Grape

(Been sitting on this one for almost a year now. Doing it in parts because I’m a glutton for TPE)

A (long) while back, Gustav made a massive article about the best picks in every single draft in VHL history. It was a massive endeavor and it immediately caught my interest. Perhaps it would be a fun project to look into other things involving the draft. My first thought was trying to find the biggest bust in each draft, but I trashed that idea. In some instances that could be cruel to some members who’s player simply didn’t pan out. Instead, I went and looked into the best players in the final round of every VHL draft. After hours of work and some painful searching, I have finally completed this project. Keep in mind that I will only list players who have registered at least one point (goalies at least one game) in the VHL unless: they are the only player in their draft that had actually played any games; they were drafted in season 84 and up, as they are, to me at least, still considered prospects. Without any more delay, from season 1 to season 88, here are the best players from the final round of the VHL draft.
 
Season 1
Pick 51: Bruce Wayne - D
 
Mr. Wayne proved to be a fantastic player and excellent pick for Helsinki, putting up 42 goals and 100 assists for 142 points as a defenseman in his 289 game career in the VHL. While never winning a cup, he appeared to be a great producer on the blue line and proved to be the top last round defenseman in a final round with 2 other really good defensemen. The only real knock would be his playoff performance, only registering 3 assists in 18 playoff games, but hey, still pretty good for a 7th rounder.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 49: Jeremy Lamborghini - D (27 G, 102 A)
Pick 50: John Pereira - G (0 W, 0.832 SV%, 6.26 GAA)
Pick 52: Marian Oshie - LW (12 G, 24 A)
Pick 53: Waldo Cezar - D (17 G, 77 A)
Pick 55: Jeff Van Slacker - LW (9 G, 15 A)
 
Season 2
Pick 39: Edward Eldred - RW
 
A really really good pick by Calgary, snagging Edward in the 2nd to last pick of the draft, he would end up being a very good player, amassing 145 goals and 218 assists for 363 points in 360 games, barely securing a ppg pace. Edward would also net 8 goals and 23 assists for 31 points in 28 playoff games, and his performance helped his team secure the championship in Season 2 and 3. No other last round pick really came super close to being as good as Edward, with the only argument really being Goldberg.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 33: Chris Orosz - G (2 W, 0.905 SV%, 3.60 GAA)
Pick 34: Chris Maher (13 G, 38 A)
Pick 35: Craig Levver (20 G, 39 A)
Pick 36: Greg Goldberg (162 W, 0.914 SV%, 3.45 GAA, 6 SO)
Pick 37: Patrice Roydeur (95 W, 0.910 SV%, 3.42 GAA, 5 SO)
Pick 38: Nevets Detroit - C (27 G, 62 A,)
Pick 40: Alexei Fedorov - LW (14 G, 16 A, 30 P)
 
Season 3
Pick 19: Edward Holm - LW
 
Holm only needed to play one game or put up a single point to be the best last round pick for the season 3 draft, but he decided to go above and beyond, putting up 142 goals and 312 assists for 454 points in 442 games, hitting that ppg pace. Edward Holm turned into the second Calgary last round steal and their second high scoring Edward. Playoff success was also shown, with Holm getting 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points over 58 games and earning himself a ring in seasons 3 and 8.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 4
Pick 23: Jonathan Coward - D
 
Jonathan Coward turned out to be one of the better players for Helsinki, logging 21 goals and 82 assists for 103 points in 214 games. Playoff performance was a struggle, with 1 goal and 4 assists in 21 postseason games, but he provided a good deal of offense on the blue line, much like late pick Bruce Wayne before him. At the very least, Coward continues the early trend of late round steals being made by either Calgary or Helsinki, with Calgary getting the forwards and Helsinki getting the defensemen.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 18: Jonathan Bernier - G (2 W, 0.839 SV%, 6.93 G.A.A)
Pick 21: Mikael Jonsson - D (9 G, 16 A, 25 P)
 
Season 5
Pick 36: Raul Thundercat - G
 
Raul is the first goalie “steal” and not much can really be said about them. Drafted by Calgary (of course), he posted a record of 9-52-3 with a 0.859 SV% and 6.49 G.A.A, registering 1 shutout in his career. There was not much competition in this late round, so Mr. Thundercat gets off easy in this regard. Cool name though.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 37: Mikhail Prospov - G (2 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.56 GAA)
 
Season 6
Pick 33: Aiden Fox - G
 
Aiden Fox breaks the trend of Calgary/Helsinki late round steals, being picked by Toronto. Unfortunately, however, he did not have the best career. In 13 games, Aiden Fox posted a 0-5-1 record with a 0.890 SV% and 6.50 G.A.A. Likely never being more than a sparsely used backup, Fox had an uneventful and short career, that only benefits from nobody else in the last round of this draft class playing a game.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 7
No VHL Players
 
Season 8
Pick 26: Matt Fletcher - RW
 
Matt Fletcher appeared to be an absolute unit for Riga, generating 139 goals and 179 assists for 318 points in 288 games. I cannot find his postseason data, if there even is any, but I know that he never won a Cup. From what I can gather, he did win the Mikka Virkkunen Trophy for Sportsmanship in season 13, so I can confidently say that Mr. Fletcher is a certified Nice Guy™ 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 30: Jeff McCarthy - C (40 G, 157 A)
 
Season 9
Pick 21: Sean Costello - C
 
Riga drafts another 300+ point player in the last round with Sean Costello, who absolutely runs away with being the best last round pick this season, posting 139 goals and 203 assists for 342 points in 362 games. Again, not much else can really be said due to recordkeeping being quite poor in the early seasons of the VHL (for the non-HoF players at least), but it can be said that he was an excellent player throughout his career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: Ricky Okposo - G (11 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.47 GAA)
Pick 22: Travis Tyson - LW (9 G, 10 A)

Season 10
Pick 31: Prabal Konstantinov - G
 
Third season in a row in which Riga gets the last round steal, this being the only player in this round to suit up for any games. In their 28 game career, Konstantinov posted a record of 15-11-1 with a 0.869 SV% and 3.74 G.A.A. Honestly a pretty admirable win percentage given how few games they actually played. Of course, with no competition in the last round, they’d be a shoe-in even if they lost every game
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 11
Pick 20: Jimmy Ryan - G
 
A Helsinki pick, Jimmy Ryan had a pretty rough 72 game career, posting a record of 9-51-9 with a 0.861 SV% and 4.96 G.A.A. While not the best, he was better than not playing any games at all, and therefore is the best player in the last round.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 12
Pick 23: Harvey Singh - D
 
New York put in a good amount of work in this final round, picking up 3 players, the best of which being Harvey Singh. Singh would go on and pot 129 goals and 160 assists for 289 points in 288 games. The interesting thing about this player is that despite only playing in 3 seasons, they won two championships. The first being with New York in Season 14, and the next being in Season 16 with Riga. A short yet illustrious career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Somalian Tiger - LW (12G, 28A)
Pick 18: Jurgen Ferdinand - LW (12G, 19A)
Pick 21: Dmitry Petrov - RW (5G, 15A)
Pick 24: Tony Pajamas - D (11G, 30A)
 
Season 13
Pick 21: Brian Steckel - RW
 
Not much can be said for this Riga pick. Brian Steckel had a surprisingly long yet unfulfilling career, putting up 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points in 113 games. While the points were not there for the player, something could be said with how long they actually stuck around despite the low offensive generation. I really could not say it was for their defensive game either, having a career +/- of -61.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 14
Pick 27: Steve Collins - LW
 
Collins appears to have been a good player with a short career. A Helsinki pick, Steve Collins put up 50 goals and 81 assists for 131 points in 144 games. From what I could gather, he was an absolute legend in the VHLM, having a 229 point season with Brampton. While he could not translate that dominant play in the VHL, he was still nonetheless a very good player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 31: Koby Kaine - D (21G, 77A)
 
Season 15
Pick 19: Alexander Randoulov - C
 
Alexander Randoulov would turn out to be a pretty decent player for Seattle, putting up 33 goals and 47 assists for 80 points in 145 games. It’s also funny to note that they had an abysmal +/- at -102. Other than that nothing else to say about this player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: HB Illy - G (0W, 0.882 SV%, 3.93 GAA)
 
Season 16
Pick 18: Jardy Bunclewirth - LW
 
Another elite pick by Calgary, hands-down the best last round pick. It’s absolutely insane that this player was picked as low as they were, even though it was a small draft. 432 games, 291 goals, 398 assists, 689 points, Season 18, 19, and 23 champion, hall-of-famer, and certified beautician. 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Blade Hunter - RW (121G, 258A)
Pick 21: Alan Garner - G (9W, 0.832 SV%, 6.09 GAA)
Pick 23: Cam Whitney - D (10G, 31A)
 
Season 17
Pick 30: Matt Douglas - D
 
A bit of a fall-off from that last season’s draft, Seattle’s Matt Douglas had a less than spectacular career, garnering 4 goals and 10 assists for 14 points in 78 games and pretty much nothing else. 
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 18
Pick 29: Robin Big Snake - RW
 
A goated name and a pretty good pick by Madrid, Mr. Big Snake potted 47 goals and 91 assists for 138 points in 360 games. A really solid player who contributed positively for 5 seasons. No rings but still a good pick and player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 32: Magnus Huuskonen - D (1G, 3A)
 
Season 19
No VHL Players
 
Season 20
Pick 27: Einer Kallstrom - C
 
Madrid went and drafted the only player in the final round to break into the league with Einar Kallstrom, who put up a pretty lackluster 0 goals and 4 assists in their 6 game tenure. Honestly pretty impressive for the small amount of games they played.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 21
Pick 30: J.J. Stafford - RW
 
Very solid pick by Riga. Stafford would go on to get 74 goals and 204 assists for 278 points in his 432 game career. He was the only player in the last round of the season 21 draft to make it to the league, and it’s safe to say he turned out to be a pretty good player.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 22
Pick 23: Johnny Blaze - D
 
Drafted by Toronto, Johnny Blaze is a very unique player in regards to this list. Looking at his stats, he never registered a single point. In fact, he doesn’t even have a shot on goal. In his 12 games, he played a purely defensive role it seems.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 23
No VHL Players

(2067 words, see y'all next month)

It appears I'm perfect for the NA conference, but always wrong for the EU conference. So, I'm sorry London

(Been sitting on this one for almost a year now. Doing it in parts because I’m a glutton for TPE)

A (long) while back, Gustav made a massive article about the best picks in every single draft in VHL history. It was a massive endeavor and it immediately caught my interest. Perhaps it would be a fun project to look into other things involving the draft. My first thought was trying to find the biggest bust in each draft, but I trashed that idea. In some instances that could be cruel to some members who’s player simply didn’t pan out. Instead, I went and looked into the best players in the final round of every VHL draft. After hours of work and some painful searching, I have finally completed this project. Keep in mind that I will only list players who have registered at least one point (goalies at least one game) in the VHL unless: they are the only player in their draft that had actually played any games; they were drafted in season 84 and up, as they are, to me at least, still considered prospects. Without any more delay, from season 1 to season 88, here are the best players from the final round of the VHL draft.
 
Season 1
Pick 51: Bruce Wayne - D
 
Mr. Wayne proved to be a fantastic player and excellent pick for Helsinki, putting up 42 goals and 100 assists for 142 points as a defenseman in his 289 game career in the VHL. While never winning a cup, he appeared to be a great producer on the blue line and proved to be the top last round defenseman in a final round with 2 other really good defensemen. The only real knock would be his playoff performance, only registering 3 assists in 18 playoff games, but hey, still pretty good for a 7th rounder.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 49: Jeremy Lamborghini - D (27 G, 102 A)
Pick 50: John Pereira - G (0 W, 0.832 SV%, 6.26 GAA)
Pick 52: Marian Oshie - LW (12 G, 24 A)
Pick 53: Waldo Cezar - D (17 G, 77 A)
Pick 55: Jeff Van Slacker - LW (9 G, 15 A)
 
Season 2
Pick 39: Edward Eldred - RW
 
A really really good pick by Calgary, snagging Edward in the 2nd to last pick of the draft, he would end up being a very good player, amassing 145 goals and 218 assists for 363 points in 360 games, barely securing a ppg pace. Edward would also net 8 goals and 23 assists for 31 points in 28 playoff games, and his performance helped his team secure the championship in Season 2 and 3. No other last round pick really came super close to being as good as Edward, with the only argument really being Goldberg.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 33: Chris Orosz - G (2 W, 0.905 SV%, 3.60 GAA)
Pick 34: Chris Maher (13 G, 38 A)
Pick 35: Craig Levver (20 G, 39 A)
Pick 36: Greg Goldberg (162 W, 0.914 SV%, 3.45 GAA, 6 SO)
Pick 37: Patrice Roydeur (95 W, 0.910 SV%, 3.42 GAA, 5 SO)
Pick 38: Nevets Detroit - C (27 G, 62 A,)
Pick 40: Alexei Fedorov - LW (14 G, 16 A, 30 P)
 
Season 3
Pick 19: Edward Holm - LW
 
Holm only needed to play one game or put up a single point to be the best last round pick for the season 3 draft, but he decided to go above and beyond, putting up 142 goals and 312 assists for 454 points in 442 games, hitting that ppg pace. Edward Holm turned into the second Calgary last round steal and their second high scoring Edward. Playoff success was also shown, with Holm getting 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points over 58 games and earning himself a ring in seasons 3 and 8.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 4
Pick 23: Jonathan Coward - D
 
Jonathan Coward turned out to be one of the better players for Helsinki, logging 21 goals and 82 assists for 103 points in 214 games. Playoff performance was a struggle, with 1 goal and 4 assists in 21 postseason games, but he provided a good deal of offense on the blue line, much like late pick Bruce Wayne before him. At the very least, Coward continues the early trend of late round steals being made by either Calgary or Helsinki, with Calgary getting the forwards and Helsinki getting the defensemen.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 18: Jonathan Bernier - G (2 W, 0.839 SV%, 6.93 G.A.A)
Pick 21: Mikael Jonsson - D (9 G, 16 A, 25 P)
 
Season 5
Pick 36: Raul Thundercat - G
 
Raul is the first goalie “steal” and not much can really be said about them. Drafted by Calgary (of course), he posted a record of 9-52-3 with a 0.859 SV% and 6.49 G.A.A, registering 1 shutout in his career. There was not much competition in this late round, so Mr. Thundercat gets off easy in this regard. Cool name though.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 37: Mikhail Prospov - G (2 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.56 GAA)
 
Season 6
Pick 33: Aiden Fox - G
 
Aiden Fox breaks the trend of Calgary/Helsinki late round steals, being picked by Toronto. Unfortunately, however, he did not have the best career. In 13 games, Aiden Fox posted a 0-5-1 record with a 0.890 SV% and 6.50 G.A.A. Likely never being more than a sparsely used backup, Fox had an uneventful and short career, that only benefits from nobody else in the last round of this draft class playing a game.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 7
No VHL Players
 
Season 8
Pick 26: Matt Fletcher - RW
 
Matt Fletcher appeared to be an absolute unit for Riga, generating 139 goals and 179 assists for 318 points in 288 games. I cannot find his postseason data, if there even is any, but I know that he never won a Cup. From what I can gather, he did win the Mikka Virkkunen Trophy for Sportsmanship in season 13, so I can confidently say that Mr. Fletcher is a certified Nice Guy™ 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 30: Jeff McCarthy - C (40 G, 157 A)
 
Season 9
Pick 21: Sean Costello - C
 
Riga drafts another 300+ point player in the last round with Sean Costello, who absolutely runs away with being the best last round pick this season, posting 139 goals and 203 assists for 342 points in 362 games. Again, not much else can really be said due to recordkeeping being quite poor in the early seasons of the VHL (for the non-HoF players at least), but it can be said that he was an excellent player throughout his career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: Ricky Okposo - G (11 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.47 GAA)
Pick 22: Travis Tyson - LW (9 G, 10 A)

Season 10
Pick 31: Prabal Konstantinov - G
 
Third season in a row in which Riga gets the last round steal, this being the only player in this round to suit up for any games. In their 28 game career, Konstantinov posted a record of 15-11-1 with a 0.869 SV% and 3.74 G.A.A. Honestly a pretty admirable win percentage given how few games they actually played. Of course, with no competition in the last round, they’d be a shoe-in even if they lost every game
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 11
Pick 20: Jimmy Ryan - G
 
A Helsinki pick, Jimmy Ryan had a pretty rough 72 game career, posting a record of 9-51-9 with a 0.861 SV% and 4.96 G.A.A. While not the best, he was better than not playing any games at all, and therefore is the best player in the last round.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 12
Pick 23: Harvey Singh - D
 
New York put in a good amount of work in this final round, picking up 3 players, the best of which being Harvey Singh. Singh would go on and pot 129 goals and 160 assists for 289 points in 288 games. The interesting thing about this player is that despite only playing in 3 seasons, they won two championships. The first being with New York in Season 14, and the next being in Season 16 with Riga. A short yet illustrious career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Somalian Tiger - LW (12G, 28A)
Pick 18: Jurgen Ferdinand - LW (12G, 19A)
Pick 21: Dmitry Petrov - RW (5G, 15A)
Pick 24: Tony Pajamas - D (11G, 30A)
 
Season 13
Pick 21: Brian Steckel - RW
 
Not much can be said for this Riga pick. Brian Steckel had a surprisingly long yet unfulfilling career, putting up 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points in 113 games. While the points were not there for the player, something could be said with how long they actually stuck around despite the low offensive generation. I really could not say it was for their defensive game either, having a career +/- of -61.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 14
Pick 27: Steve Collins - LW
 
Collins appears to have been a good player with a short career. A Helsinki pick, Steve Collins put up 50 goals and 81 assists for 131 points in 144 games. From what I could gather, he was an absolute legend in the VHLM, having a 229 point season with Brampton. While he could not translate that dominant play in the VHL, he was still nonetheless a very good player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 31: Koby Kaine - D (21G, 77A)
 
Season 15
Pick 19: Alexander Randoulov - C
 
Alexander Randoulov would turn out to be a pretty decent player for Seattle, putting up 33 goals and 47 assists for 80 points in 145 games. It’s also funny to note that they had an abysmal +/- at -102. Other than that nothing else to say about this player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: HB Illy - G (0W, 0.882 SV%, 3.93 GAA)
 
Season 16
Pick 18: Jardy Bunclewirth - LW
 
Another elite pick by Calgary, hands-down the best last round pick. It’s absolutely insane that this player was picked as low as they were, even though it was a small draft. 432 games, 291 goals, 398 assists, 689 points, Season 18, 19, and 23 champion, hall-of-famer, and certified beautician. 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Blade Hunter - RW (121G, 258A)
Pick 21: Alan Garner - G (9W, 0.832 SV%, 6.09 GAA)
Pick 23: Cam Whitney - D (10G, 31A)
 
Season 17
Pick 30: Matt Douglas - D
 
A bit of a fall-off from that last season’s draft, Seattle’s Matt Douglas had a less than spectacular career, garnering 4 goals and 10 assists for 14 points in 78 games and pretty much nothing else. 
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 18
Pick 29: Robin Big Snake - RW
 
A goated name and a pretty good pick by Madrid, Mr. Big Snake potted 47 goals and 91 assists for 138 points in 360 games. A really solid player who contributed positively for 5 seasons. No rings but still a good pick and player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 32: Magnus Huuskonen - D (1G, 3A)
 
Season 19
No VHL Players
 
Season 20
Pick 27: Einer Kallstrom - C
 
Madrid went and drafted the only player in the final round to break into the league with Einar Kallstrom, who put up a pretty lackluster 0 goals and 4 assists in their 6 game tenure. Honestly pretty impressive for the small amount of games they played.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 21
Pick 30: J.J. Stafford - RW
 
Very solid pick by Riga. Stafford would go on to get 74 goals and 204 assists for 278 points in his 432 game career. He was the only player in the last round of the season 21 draft to make it to the league, and it’s safe to say he turned out to be a pretty good player.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 22
Pick 23: Johnny Blaze - D
 
Drafted by Toronto, Johnny Blaze is a very unique player in regards to this list. Looking at his stats, he never registered a single point. In fact, he doesn’t even have a shot on goal. In his 12 games, he played a purely defensive role it seems.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 23
No VHL Players

(2067 words, see y'all next month)

(Been sitting on this one for almost a year now. Doing it in parts because I’m a glutton for TPE)

A (long) while back, Gustav made a massive article about the best picks in every single draft in VHL history. It was a massive endeavor and it immediately caught my interest. Perhaps it would be a fun project to look into other things involving the draft. My first thought was trying to find the biggest bust in each draft, but I trashed that idea. In some instances that could be cruel to some members who’s player simply didn’t pan out. Instead, I went and looked into the best players in the final round of every VHL draft. After hours of work and some painful searching, I have finally completed this project. Keep in mind that I will only list players who have registered at least one point (goalies at least one game) in the VHL unless: they are the only player in their draft that had actually played any games; they were drafted in season 84 and up, as they are, to me at least, still considered prospects. Without any more delay, from season 1 to season 88, here are the best players from the final round of the VHL draft.
 
Season 1
Pick 51: Bruce Wayne - D
 
Mr. Wayne proved to be a fantastic player and excellent pick for Helsinki, putting up 42 goals and 100 assists for 142 points as a defenseman in his 289 game career in the VHL. While never winning a cup, he appeared to be a great producer on the blue line and proved to be the top last round defenseman in a final round with 2 other really good defensemen. The only real knock would be his playoff performance, only registering 3 assists in 18 playoff games, but hey, still pretty good for a 7th rounder.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 49: Jeremy Lamborghini - D (27 G, 102 A)
Pick 50: John Pereira - G (0 W, 0.832 SV%, 6.26 GAA)
Pick 52: Marian Oshie - LW (12 G, 24 A)
Pick 53: Waldo Cezar - D (17 G, 77 A)
Pick 55: Jeff Van Slacker - LW (9 G, 15 A)
 
Season 2
Pick 39: Edward Eldred - RW
 
A really really good pick by Calgary, snagging Edward in the 2nd to last pick of the draft, he would end up being a very good player, amassing 145 goals and 218 assists for 363 points in 360 games, barely securing a ppg pace. Edward would also net 8 goals and 23 assists for 31 points in 28 playoff games, and his performance helped his team secure the championship in Season 2 and 3. No other last round pick really came super close to being as good as Edward, with the only argument really being Goldberg.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 33: Chris Orosz - G (2 W, 0.905 SV%, 3.60 GAA)
Pick 34: Chris Maher (13 G, 38 A)
Pick 35: Craig Levver (20 G, 39 A)
Pick 36: Greg Goldberg (162 W, 0.914 SV%, 3.45 GAA, 6 SO)
Pick 37: Patrice Roydeur (95 W, 0.910 SV%, 3.42 GAA, 5 SO)
Pick 38: Nevets Detroit - C (27 G, 62 A,)
Pick 40: Alexei Fedorov - LW (14 G, 16 A, 30 P)
 
Season 3
Pick 19: Edward Holm - LW
 
Holm only needed to play one game or put up a single point to be the best last round pick for the season 3 draft, but he decided to go above and beyond, putting up 142 goals and 312 assists for 454 points in 442 games, hitting that ppg pace. Edward Holm turned into the second Calgary last round steal and their second high scoring Edward. Playoff success was also shown, with Holm getting 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points over 58 games and earning himself a ring in seasons 3 and 8.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 4
Pick 23: Jonathan Coward - D
 
Jonathan Coward turned out to be one of the better players for Helsinki, logging 21 goals and 82 assists for 103 points in 214 games. Playoff performance was a struggle, with 1 goal and 4 assists in 21 postseason games, but he provided a good deal of offense on the blue line, much like late pick Bruce Wayne before him. At the very least, Coward continues the early trend of late round steals being made by either Calgary or Helsinki, with Calgary getting the forwards and Helsinki getting the defensemen.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 18: Jonathan Bernier - G (2 W, 0.839 SV%, 6.93 G.A.A)
Pick 21: Mikael Jonsson - D (9 G, 16 A, 25 P)
 
Season 5
Pick 36: Raul Thundercat - G
 
Raul is the first goalie “steal” and not much can really be said about them. Drafted by Calgary (of course), he posted a record of 9-52-3 with a 0.859 SV% and 6.49 G.A.A, registering 1 shutout in his career. There was not much competition in this late round, so Mr. Thundercat gets off easy in this regard. Cool name though.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 37: Mikhail Prospov - G (2 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.56 GAA)
 
Season 6
Pick 33: Aiden Fox - G
 
Aiden Fox breaks the trend of Calgary/Helsinki late round steals, being picked by Toronto. Unfortunately, however, he did not have the best career. In 13 games, Aiden Fox posted a 0-5-1 record with a 0.890 SV% and 6.50 G.A.A. Likely never being more than a sparsely used backup, Fox had an uneventful and short career, that only benefits from nobody else in the last round of this draft class playing a game.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 7
No VHL Players
 
Season 8
Pick 26: Matt Fletcher - RW
 
Matt Fletcher appeared to be an absolute unit for Riga, generating 139 goals and 179 assists for 318 points in 288 games. I cannot find his postseason data, if there even is any, but I know that he never won a Cup. From what I can gather, he did win the Mikka Virkkunen Trophy for Sportsmanship in season 13, so I can confidently say that Mr. Fletcher is a certified Nice Guy™ 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 30: Jeff McCarthy - C (40 G, 157 A)
 
Season 9
Pick 21: Sean Costello - C
 
Riga drafts another 300+ point player in the last round with Sean Costello, who absolutely runs away with being the best last round pick this season, posting 139 goals and 203 assists for 342 points in 362 games. Again, not much else can really be said due to recordkeeping being quite poor in the early seasons of the VHL (for the non-HoF players at least), but it can be said that he was an excellent player throughout his career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: Ricky Okposo - G (11 W, 0.865 SV%, 5.47 GAA)
Pick 22: Travis Tyson - LW (9 G, 10 A)

Season 10
Pick 31: Prabal Konstantinov - G
 
Third season in a row in which Riga gets the last round steal, this being the only player in this round to suit up for any games. In their 28 game career, Konstantinov posted a record of 15-11-1 with a 0.869 SV% and 3.74 G.A.A. Honestly a pretty admirable win percentage given how few games they actually played. Of course, with no competition in the last round, they’d be a shoe-in even if they lost every game
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 11
Pick 20: Jimmy Ryan - G
 
A Helsinki pick, Jimmy Ryan had a pretty rough 72 game career, posting a record of 9-51-9 with a 0.861 SV% and 4.96 G.A.A. While not the best, he was better than not playing any games at all, and therefore is the best player in the last round.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 12
Pick 23: Harvey Singh - D
 
New York put in a good amount of work in this final round, picking up 3 players, the best of which being Harvey Singh. Singh would go on and pot 129 goals and 160 assists for 289 points in 288 games. The interesting thing about this player is that despite only playing in 3 seasons, they won two championships. The first being with New York in Season 14, and the next being in Season 16 with Riga. A short yet illustrious career.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Somalian Tiger - LW (12G, 28A)
Pick 18: Jurgen Ferdinand - LW (12G, 19A)
Pick 21: Dmitry Petrov - RW (5G, 15A)
Pick 24: Tony Pajamas - D (11G, 30A)
 
Season 13
Pick 21: Brian Steckel - RW
 
Not much can be said for this Riga pick. Brian Steckel had a surprisingly long yet unfulfilling career, putting up 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points in 113 games. While the points were not there for the player, something could be said with how long they actually stuck around despite the low offensive generation. I really could not say it was for their defensive game either, having a career +/- of -61.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 14
Pick 27: Steve Collins - LW
 
Collins appears to have been a good player with a short career. A Helsinki pick, Steve Collins put up 50 goals and 81 assists for 131 points in 144 games. From what I could gather, he was an absolute legend in the VHLM, having a 229 point season with Brampton. While he could not translate that dominant play in the VHL, he was still nonetheless a very good player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 31: Koby Kaine - D (21G, 77A)
 
Season 15
Pick 19: Alexander Randoulov - C
 
Alexander Randoulov would turn out to be a pretty decent player for Seattle, putting up 33 goals and 47 assists for 80 points in 145 games. It’s also funny to note that they had an abysmal +/- at -102. Other than that nothing else to say about this player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 20: HB Illy - G (0W, 0.882 SV%, 3.93 GAA)
 
Season 16
Pick 18: Jardy Bunclewirth - LW
 
Another elite pick by Calgary, hands-down the best last round pick. It’s absolutely insane that this player was picked as low as they were, even though it was a small draft. 432 games, 291 goals, 398 assists, 689 points, Season 18, 19, and 23 champion, hall-of-famer, and certified beautician. 
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 17: Blade Hunter - RW (121G, 258A)
Pick 21: Alan Garner - G (9W, 0.832 SV%, 6.09 GAA)
Pick 23: Cam Whitney - D (10G, 31A)
 
Season 17
Pick 30: Matt Douglas - D
 
A bit of a fall-off from that last season’s draft, Seattle’s Matt Douglas had a less than spectacular career, garnering 4 goals and 10 assists for 14 points in 78 games and pretty much nothing else. 
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 18
Pick 29: Robin Big Snake - RW
 
A goated name and a pretty good pick by Madrid, Mr. Big Snake potted 47 goals and 91 assists for 138 points in 360 games. A really solid player who contributed positively for 5 seasons. No rings but still a good pick and player.
 
Other VHL Players:
Pick 32: Magnus Huuskonen - D (1G, 3A)
 
Season 19
No VHL Players
 
Season 20
Pick 27: Einer Kallstrom - C
 
Madrid went and drafted the only player in the final round to break into the league with Einar Kallstrom, who put up a pretty lackluster 0 goals and 4 assists in their 6 game tenure. Honestly pretty impressive for the small amount of games they played.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 21
Pick 30: J.J. Stafford - RW
 
Very solid pick by Riga. Stafford would go on to get 74 goals and 204 assists for 278 points in his 432 game career. He was the only player in the last round of the season 21 draft to make it to the league, and it’s safe to say he turned out to be a pretty good player.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 22
Pick 23: Johnny Blaze - D
 
Drafted by Toronto, Johnny Blaze is a very unique player in regards to this list. Looking at his stats, he never registered a single point. In fact, he doesn’t even have a shot on goal. In his 12 games, he played a purely defensive role it seems.
 
No Other VHL Players
 
Season 23
No VHL Players

(2067 words, see y'all next month)

Vote Ricer 

Sim was rigged against me and I couldn't do anything about that. Simmers just hated me that season because I had so much success.
 
 
You have a 3 year lead on me and focus on the other channels. Sorry, I only focus on the team-related channels, not Apex Legends
 
 
It has a name. Use it.

Reasons why Grape should take over as Moscow GM
 
As we all know Spartan is very good at losing and I don't think Putin likes that very much. In a previous article I wrote about why he should be fired. I've found the perfect replacement, I think we should hire Grape. Here are my reasons why:
 
1. He actually wins in the VHLM. Our lord and savior Grape consistently has good results in the VHLM, without having to "rebuild" like our current GM Spartan. Rebuilding is only for losers and thus Grape gains the edge here.
 
2. Grape is seen as a leader in our locker room. Unlike Spartan, Grape provides valuable intel and feedback to players looking to improve. Spartan barely posts anything in our locker room and that leaves it almost completely devoid of activity.
 
3. Grape can actually commit time to the team. Unlike Spartan who holds like 3 or 4 jobs, Grape can focus solely on our team and make sure we have a winning atmosphere. Spartan is currently too busy being Grape's boss to actually run our team properly.
 
@Grape

According to sources close to Moscow  Menace, center Jarmo Ruutu has been forced to pay a fine of 200k for breaking the team rules. It is believed the violations took place during the game between Prague and Moscow earlier this week.  In the game, Ruutu was penalized twice for shooting the puck over the glass, which resulted in two minor penalties for delaying the game. Those who watched the game or saw the clips may have noticed that Ruutu appeared to stop in his tracks completely and aim the puck toward a specific section of the stands as he proceeded to lob the puck over the glass. When looking at the first penalty, many speculated whether Ruutu thought there was a power break, but when the same scenario took place again in the second period, all shadow of doubt was removed. In the middle of the game, Ruutu lobbed two pucks into the crowd on purpose. Praque failed to take advantage of the powerplays, but the management of Moscow Menace was reportedly not impressed about the behavior of their rookie center.

To make matters even worse, during the few days after the game vicious rumors started to circulate around the internet about Jarmo Ruutu and Axle Gunner. Ruutu and Gunner are both rookie centers in Moscow.  Axle is one of the best young forwards in the game, "The Stallion" has been enjoying a great rookie year in Moscow. Meanwhile, Jarmo Ruutu "The Donkey",  as he is known for his inability to follow tactical instructions, has also played in Moscow this season. The rumors started to run wild when a few eagle-eyed viewers appeared to spot Axle Gunner's mother watching the Praque vs Moscow game in the stands. When Jarmo Ruutu lobbed the two pucks over the glass, on both occasions they were sent flying towards the area where Axle Gunner's mother was sitting, which resulted in rumors about Jarmo Ruutu being Axle Gunner's new daddy circulating around the internet.
 
Jarmo Ruutu himself commented on the incident during a radio interview for Good Morning Moscow yesterday:

"I can not believe I am forced to come out and say it, but I am not Axle Gunner's new daddy. In the game against Prague, I took two silly penalties for delaying the game, I was not thinking straight. I thought I heard a whistle, so I lobbed the puck to the fans in the crowd. There were plenty of kids watching the game, so I thought a puck would make a young fan smile. I lobbed it in, but it was thrown back on the ice right away. I thought I heard one of the kids yell: "We want Axle to shoot it here, not you". That got me a bit mad, but I moved on.
 
In the second period the same thing happened, I thought there would be a break, so I went and lobbed the puck over the glass again towards the same area. I wanted them to show some respect to me. This time around they kept the puck, but I was still forced to sit in the box for two minutes again.

I want to make it very clear, there is no hostility inside the team. I got a punishment for my actions, I will try to learn from this experience. "

Now THAT is something I'd bid on.

Player Information
Username: fonziGG
Player Name: Yermolai Nabokov
Recruited From: Returning
Age: 16
Position: RW
Height: 80 in.
Weight: 250 lbs.
Birthplace: Russia

Player Page
@VHLM GM

At the start of this year, the title of this piece would have been such a stupid no-brainer question to ask. Of course, the greatest hockey player, and potentially athlete, of all time Wayne Gretzky would have been an automatic first overall selection in the upcoming Season 92 VHL Draft for any team who would hold that selection regardless of their needs as you just cannot pass up on day one world-class talent. However, it's been an incredibly torrid time for Wayne Gretzky in the build-up to this draft as he's been unable to play at all in the VHLM this season and they are currently rehabbing from their nineteenth Broken Everything, which they suffered having mistaken an oncoming monster truck for old teammate Kevin McClelland while still in the process of rehabbing from their eighteenth Broken Everything. 
 
But in spite of his litany of typically career-ending injuries, will Wayne Gretzky still end up being selected with a high pick? The decision of many young prospects to delay a season and elect to enter the Season 93 Draft to avoid Wayne Gretzky's draft with the hopes of a better contract led to a significantly lower prospect pool count that is half of even the lowest previous count of the last 29 seasons (68 in Season 90 versus 35 for Season 92). On top of that, with four of those 35 prospects mysteriously vanishing, having not been seen since October, it appears to be a guarantee that, in spite of all their injuries, Wayne Gretzky will be at least a second round selection in this upcoming VHL Draft.
 
But is there even potentially view for Wayne Gretzky to make their way into the first round? If he did, Gretzky would be the first player taken in the first round with less than 100 TPE since Jónas Vilhjálmsson went seventh overall in Season 60 with 72 TPE and it would be the first time since Season 59 (Ebi Shpeen at eighth overall) that a player with 30 TPE went in the first round. While Gretzky hasn't earned any TPE because of his raft of injuries, he is projected to max earn following the conclusion of their VHL Draft, which is a mark that only six prospects in the same draft are currently reaching. While Gretzky's time missed through injury will make it difficult to catch up to those particular prospects, they should face significantly less issues gaining ground on players currently slotted down as late-first selections. Of the players currently in the top 16 in TPE, four are consistently earning less than or equal to 6 capped TPE per week (A rate Gretzky projects to double post-draft) and one other has faced a roadblock in their earning capabilities due to the crackdown on AI use in player development. At the same time though, there are one or two prospects currently outside the top 16 in TPE that have started to show more potential recently that could overtake them.
 
A lot of this will evidently come down to how much faith any potential GM has in Gretzky to get back to the work ethic that made him the greatest hockey player of all time once he recovers from his big injury setbacks. However, scientists who have looked into the potential career projection of Gretzky have noted that his recent Broken Everything's have led to him resembling a large similarity in hockey efficiency to recent VHL player The Board Game Clue On Skates, as neither are capable of sufficiently playing hockey, and it's noted that the cardboard board game accrued nearly 2000 TPE in their career, a mark which any VHL GM would be more than happy to have Gretzky get even close to. 

Coming into his office this morning, the Ottawa Lynx GM notices that there’s a message on his answering machine, from a 495 number. He listens to it, and surprisingly, it was from Vladimir Putin. The message was short, basically praising the GM for the job he’s done with the minor league team, putting up great numbers in a relatively short amount of time, complimenting the roster makeup, and so on. Then he segways into his displeasure with the current standings of the Moscow Menace, the VHL team that’s basically in his backyard. Overall, he is very upset at the path @Spartan is taking, and believes, while the team cannot always be the best, that the team should never be the worst in the league.
 
“It is an embarrassment to all of Russia, and needs to be remedied!”

Putin goes on to allude that a shift in management may be occurring for the Menace, albeit not voluntarily. He advises the Ottawa GM to have his bags packed and be ready for any sudden movement in the GM world, and that a spot in the big leagues may be opening up soon.

All this comes after @twists' article about Moscow being the worst team ever, and could mean that Spartan may be out the door very soon. Ottawa has been known to make big moves when going in for a push, and with all the assets Moscow has, that might be what’s needed to get the Menace out of the basement.

VHLM General Managers 
 
 Halifax - @Brewins15
 Houston - @MattyIce
 Las Vegas -  @JigglyGumballs
 Mexico City - @youloser1337
 Miami - @Ledge and Dairy
 Minnesota - @PatrikLaine
 Mississauga - @N0HBDY
 Ottawa - @16z
Philadelphia - @Alex_J32
San Diego - @JB123
 Saskatoon -  @Doomsday
 Yukon - @Domg5
 
 
 

The Trade Deadline has come and gone, and now, deep into the season, where the standings are beginning to be set in stone, we look at one of Moscow’s rookies, the defenseman Obuz Schneider Canet du Bocage. Over 50 games into the season, while he has not necessarily impressed, he also has not seemed completely out of place. With top pairing minutes night in and night out, Bocage has been able to put up 25 points, 5 of them goals, 20 assists, while also sporting a -17 rating on a pretty awful Moscow team. Looking at the more physical side of things, Obuz has 126 shots blocked and 84 hits. While the stat lines are not necessarily eye popping, they are respectable for a first year defenseman.

Upon being drafted 12th overall, some question marks were immediately raised at the selection. Some said that this was a reach, as at the time, there were more developed, better players still available, even in the defenseman position which Moscow really needed to address. Obuz did choose to spend an additional season in the VHLM instead of moving on up to the VHLE, putting him well behind in the draft class. Yet, as of now, Bocage sits 11th in terms of overall TPA in his draft class and third for defenseman in the class. Suffice to say, when Moscow came up to make that selection, Obuz has become the best selection for the team at that time.
 
Throughout the season, Obuz has been seen as the guy on defense, even being made assistant captain in his rookie year. While there hasn’t been a real mentor on the blue line to help OBSC develop and hone his game at the VHL level, Obuz has continued to grow and develop through trial by fire, and his game has been getting better and better as the season goes along. The hope is that Obuz continues to develop and eventually become a top defenseman in the league, although it will take some time to do that.
 
The eventual hope for Obuz Schneider Canet du Bocage, as stated, is to develop into a top defenseman in the league. Moscow is a young team in the midst of a rebuild, and because of that, most players are at or around OBSC in terms of development. This matched development with the players has really brought the locker room together and helped maintain a light, entertaining, and overall accepting group for all rookies, Bocage included. Success is for the future. The main focus in Moscow is development. Bocage is fully dedicated to the plan Moscow has in store, and while his freshman season has not been overwhelmingly exciting, it is expected that he will make massive strides in the coming seasons and truly fulfill his top pairing role with the Moscow Menace.

Player Information
Username: Crstats23
Player Name: Chris Reynolds Jr
Recruited From: Returning
Age: 18
Position: LW
Height: 75 in.
Weight: 150 lbs.
Birthplace: United States of America

Player Page
@VHLM GM

Coming into his office this morning, the Ottawa Lynx GM notices that there’s a message on his answering machine, from a 495 number. He listens to it, and surprisingly, it was from Vladimir Putin. The message was short, basically praising the GM for the job he’s done with the minor league team, putting up great numbers in a relatively short amount of time, complimenting the roster makeup, and so on. Then he segways into his displeasure with the current standings of the Moscow Menace, the VHL team that’s basically in his backyard. Overall, he is very upset at the path @Spartan is taking, and believes, while the team cannot always be the best, that the team should never be the worst in the league.
 
“It is an embarrassment to all of Russia, and needs to be remedied!”

Putin goes on to allude that a shift in management may be occurring for the Menace, albeit not voluntarily. He advises the Ottawa GM to have his bags packed and be ready for any sudden movement in the GM world, and that a spot in the big leagues may be opening up soon.

All this comes after @twists' article about Moscow being the worst team ever, and could mean that Spartan may be out the door very soon. Ottawa has been known to make big moves when going in for a push, and with all the assets Moscow has, that might be what’s needed to get the Menace out of the basement.

Coming into his office this morning, the Ottawa Lynx GM notices that there’s a message on his answering machine, from a 495 number. He listens to it, and surprisingly, it was from Vladimir Putin. The message was short, basically praising the GM for the job he’s done with the minor league team, putting up great numbers in a relatively short amount of time, complimenting the roster makeup, and so on. Then he segways into his displeasure with the current standings of the Moscow Menace, the VHL team that’s basically in his backyard. Overall, he is very upset at the path @Spartan is taking, and believes, while the team cannot always be the best, that the team should never be the worst in the league.
 
“It is an embarrassment to all of Russia, and needs to be remedied!”

Putin goes on to allude that a shift in management may be occurring for the Menace, albeit not voluntarily. He advises the Ottawa GM to have his bags packed and be ready for any sudden movement in the GM world, and that a spot in the big leagues may be opening up soon.

All this comes after @twists' article about Moscow being the worst team ever, and could mean that Spartan may be out the door very soon. Ottawa has been known to make big moves when going in for a push, and with all the assets Moscow has, that might be what’s needed to get the Menace out of the basement.

Coming into his office this morning, the Ottawa Lynx GM notices that there’s a message on his answering machine, from a 495 number. He listens to it, and surprisingly, it was from Vladimir Putin. The message was short, basically praising the GM for the job he’s done with the minor league team, putting up great numbers in a relatively short amount of time, complimenting the roster makeup, and so on. Then he segways into his displeasure with the current standings of the Moscow Menace, the VHL team that’s basically in his backyard. Overall, he is very upset at the path @Spartan is taking, and believes, while the team cannot always be the best, that the team should never be the worst in the league.
 
“It is an embarrassment to all of Russia, and needs to be remedied!”

Putin goes on to allude that a shift in management may be occurring for the Menace, albeit not voluntarily. He advises the Ottawa GM to have his bags packed and be ready for any sudden movement in the GM world, and that a spot in the big leagues may be opening up soon.

All this comes after @twists' article about Moscow being the worst team ever, and could mean that Spartan may be out the door very soon. Ottawa has been known to make big moves when going in for a push, and with all the assets Moscow has, that might be what’s needed to get the Menace out of the basement.

I have been trying to figure out why Moscow has been so bad this season and I think I have finally figured out why. @Spartan is our GM. There’s no worse GM in the entire VHL than him. Has he ever won a cup? Of course not. He’s had the best teams that the VHL has ever seen and he can’t even win a continental cup? Who is this guy. Even I, the reigning inactive champion, have a cup. The Victator brought many wins to Moscow, but Spartan threw all of those in the toilet when he took over. There’s only one true GM that should be overseeing Moscow, and that is @Grape. He might actually bring us some wins. My sources tell me that Putin has lost all faith in Spartan, meaning his life expectancy is probably about 4 more days. Why the blues continue to allow this abomination of a GM to continue working in the VHL is beyond me. Something has to give at this point. Even @Steve our AGM has been complaining about our losses. I humbly ask @Beketov to remove Spartan as a GM and to install Grape in his place.
 
Thank you for listening to my Ted talk and I hope you all learned that Spartan is the worst GM ever. K thanks baiiiii

The season 66 draft was one of the largest to date, due to a massive recruitment drive, mainly through YouTube. Out of that draft, there were 224 new creates, which considering how small the league was at that time, was absolutely massive. Recent drives already led to expansion of the league, and this one would lead to it again. Season 65 led to the introduction of one VHL team, Moscow Menace, and two M teams in Houston and Philadelphia. Season 66 saw another VHL team in Malmo and three new M teams in Mexico, Mississauga, and San Diego. There were a handful of others that came into existence a season or two later as well, due to a good portion of the new players sticking around for at least a season. However, as is the usual for recruitment drive, a massive percentage left within a month of creating. All players created between January 2019 to March 2019 were part of the Season 66 draft class. Of those 224 new players created in that time, only 77 were active in April, a little over one third of the recruits. As the months ticked by, that number slowly but surely whittled down more and more. As of today, only 11 of the 224 new players are still around and active, just under 5%.

I would say, that’s half decent. Obviously, you’d want more people to stick around, but at the same time, this was during a period of constant, active recruitment. Season 65 was pretty big, and going into the 70s and 80s, especially because of Covid, the league had no problem with these types of numbers. A lot of people drop out, sure, but the league was still able to, not only sustain itself at its current size, but continue to expand. The guys that stick around are quality individuals, in which all of them have made significant additions to the league in their own ways. Let me list out the 11 people still kicking around:

Plate, myself, MexicanCow123, Gustav, DMaximus, FrostBeard, ThePerfectNut, jblock3, okochastar, McLovin, and zepheter
 
If you’re even somewhat active on the forums or discord, you’ll recognize some of these names. Without the heavy lifting done by the recruitment team, none of these individuals would be around, and countless others from other classes would be missing too.

People bring up YouTube advertisements as pretty much the main way to bring in new members, because it gets a ton of bodies into the league. Critics bring up the turnover, and that they are largely ineffective in sustaining the league. Yes, that’s true. But there’s never going to be a method in which you get quality and quantity. You’re simply not going to find something that will bring in a boatload of super dedicated long-standing members. In order to find your dedicated members, you have to acknowledge that you’re going to bring in a lot of people who will up and leave after a day. You can’t strike gold on every swing, you need to sift through the dirt to find em. YouTube, simply put, is the best method for recruitment, full stop. You get an influx of life and activity for a few weeks, and when that fades down, you find a large handful of members who are going to stay dedicated for years to come.

The season 66 draft was one of the largest to date, due to a massive recruitment drive, mainly through YouTube. Out of that draft, there were 224 new creates, which considering how small the league was at that time, was absolutely massive. Recent drives already led to expansion of the league, and this one would lead to it again. Season 65 led to the introduction of one VHL team, Moscow Menace, and two M teams in Houston and Philadelphia. Season 66 saw another VHL team in Malmo and three new M teams in Mexico, Mississauga, and San Diego. There were a handful of others that came into existence a season or two later as well, due to a good portion of the new players sticking around for at least a season. However, as is the usual for recruitment drive, a massive percentage left within a month of creating. All players created between January 2019 to March 2019 were part of the Season 66 draft class. Of those 224 new players created in that time, only 77 were active in April, a little over one third of the recruits. As the months ticked by, that number slowly but surely whittled down more and more. As of today, only 11 of the 224 new players are still around and active, just under 5%.

I would say, that’s half decent. Obviously, you’d want more people to stick around, but at the same time, this was during a period of constant, active recruitment. Season 65 was pretty big, and going into the 70s and 80s, especially because of Covid, the league had no problem with these types of numbers. A lot of people drop out, sure, but the league was still able to, not only sustain itself at its current size, but continue to expand. The guys that stick around are quality individuals, in which all of them have made significant additions to the league in their own ways. Let me list out the 11 people still kicking around:

Plate, myself, MexicanCow123, Gustav, DMaximus, FrostBeard, ThePerfectNut, jblock3, okochastar, McLovin, and zepheter
 
If you’re even somewhat active on the forums or discord, you’ll recognize some of these names. Without the heavy lifting done by the recruitment team, none of these individuals would be around, and countless others from other classes would be missing too.

People bring up YouTube advertisements as pretty much the main way to bring in new members, because it gets a ton of bodies into the league. Critics bring up the turnover, and that they are largely ineffective in sustaining the league. Yes, that’s true. But there’s never going to be a method in which you get quality and quantity. You’re simply not going to find something that will bring in a boatload of super dedicated long-standing members. In order to find your dedicated members, you have to acknowledge that you’re going to bring in a lot of people who will up and leave after a day. You can’t strike gold on every swing, you need to sift through the dirt to find em. YouTube, simply put, is the best method for recruitment, full stop. You get an influx of life and activity for a few weeks, and when that fades down, you find a large handful of members who are going to stay dedicated for years to come.

Stolen idea smh. Mods, banish this man to the shadow realm

best part tbh

Z punching the air rn after using up all his Recruitment idea posts last week

I remember way back…
 
In August of 2021, I watched a video from Adam Scouser. The guy normally covered football (or soccer for those yonder the sea), but for some reason or another started covering icehockey as well (to this day he calls Ovechkin 'Ovenchicken'). Somehow Youtube algorhythm thought his content was of interest for me. And he ran a VHL add. It was Covid times and apparently my gray matter had the impression, that I do not have enough time sinks on my hands yet. So of course out of curiosity I clicked on the respective link. I played a lot of NHL by EA Sports in my time and my home town team had just won the Cup after a painful 23 season hiatus (sorry to all Leafs Fans, to poke in your running sore).
I created a Left Winger with the very creative name of Daniel Janser (Yes, former Calgary HOF Center DJ started his career as a winger). Then I started to stumble around on the page, not knowing my arse from my elbow and nilly willy clicking on buttons (I even invested in leadership, smh). I learned quickly that this was nothing like EA Sports. What is a hefty blow to morale (and motivation) for some, was an incentive for me. If I love one thing more than a sports sim, it is a RPG. For retention I was also creating my player in the worst possible moment, as the post season had just started and there were no waivers (and therefore no sims) for me. However, the league had decided to create the JST for this exact purpose and I was joining it for its inaugural season.
So once I was shown the ropes by my then Brigade GM ( @JB123 if memory serves me right), I started writing match reports on a daily basis and once my brother joined the 'Tale of two brothers' were born.
They were not very appealing at first but with the constructive feedback I received, I was able to improve.
I then experienced first hand, what a Youtube add (this time on Rob Talks Hockey) can do to bring in new members, as I was AGM for @N0HBDY for the Hounds at the time and was pitching waivers left, right and center, which kept me pretty busy.
I think since then we have not had the same amount of fresh blood influx (nor do I think this amount is necessary to sustain the league), and over the seasons it looks like the respective draft pools dried up a bit (but this is only my perception). I think, the recruitment team could be more pro-active when it comes to inform the community, what is planned, what they are working on, or what challenges they face. This is meant as constructive feedback made in good faith. Maybe there is already information available and I have just not found it. In which case, mea culpa (and please point me where it is at).
This is not so much to control whether the recruitment really earns their pay (this is for the blues to decide). It is more about we all being in the same league and suffering in equal measure if teams have semi-deserted rosters. If GM's were selling hard, acquiring a boatload of picks in the process, just to find out that on draft day, there are no more viable options after the first round anymore, this can lead to people quit their job.