wrong with doing welfare combined with media spots - again, you're talking maybe 100 TPE over the life of your career? Also, the other alternative is having someone pay for all of this out of their own pocket, which is what we did historically before donations started.

Yeah, Saskatoon is not where I thought it was...I thought it was more so where Kamloops or Banf are (essentially west of Calgary and Edmonton) but apparently it is not!

REVIEW: Overall, a nice interview with good detailed questions and responses. Thought the entire interviewed flowed very well and I enjoyed the *actions* that were included to make it seem more realistic. The only criticism I would have isn't about the article itself, but the formatting. I'm not one to really care about formatting in most media spots, but in interviews, I feel it's slightly more important than usual. My recommendation would be to add some color or additional line breaks between each person speaking in order to make it easier on the eye. Otherwise, a great job. 9/10

REVIEW: Love to hear that the Reapers' locker room is active! I think the VHLM easily has the most active locker rooms on the site. The daily award does sound like a good idea to keep the team active and interacting with each other. As far as waivers and roster sizes, as Jardy said, there's a balance between competitiveness and engagement that can be a really fine line in the VHLM given the high roster turnover. The league used to do something similar to what you suggested, but it was gradually changed to the system today to continue to give more player choice and control over your own player.All in all, never be afraid to make a suggestion on what you think would improve the league. 9/10

With the (temporary?) removal/halting of trivia, I had to find another way to hit the cap, so I'm taking up reviewing again. The problem though was that I had no idea how to actually claim it or how many reviews I needed in order claim 2 TPE. Not to be all boomer and "back in my day", but this is such an easy way to earn TPE compared to the past. I only need to review 2 things in order to get 2 TPE? A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, I had to grade 4 media spots/career tasks in order to earn 1 TPE, and I swear it was 6 at some point but I'm not 100% about that. EZ PZ now. I've completely forgotten/ignored LeClair II since I've retired him, but Chicago is in the playoffs so I should pay more attention to him. I think we have a bye and aren't playing right now. Also, I had the second most hits for a forward and finished with 90ish points - do I have a shot for the Boulet? I guess we'll find out!

1.) I'm grateful for getting the opportunity to showcase my skills in the VHLM. I know that my time in Saskatoon (most likely) will be short, so it was nice to see the city and get my feet wet in this league. 2.) I honestly don't know too much about him, but I wish him best of luck in the role. 3.) Nothing more than just long bus trips to away games. You learn a lot about your teammates on these multi hour bus rides. 4.) Given that I am the goalie, a lot of the guys just do the standard helmet tap, but some guys try to do these intricate routines - I can't keep up with all of them. 5.) Always give your best - if your best won't do, you can at least say you did everything you could. 6.) I'm gonna show up in skater gear and try to get into a game or practice as a skater.

SASKATOON, SASKETCHEWAN - One of the many overlooked parts of young players joining the VHLM is that, for 95% of them, they'll be moving away from home for the first time. For Wumbo, this is no different. Hailing from the City of Brotherly Love, he was picked up by the Saskatoon Wild, meaning he'd have to move to the city on the west coast of Canada. To say there was some culture shock would be a bit of an understatement. No disrespect is meant to the city of Saskatoon, but going from one of the major cities of the US to a small (but growing) city on the other side of the continent was an eye opener. However, Wumbo is determined to make the best of it. Like most people who are relatively forced to move to or visit a new city, one of the first things Wumbo did was to google "what is there to do in Saskatoon". The first response was an article from PlanetWare, so we're going to comment on the top 14 rated attractions & things to do according to this article. 1.) Remai Modern Museum - it's an art museum, and kind of worrying that it's number 1, but while art isn't generally Wumbo's thing, you can usually find a way to entertain yourself for a couple of hours at these things. Not to compare, but the Philadelphia Museum of Art has a large wing of medieval armor and weapons, but I don't think this museum does. According to this website, the museum has some Picasso paintings, which is important I guess, but I couldn't tell you anything about anyone else mentioned here. Again, not hating on art museums (even though I'm kind of hating on art museums), but somewhat worrying this has the number 1 ranking - I'm going to guess this is controversial for Saskatoonians. 2.) Wanuskewin Heritage Park - Now this seems interesting, and so far IMO, should have been number 1. If I'm understanding this correctly, this park is half-museum, half open park, and kind of reminds me of Valley Forge. In a region with limited Indigenous American sites (that I'm aware of), it's always interesting to learn more. This article says that you can sleep in a tipi overnight, which doesn't seem weird in itself, but given the fact this is some type of sacred ground makes this seem kind of weird. 3.) Western Development Museum - This also seems interesting. Learning about history is always fun, and it seems like this museum focuses on the 1900's onward. A lot of the museums and historical sections of Philadelphia (obviously) focus on the Revolutionary War and surrounding time period, so it would be nice to learn more about a different time period. All in all, this seems like it would be fun. 4.) Ukrainian Museum of Canada - Eh. This is nothing against Ukraine or Ukranians, but in general, XXX Museums of YYY just don't really interest me. Again, it's related to history, so I could definitely entertain myself there, but given the subject matter, wouldn't be high on my list for places to visit. 5.) University of Saskatchewan - (side note - by the end of this article, I will be able to spell "Saskatchewan" without having to google it every time). It's always interesting to walk around college campuses, but without either some type of connection to the place or a historical context, it can be limited in entertainment. Similar to the last couple of entries, would Wumbo find a way to entertain himself there? Yes. Would it be on his list of priorities to visit? Probably not. 6.) Diefenbaker Canada Centre - This is also on the campus of the University of Saskatchewan, so I'm a little confused on why this gets its own spot on the list, but it seems like this is similar to the US Presidents Historical Libraries? If so, those are always a fun visit, regardless of who the president was. 7.) Sasktel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival - Art is one thing, but music? No, just no. 8. Saskatoon Farmers Market - Farmers Markets are always interesting. It is enjoyable to find some local food and drink and taste it, but I've also found that you can find some weird people at these farmer's markets. I'd probably have this up closer to 4 or 5 so far, even though the idea of a farmer's market obviously isn't reserved just to Saksatoon. 9.) Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park & Zoo - Why is this not higher? Zoos are always interesting to walk around at least once, and this zoo seems to have some animals that are native to this area of the world that generally aren't seen in other zoos (grizzly bears, wolves, etc...). It would also be interesting to watch a game of cricket, even though Wumbo probably has 0% understanding of the rules. 10.) Taste of Saskatchewan Festival - Now this seems fun. It was interesting to learn that Saksatoon has the most restaurants per capita in Canada. A 6 day festival with 30+ restaurants showcasing their food seems like something to plan your visit around. I actually don't know what type of food Saskatoon would be known for and don't even have a frame of reference to guess. Actually, given the Ukranian Museum there, I'm going to guess Ukranian food. 11.) Meewasin Valley Trail - Seems like it would be fun, but not really something to build or plan a trip around. Don't really know what else to say about this one, since it just seems like it's your typical walking trail by a river. 12.) Prairie Lily Riverboat Cruise - So this seems like a different way to see the sights of Saskatoon. Seems like it would be interesting, but I feel like these things are almost always overpriced for what they give you. This also seems like a straight tour without any type of dining establishment. I would probably still have this one higher though on the rankings, but not sure exactly where. 13.) Beaver Creek Conservation Area - Seems like a nice collection of trails. I think Saskatoon is a bunch of open flat-ish areas and isn't mountainous/hilly, so this doesn't seem like it would be a "hard" hike but more so an "enjoy the nature" type of hike. Is relatively different than what's available in Philly, so this would probably be interesting to Wumbo. 14.) Persephone Theatre - Last but not least, a theater. Seems like they perform both "classic" shows/productions and also other types of events. Seems like your typical run of the mill theater, but could be interesting depending on what is showing.

Waffle fries or curly fries, done extra crispy.

Pepperoni Underappreciate - veggie pizza (broccoli, red onion, etc...) White pizza.

I haven't been anything more than a clicker in a while - got burnt out of earning TPE, so it was nice to take a break. Now I'm back to writing these things and word vomiting discussing my opinions about the VHL. I see there have been many goalies created this season and last season - maybe making a goaler was a mistake, but it's something I've wanted to try again since my last attempt failed miserably. Worst comes to worst I think I can change before the VHL Draft, but maybe that changed now with the VHLE? I don't really plan on doing it so I don't care that much, but I guess it's something to keep in the back of my mind. @WentzKneeFan036 has created "Trade Me", a defenseman who wants to play for every single team in the league. That seems like it'll be very hard to do, but I wonder what the actual record is for most teams played for? I would think that's something someone more interested than me could scrape the portal/index for? You also need to change your name to something better, like "HurtsSucks036" WHERE IS TRVIA???? I come back to max TPE and now I have to get a JOB or REVIEW???

SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN - "He, She, Me...Wumbo?" - what many people are calling the best goaltending prospect in VHL history (and by many, we mean his parents), Wumbo has recently decided to take his talents to the VHL and its development leagues. While he had the opportunity to play in the NHL/AHL/CHL or KHL/VHL/MHL, Wumbo has decided to join the Victory Hockey League. He is following in the footsteps of his mentor, the great mediocre goalie "Bernie G". Bernie was a mediocre VHLM goalie who failed upwards after backstopping his team to a Founder's Cup victory and found zero success in the VHL. He has been able to tell Wumbo to do the exact opposite of what he did in order to find success. "Being able to talk to Bernie has been a huge help for me," said Wumbo leading up to joining the VHL. "He'll be the first to admit that he didn't have the most success in this league, and those are the guys I want to listen to. The superstars like Wayne Gretzky and the Clegane Brothers had too much natural talent, so they are shit coaches. It's the true mediocre, veteran presence guys who always make good mentors and coaches. I'm hoping to become the best goalie this league has ever seen." What is their to say about Wumbo? Obviously that's not his real name, but like those Brazilian soccer players, he'd decided to go by just this made up name. Maybe his real name will become some backstory so I have something to write about in a media spot, but for now, it doesn't mean anything. Wumbo started playing goalie because his team could never find a 6th person who actually wanted to play the position, so he volunteered to do it once or twice. The team obviously got shellacked, as he wasn't very good. Wumbo got sick of losing, so he kept practicing and sent his video on Hudl (or whatever the hockey equivalent is) to Bernie, who agreed to take him under his wing. After officially joining the VHL and declaring himself available for the VHLM waivers, he received two offers - an offer to start in Saskatoon or an offer to back up, split time, and maybe eventually become the starter in Philly. Neither team was very good, so he decided to take the guaranteed playing time in Saskatoon, not to mention that the Wild seemed like a good fit for Wumbo. Now he'll play there for the rest of the season and hopefully put up kind of respectable goaler stats, especially for a waiver player on a....not great team. SO NOW FOR THE ACTUAL IMPORTANT PART AND NOT JUST WORD FILLER - my plans for this player. Those who have seen me post around the board (once in a blue moon) know that I am a huge proponent of "taking players off" - that is, not going full TPE whore on every single player, because that's how you get burnt out on either your 2nd or 3rd player. I've been in this league since...2010? 2011? and have one player that I would consider AWESOME (Smitty W, whose name I already forget how to spell), 1 player that I would consider GREAT (Robin G), and then someplayers who fall somewhere between GOOD with some GREAT seasons (Shayne G, Jeff G), and just BAD (Bernie). My plan is for Wumbo to be at least GREAT - I doubt he'll get to AWESOME since that takes just as much luck with the sim engine and team situations than it does skill, plus that's a lot of writing and TPE earning. Before LeClair II, I moved around with my last couple of players, but that's kind of hard to do as a goalie, since there are only so many starting spots in this league. I'd like to play on one team for my entire career, but we'll see how that goes. Plus there's this whole VHLE thing now and backup goalies are an actual thing, so who knows what a goalie's actual career progression will look like.

Unpopular opinion: Friends > Seinfeld

Get Wild in Sasky with me!

1.) Big fan of pepperjack - good blend of cheese-y and flavor. I also don't really eat cheese that much, so my opinion isn't that strong. 2.) Big fan of just a peanut butter sandwich or a nice Italian hoagie. 3.) How can you not? But once the skates hit the ice, I'm back in my comfort zone. 4.) I'm just looking to continuously improve for this season and for next season. 5.) Well...we could be doing a little better in the standings, but at least we're all having fun! 6.) Probably joining a retirement hockey league...

I think we should move locker rooms to the forum (at the bottom!), uninstall discord, and bring back chat. This would eliminate the issue of not having access to a team's locker room.

#LetsGetWild

@WentzKneeFan036

Player Information Username: Fire Vigneault Player Name: Wumbo Recruited From: Returning Age: 28 Position: G Height: 77 in. Weight: 230 lbs. Birthplace: United States of America Player Page @VHLM GM

Oddly enough, my notifications show the tag from you, but not from Eagles.

No reason to axe it - having to actually work/earn your TPE died in like 2014. If we're going to keep everything easy to earn, at least trivia makes you learn interesting things.

Don't know why this was changed in the first place - I believe at one point a team couldn't have more than 2 first round picks and 2 second round picks for any draft, but that was removed at some point. I think I'm going pretty far back with this though.

My recommendation for this (and what I've done since I joined VHL way back when) is to have players that you know/plan to go max TPE for and then to have players that you plan to not. You can relatively easily make a good players with the potential to have great individual seasons just by doing welfare, the minor TPE tasks, and the career point tasks. I personally don't believe it's possible to stick around here going 110% with every single player, especially if there are other league responsibilities you want as well. No matter how much you enjoy it, burnout is a likely outcome. Like you said though, this is all self-inflicted, so only you know if you'll be able to stay active at 75%.

The old grading system helped a good handful of members learn English/write better English as well.