SparrowLTD

Claiming for 5/12

I just wanted something interesting for a media spot, mate, chill out... I told you this was in character.

The emoji wasn't intended, but it's too entertaining to edit away.

In a vitriolic, curse-laden tirade over the course of a phone interview that started with the winger’s relief at being traded away from Saskatchewan, Emil Passerelli went into quite a bit of detail regarding his numerous grievances with the Saskatoon Wild organization and their ringmaster, Peace. Written below is the full interview, with direct quotes from the beleaguered New Yorker and the man asking him the questions, sports analyst Donovan Massey. Donovan Massey: Thanks for accepting the interview, Emil! How are you feeling after the draft and your subsequent trade to the Las Vegas Aces? Emil Passerelli: Glad to be here. To answer your first question, honestly… I am beyond excited to be out of Saskatoon. It’s a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders. ? Oh? Why is that? In the closing stages of the season, you did certainly seem to be at the end of your rope; did it not get better? E: Hah, is that a rhetorical question, Don? If not, I’d be glad to enlighten you on just how bad it got. What do you know about my trade to Vegas? ? About as much as everyone else; just a few hours after the draft concluded, you were packing your bags and heading to Sin City. E: Ah, I see. Well, I suppose you’ll be the first to know outside of those at Saskatoon that I forced a trade as soon as I saw that the Wild had picked me back up. At the time I was all smiles, of course; it wouldn’t have sent the right message if I walked up on stage ready to -expletive- murder someone. Which, to be truthful, I absolutely was. ? Really? I’m guessing you weren’t comfortable with the Wild anymore, huh? E: Not at all. Especially seeing as I went to Peace before the draft began in order to tell him that I would not like to return to Saskatoon. I told him I’d be unhappy if he picked me back up, in as mature of a statement as I could muster, and he said he didn’t want to step on my toes. And then that -expletive- imbecile of a manager decided to go against his word and draft me anyway when he saw me fall further than he felt I should have. Talk about stepping on my -expletive- toes, Don. More like busting my -expletive- balls, really. ? What caused this? Was the locker room atmosphere discordant? Were you at odds with your teammates, or was this just a disagreement between you and management? E: I bit my tongue for the first… half of the season, maybe. I didn’t like how things were trending, but I was content to stay in my lane regarding the changes that I thought should be made. I’m a rookie on a new team in a new league, what the -expletive- did I know? But it just got worse before it got better. After a stretch of around a dozen losses where Peace was putting in the most asinine lines, I knew that something was seriously off. I tried not to direct any anger at my teammates; after all, it wasn’t their fault that Peace seemed to be content with -expletive- mediocrity for weeks. The atmosphere was a bit awkward; some were 100% behind the skipper, he could do no wrong. Others were a little hesitant, you know? ? I understand. I remember that stretch, now that you bring it up. Where did it go from there? E: I and a few others who I won’t name were a bit pessimistic; we were well out of the playoff race at this point, and without significant changes, it would stay that way. We finally made a trade for some actual defense, and things seemed to be turning around. But they never fully turned. A -expletive- shame, that. ? Most who saw the Wild play last season seemed to think that young netminder Juan Jaundice was the main man at fault for your misfortunes. What’s your opinion on that? E: Honestly, Don? That’s some -expletive- -expletive-. Juan may have let a lot in, but the opposition’s shooters were turning him into -expletive- Swiss cheese! When Juan faced thirty-five shots in a game, that was a good day! So many odd-man rushes… I’ll tell you who was content with having Juan be the fall guy. Peace. Half of the -expletive- locker room. It was -expletive- disheartening. ? You seem to be passionate about this. Were you close with Juan? E: I was. Still am. He’s a great friend, and seeing the guy get so down on himself hurt me, because other people were getting down on him too, and it was hard to drag him out of his doldrums. It wasn’t his fault our defense was out to pasture half the time. I’m not saying any names, but there were entire -expletive- shifts where we floundered in our own third. I felt that maybe I was at fault, so each day in practice I’d work on my defense, you know? Skating backwards, poke checks, sticking to my man. It didn’t help, not until the trade. That’s another reason I needed to leave. I didn’t want to abandon Juan, but… I just couldn’t stand to be in the same room as the GM, and that’s not good. I’m so glad to be gone, and I’m excited about my future with the Aces. More excited than I’ve been in a long while. I just wish Juan all the best. I’ll be in his corner as much as possible, when I’m not trying to score on him. ? Well, Emil, that’s all the time we have for today. Thank you for enlightening the viewers and myself on the trade, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that we hope it all works out for you in the end. E: Thanks for having me, Don. It’s good to get some things off my chest. (1000 words, using for weeks ending 5/5 and 5/12)

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Emil Passerelli Forward Points Assists

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Following a 4-1 victory over the Las Vegas Aces this past week, we got to talk to Emil Passerelli and get his opinion on the chances that the Wild make the upcoming playoffs. “Well, we’ve got sixteen games to go. That’s thirty-two potential points, and we’re only four points out of a playoff spot. Looking at those numbers, you’d think we have a perfect opportunity to sneak into the playoffs and surprise a few folks.” The winger smiled before continuing. “But that fails to take into account how much our form has been fluctuating. When you win one and then lose two and keep doing that over and over again, you’re never going to make it anywhere. We’ve been four points out of a playoff spot for weeks now, and if we don’t string together a few wins, we’re going to be four points out of a playoff spot for the rest of the season until we’re eliminated. So, do we have a chance? Of course we do, we’ll have a chance until it’s statistically impossible to make the playoffs. The likelihood of that chance is what’s up in the air.” With one goal and four assists in his last six games, and Saskatoon losing four of them outright, Passerelli’s candid observations may very well come to pass unless the team can get it together.

https://vhlportal.com/players/goaliefocus/1697 Juan Jaundice has reached 100 TPE.

https://vhlportal.com/players/goaliefocus/1697 Juan Jaundice has reached 50 TPE.

1. In the latter half of the season now and, while Halifax and Minnesota are quite a few points ahead, there is just 4 points separating 3rd and 7th, which of those five teams (Aces, Bulls, Lynx, Rush, Wild) do you think will finish highest at the end of the season? I'd have to say the Aces have the most talent, so I'd peg them as the most likely contenders for 3rd place. 2. Since the last set of questions were asked, the World Juniors Rosters have been selected. What do you think about your nationalities chances at winning the tournament? There's always a chance for the USA, but it's going to be a slog. 3b. (If you didn't make your World Juniors roster) Were you surprised not to make it onto your team's roster or was it expected? Pretty expected, no further comment. 4. Hunter Hearst Helmsley is currently leading the league in points and goals, do you think there's anyone who can stop him from leading in either come the end of the season? No. Have you seen his numbers? 5. Give a shout-out to one member of your team who has helped you out and why (maybe a member's player has helped your player perform well in the sim, a member who helped you with PT's, etc.) @K1NG LINUS Before the trade, our defense was looking pretty grim. I think he was one of the factors keeping us from sliding too far. 6. Recommend either a video game or a movie for other members to play/watch and why you'd recommend it. The Division 2, if you want an actual good looter-shooter.

@Jus Please reply here confirming that it was me that recruited you.

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+4 Emil Passerelli

1. We are at about the third season mark. What teams are most likely going to face off in the next Founder's Cup final? Minnesota against Halifax seems most likely, but I'm not ruling out the Aces. 2. What is one trade you'd like your trade to do at this moment? Could we get a defense at any point, please? 3. The 3rd World Junior Championship Commissioner was just hired (congrats Frostbeard), meaning the S65 WJC is about to start. Do you think you have what it takes to represent your nation? Yeah, why not. 4. Who are your early favourites to win some awards in the VHLM? MVP, best two-way forward, best defenseman, best goalie? You can look past Saskatoon, that's for sure. 5. What's one song that you listen to before stepping on the ice, that will inevitably pump you up and get you ready for action? I stopped listening to music after countless losses. 6. Describe your VHLM team's General Manager and/or Assistant to the General Manager in 3 words. Drink the kool-aid.

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+10 - Emil Passerelli

Rookie right winger Emil Passerelli seemed rather annoyed following Saskatoon’s latest loss against the expansion team Philadelphia Reapers, as evidenced by his chilly response to a question as to what is going wrong. “While I may not know if this is the root of all of our problems, I do feel as though the lines we’ve been using in this last stretch of games are asinine. I’m doing my absolute damnedest to help lift this hockey club to the heights I know it can reach, but when I’m relegated to third line minutes I can only do so much.” In regards to a follow-up question about what’s being done to change the Wild’s fortune, Passerelli had this to say. “The topic has been broached in the locker room and I’m hoping that lines change going forward. I can do so much more. We can do so much more. Losing day in and day out is crushing to morale. It’s time to turn it around.” This exasperation comes after the Italian-American put up only three points in six games played, all of which were goals. Only one question remains. Can they turn it around?

1. How would you describe the locker room atmosphere after Saskatoon’s rough start, then compared to the atmosphere now after the Wild’s win streak? It's been a bit cyclical with a downward trend, hasn't it? Bad stretch, good stretch, bad stretch... But the second bad stretch won't end. The locker room is subdued, to say the least. 2. Saskatoon currently sits third overall in the standings, are you satisfied with that position after a terrible start? I was satisfied with it, but then we fell like a boulder in a lake. We need to get it back, and fast. 3. The top lines have been extremely productive, in fact Saskatoon’s offense is ranked first in the VHLM, so who would you say is the greatest offensive weapon for Saskatoon? I have to go with Jagr, purely because he has the most points of our top line, but that entire top line is a sight to behold. I hope to get to that productivity level shortly enough. 4. Defensively, however, the team is struggling. How would you change - if you could - defensive strategies to reduce Jaundice’s workload? Simplest solution would be to improve our defensemen, either by trading for better ones or whipping ours into shape. If nothing else, the forwards need to start working on getting back into our zone and doing a bit of defending ourselves. Juan can only do much when he's got shots hitting him left and right. 5. For a team that didn’t draft in the first or second rounds, is Saskatoon’s position in the standings surprising? Back when we were up in promising playoffs positions, maybe. Now that we've fallen back down, I think we're doing about as bad as expected, to be honest. Only way out is up, so we need to get to it. 6. What do you think of your management's effort in developing you as a prospect and an individual? As a prospect, my stat line is only above average, I'd say. That's not management's fault, though, unless better partners on my line can make me do better. As an individual, I feel like I'm making a ton of progress; maybe I can start being the second-line leader that the team needs soon. I'll need to try, for sure.

A frustrated Emil Passerelli answered a few questions after the Saskatoon Wild’s fourth straight defeat. When asked about what went wrong in the latest loss against Halifax, the young left winger forced a smile. “Well, when we let them drop three on us in the opening fifteen minutes it’s difficult to get out of that hole, you know? Doesn’t help that I was invisible that game. There’s no one I blame more for our loss than myself. I could always defend better, shoot better, pass better. Maybe if I had, we would’ve won. Trust me, it pisses me off.” Following a question about the slide the Wild have been on as of late, Passerelli ruefully shook his head. “You know how hockey is; it’s a game of streaks. Right now we just happen to be on a losing streak. We’ll dig ourselves out, don’t you worry. The boys are fired up and want to win, it’s just a matter of how bad we want it.” We’ll see if the New Yorker’s words ring true when we see Saskatoon’s upcoming bout with the Minnesota Storm.

1. After one long offseason, season 65 has finally started. What do you think of your team's performance in these first couple of sims? If I had to describe Saskatoon's start in one word I think I'd say potential. Tons of potential. We may not end up champions at the end of the season, but you're going to see a lot of growth from the boys, mark my words. 2. How is the ambiance in your locker room after these sims? We try to stay grounded. Some games go poorly and some games go extremely well. We celebrate the successes and pore over the losses. We're professional, but we know how to have fun. 3. Which team do you like playing against more than others? At the moment it's gotta be Ottawa. With how much we've played them already, our squads are developing something of a rivalry. 4. Season has just started, so the VHL Entry Draft might be hard to predict right now, but in what round do you think you'll be taken? People like confidence, right? First round, no doubt. 5. Besides hockey, obviously, what other sports do you like to play casually or watch? I enjoy watching and playing soccer as well as watching football. 6. What's your game day routine? What do you eat before games? Depends on if it's an early game or not! If it's early I'm eating a good breakfast. Eggs, bacon, toast and sausage. If it's later in the day, I'll eat a hoagie and some fries, maybe some pizza with the guys. I'm not exactly on a diet, if you can't tell.

Seattle 5-2

21 Riga Reign @ Moscow Menace 22 Helsinki Titans @ Calgary Wranglers 23 Toronto Legion @ HC Davos Dynamo 24 Seattle Bears @ New York Americans