Steve

Presser for the week ending 4/21 1. The players seem to be inactive in the locker room, why? 2. Our recent upgrade to defense hasn't panned yet. Any ideas what is going on? 3. Although we were on top of the EU world, we have fallen lately. Where will we end up? 4. As a whole, the team looks strong and resilient. Are you looking for that big win streak that I am? 5. Our tender is doing a good job when you consider this is season two for him. Can the team rally behind him and push us to glory? 6. Overall, not counting this last week, are you happy with your player?

Review: I really like this design. You did a fine job with this theme and the attention to detail is noticeable. The effects are very good especially the background layers. It looks like you put some time into this one and it really paid off. I like the text effects, it looks proper for the era you are displaying. A nice glow for the render looks good and the logo swap is looking good. The team logo under the background layers really looks good. Even though the background is very busy, the render still is the focal point. Very well done. 9.5/10

Review: I like this style for the most part. Not a huge fan of the color palette but that is your choice. The design is solid and I think it has potential. You have a good render with all the important items removed and replaced with a proper logo. The format is odd but looks balanced. I think the background is killing your render. I think the render should be the focal point and it seems to be dimmer and not as sharp as the background. The text is large and easy to read. Kind of cool font you used. HSL adjustments can be a way to manipulate colors but there are many more accurate ways to skin that cat. In this context, this looks good. Job well done. 9/10

As of today, Saturday the 6th, the league will break the halfway mark for the season. It has been a very competitive season so far in both conferences. The European conference has a potential five team race for the top spot. To be honest, they are all good teams and any one of them could get hot in the second half of the season and be the team to beat. I think there is a good chance the league leader will come from the European conference, even though we fewer teams in the rebuild mode than the North American conference, I still think the top team will be from the European conference. Any way you look at it, we are in for a hard fought season and a great playoff. Whoever wins the cup will be a team that had to go through hell to earn it. It looks like there won't be any push over teams. A good sign that the teams are working to be the best they can be. Of course Moscow will win the cup but there will be a couple of close series. Good luck to all. Word count: 192

Presser for the week ending 4/14 1. Moscow looks to be in a potential 5 way race for the top of the conference, how will we do? 2. What team is our biggest threat in your opinion? 3. The lines have seemed to settle down a bit and sim more stable, do you agree? 4. Have any ideas about any changes the team should look at? 5. Syko has shown some elite skills in recent games. Can he lead us to the promised land? 6. If you could have one league related change, what would it be, if any?

I am saddened to hear this. Transparency is the cure; jail time is the punishment.

Review: I like this player card design. The layout looks good and the boxes and text seem to be placed in a logical order. You did a good job with the team logo and the overall feel hits the theme as intended. I wish the render was a bit sharper, he seems a bit low resolution but not too bad. Your gradient border is interesting, I wonder if going from bottom to top would look more fitting. I don't know what to think about the signature on the graphic. It looks good but wondering if it was meant to look like a player signed it or if it's just part of your design. Overall, I am a fan of this design, and you did a fine job with it. 9/10

Review: I like this for a couple of reasons. First thing is you mentioned Salt Lake City. I live in Utah so that gets a big plus in my book of pluses. Second, you posted this graphic on my birthday, so it's a no brainer to review it. I like the design of this graphic. Simple yet effective. I can appreciate the render without digging through layers of effects to find him. The background is really well done. It doesn't dominate the render but compliments it. Text is of course, easy to read. So overall, you did a fine job with this one. Good job. 9/10

With twenty games played, Moscow Menace has been on a good run. We saw this last season as well but that didn't translate into playoff success. Will this season's success push us harder into the playoffs? I think so, for a few reasons. We have grown up and our roster is very well balanced. It has played out that the top line has been fighting in the trenches and our second line has been exploiting the lack of depth of our opponents. It flops back and forth on which line will have a good sim depending on who we are playing but for the most part, the whole team has risen to the occasion and are reaping the rewards of the hard work everyone has been putting into the team. It is still early in the season and of course a lot can change. With the power houses below us and the North American conference kicking some major ass, it indicates we are in for a fun but brutal playoff. We have the will, the talent and the leadership to be successful. Let's see where this ends when the time comes. Word count:191

Presser for the week ending 4/7 1. We seem to be a consistent winner at the moment. Will we keep this pace? 2. Do you think we are peaking too early or it really doesn't matter? 3. I like the lines and the balanced scoring, thoughts? 4. Do you have any thoughts on line changes you would like the team to try? 5. How is your player playing? As expected or better/worse? 6. Easter Sunday, you looking for eggs and eating chocolate rabbits?

Goalies don't look like they are hurting at this point. I see this change was intended to make cap friendly players score more. I know my opinion isn't on the popular side, but it is setting up my players future move.

Review: Looks like this player is a true gamer. Nice blend of the VHL and a popular game. The background says it all and I think it was well done. Nice and muted to not take away from the player, it just compliments the theme. The render looks fairly clean and has all the NHL branding removed which is a big plus in my book of good things. I am not sure about the color of the jersey but I guess it works as intended. Nice gradient boarder to add a bit of weight to the graphic. The text is a bit bold but goes with the theme so no issues there. Overall you did a good job with a fun theme. 9/10

Review: You did a good job with this design. It is not an easy design to make but you did all the right things that makes this unique. I would say the background is amazing. Multi layered, vibrant and has just the right amount of blur to move the render to the front. The text is stylish and you blend mode looks proper. The render is nice and gritty but has loads of detail. You did a fine job with the correct logos and overall it looks very good. A proper mention to a good player. Great theme. 9/10

Finally, the season started. It reminds me of last season's start in the sense that Moscow got on an early run and looked strong at the beginning. I am hoping for a solid playoff spot and a good showing from our evolving team. The European conference has some big gun teams, and I am sure it will be a battle for the top spot. The North American conference also looks strong, and the teams seem to be around the placing that was expected. Though it is a very small sample size, it looks about right to me. My hopes are simple, be at our best when the playoffs start. Having a long winning streak is fun as hell in the season, but that often doesn't translate to playoff success. With the current roster Moscow has, I see no need to bring in a free agent and disrupt our lines. I don't think that is a path we will hang our hat on this season, but I don't make those calls. Gunner has played well so far. He has been more of a slow starter and should work his way up the ladder as the seasons moves along. It is also nice to have solid line mates and our team has a very good balance to it. Scoring has been coming from most everyone, a great sign of things to come. Word count: 236

Presser for week ending 3/31 1. How do you feel about the start to our season? 2. Do you feel good about how your player is playing? 3. I feel that we will only get better as the season progresses, do you agree? 4. Do you think we can make a push in the playoffs with our current roster? 5. What player on the team has impressed you the most? 6. What happened to Davos? Only six players including their goalie?

Review: You never disappoint. I love the design concept and the fact that I am noticing more and more of the more unique designs rather than the norm. Your color palette really works well with all elements. Your render looks like he was worried about the storm brewing as well. I like the text and the effects you used. Placement is subjective with this design but I think you got it right, it has balance. One thing I would do differently. With transparent background graphics, it seems to look better when all the boarders are feathered and not a hard edge. At least all but the bottom edge. Overall, I love it, well done. 9/10

Review: I must say, this design looks really good. I like the render pose, I think it makes it all work together. It looks like it would have worked with about any team in the league and still be impressive. At least the text and team logo can be seen clearly. A couple if things, in my opinion, could have been adjusted. The contrast, for most of the render's body is too high. It is lacking in any definition and looks a bit flat. There are a couple of NHL brandings left on the render as well. Overall I really like what you did here. It's unique and fun to look at. Job well done. 9/10

It is that time, finally. When the rubber hits the road, the pedal hit's the metal and the skates hit the ice. Indeed, the season is starting. This is the last article of the off season and the ramblings that go with it. I will have game content to write about instead of thinking about hypothetical situations. Moscow has grown up a bit and we have a couple of new faces. I think we have the most balanced team since my time on the team. All positive things that make me think we will have a successful season and a good playoff run. I am not too concerned about where we end up in the standings as long as it is in a solid playoff spot. We all know that the regular season dominating team doesn't indicate anything when it comes to the playoffs. I think it is the teams that come out from nowhere and finish the season strong are the ones more inclined to have a good run. So good luck to everyone, let's have a great competitive season. Word count: 181

Presser for the week ending 3/24 1. The season is about to start, how will we do in the first week? 2. It looks like most of the team has worked hard to improve. What is your biggest gain in skills? 3. Too early to tell, but I think we have what it takes to go deep in the playoffs. Thoughts? 4. Do you relate season wins and losses to our chances in the playoffs? 5. Do you think Syko will have a breakout season? 6. What is your concerns about the team, if any.

I am sure we could handle it but I wouldn't make it a mandatory thing. I would think it could work if there was a baseline to even start a second player. Like have your main/first player have 1K tpe or something. I see your point though. It was just me thinking out loud. I enjoy doing the tasks and max earn. I been max earning since I joined in 2019 and I am retired. I have more time on my hands lol. Thanks for the comment my friend.