Kekzkrieg

Off to the Dragons 
 
Washington, D.C. -- It's the beginning of a new era for defenseman Lance Flowers. Following a six season stint with the New York Americans, who drafted him second overall in S68, Flowers is set to head to his first new team in the VHL. And today, he announced who that destination would be: the D.C. Dragons.
 
An expansion team in S68, the Dragons have made the playoffs in three of the past four seasons, but are still looking for a little help to get over the top into their first finals appearance. Flowers is hoping he can be that piece, slotting in to the team's first top defensive pairing alongside fellow S68 draftee Luciano Valentino.
 
"D.C. had just about everything I wanted. A place where I can make an impact, play defense, a new location for my agency, and most importantly, win," Flowers said. "It really appeals to me to try and bring these D.C. fans their first VHL championship. I hope we get there."
 
It's still early in the offseason, but D.C. projects to be a solid playoff team in North America this season, perhaps even a favorite. With the S72 expansion teams still on the rise, and New York and Vancouver rebuilding/retooling, there's an opening. But especially going up against a Seattle team that has won four titles in six years, success is far from certain.
 
"It's going to take work, but I've never shied away from that," Flowers said. "And I wouldn't be here if I didn't think this team wasn't willing to put in the work as well. I'm feeling good about D.C., and excited to see how it all plays out."

Moving on to individual awards, first up is the Alexander Beketov Trophy, annually awarded to the league leader(s) in assists. It was a tight race, but in the end it was Lincoln Tate @Tate, the stud blueliner for the Riga Reign, who cruised to the Alexander Beketov Trophy with 85 assists, nine more than the D.C. Dragons' Luciano Valentino @Kekzkrieg, who was second with 76 assists. Last season Tate had to share the award with Berocka Sundqvist @Berocka, but his second-straight Beketov Trophy is all his this time!
 

 
Congratulations to Lincoln Tate, the Alexander Beketov Trophy winner!

With the S73 VHL Awards set to be awarded tomorrow night, it’s only appropriate to take a rundown of each award to see who might win each award. 
 
 
Make sure to check out other series VSN has to offer, such as our weekly reviews, award trackers, podcasts, and upcoming offseason coverage
VSN Radio | Weekly Review | S74 Draft Coverage | Under 250 
 
 
Mike Szatkowski Trophy
This trophy goes to the player with the most points. This year, Sigard Gunnar’s otherworldly performance brought him to the top of the point list, with 119 points for the Los Angeles Stars. Hunter Hearst Helmsley finished second place with 113 for Warsaw, but it wasn’t enough to win the award.
 
Kevin Brooks Trophy
The Brooks Trophy goes to the player with the most goals, and Gunnar picks up another piece of hardware. Gunnar had a jaw-dropping 60 goals in S73, by far the most in the league. No other player was able to reach the 50 goal mark, as Brock Louth and Guy Lesieur both had the second-most goals with 46.
 
Alexander Beketov Trophy
The Beketov Trophy belongs to the assists leader in the VHL, and this year it’s none other than Lincoln Tate. Tate had the most assists in the league in S73 with an incredible 85 helpers. When Tate was drafted first overall in the S67 draft, many people thought it wasn’t a great pick, but he has proved the doubters very wrong. With multiple awards over the past few seasons, Tate adds to his collection with his second consecutive Beketov Trophy.
 
Christian Stolzchweiger Trophy 
The top rookie each year earns the Stolzchweiger Trophy, and this year has some fierce competition. Last year no rookie eclipsed the 50 point marker, but this year's rookie class saw two players make it past 72 points, averaging over a point per game. Chicago saw two rookies headline their roster, with winger Adam Syreck having 73 points and fellow winger Squirrely Dan dropping 68 points. Second overall pick Tyler Walker had an impressive rookie campaign for Malmo, with 60 points and 172 blocked shots, but only four hits all year. London also saw numerous rookie sensations take the spotlight, with Jay Jones, James Rose, and The Terrible Trivium scoring 63,63, and 62 points respectively. James Rose especially was fantastic, putting up 63 points as a defenseman alongside 186 hits and 162 blocked shots. Despite all these very strong performances, Chris Hylands finished first among all rookies with 76 points this season. Hylands will be the likely favorite, but Syreck is likely his toughest competition. Syreck had only one less goal despite taking 100 less shots, and had more hits and blocked shots. However, Hylands was -1 on the year, while Syreck was -66 and his hit totals were undoubtedly inflated due to being on an expansion team. It’s a tough call to make, but Chris Hylands is the favorite heading into awards night.
 
Nominees: Adam Syreck, Chris Hylands, James Rose
Favorite: Chris Hylands

 
Dustin Funk Trophy
This trophy goes out to the player who showed the most improvement from the previous season, and every year there is usually a ton of competition for this award. Last year there were plenty of great candidates to choose from, and this year is no different. Top scorer Sigard Gunnar improved by 39 points this year, going from your typical all-star to a superstar in the blink of an eye. Jeff Downey also had a huge breakout season, with 106 points, surpassing his previous career high of 67, while also topping his hit and blocked shots career highs. Guy Lesieur of the Dragons a @lso had a big year, with 99 points, over 40 points higher than his previous career high. Wranglers defenseman General Zod also had a breakout year, going from 14 points to 66 while also having 100 more hits than the season prior. Despite all these names, it’s best to not overthink this award and go with the man who has been the favorite since the first week of S73; Ray Sheilds. After his pedestrian rookie season where he scored only 19 points, Sheilds burst onto the scene in S73. Sheilds was one of the top point scorers in the VHL after two weeks, and even though he didn’t keep up his pace, he still finished with 85 points, a whopping 66 point increase from his rookie year. Sheilds should be the favorite to earn the Funk.
Nominees: Ray Sheilds, Jeff Downey, Guy Lesieur
Favorite: Ray Sheilds
 
Scott Boulet Trophy
The Boulet is handed out to the forward that plays the best two-way game. Generally, the same handful of players are in contention for this award year after year, and this year seems to follow that trend. Phil Marleau led the league in hits with 373, and Chad Magnum finished second with 371, while Markus Nygren was third with 360 hits. All three of these players finished top ten in hits the season prior. Julius Freeman, last season's Boulet winner, had 260 hits and didn’t finish in the top ten for hits this year. Hits aren’t the only metric that are taken into account, as points also play a role, and plus minus can also be a small factor. Many people dislike using plus minus as a player stat because it doesn’t really tell the true story of how well a player plays, but it can be useful sometimes, and this is one of those situations. Nygren, Magnum and Marleau all have very similar hit totals and point totals, but Nygren has a plus 8, better than both Magnum and Marleau by 5 and 6 respectively. This isn’t a big enough margin to give Nygren the edge, but Nygren played for Los Angeles, an expansion team that finished in twelfth place in S73. Nygren even being a plus player is pretty incredible, and the fact that his line all finished as plus players could win over some voters. The Boulet is always a tough award to give out, but Nygren may have the slightest of edges headed into the awards show.
 
Nominees: Chad Magnum, Phil Marleau, Markus Nygren
Favorite: Markus Nygren
 
Alexander Valiq Trophy
The league's top offensive defenseman is awarded the Valiq Trophy. Despite Condor Adrienne and Luciano Valentine's efforts this season with a stunning 90 points, as well as teammates Hulk Hogan and Berocka Sundqvist putting up 93 points each, this award is centered around two players; Jeff Downey and Lincoln Tate. Downey has had solid seasons leading up to S73, but this year he truly became a star on the blue line, with 74 assists and 32 goals for 106 points. Lincoln Tate won the Beketov Trophy with 85 assists, but he also put in 20 goals for 105 points. Only one point separates the two players, so we need to look a little deeper to try to give someone the edge. Riga was much better than Vancouver this season, which could swing the odds towards Tate. However, Tate also had Guy Sasakamoose on the blue line, who had 88 points, while Downeys best defensive partner had only 68 points, which could give Downey an edge in some voters' eyes. Tate had 10 power play goals, while Downey had 18, which led the league. These two players are practically dead even. This is most likely the hardest award to pick a favorite on, but I think the power play production and lack of another high production defenseman gives Downey a very slight edge over Tate.
 
Nominees: Jeff Downey, Lincoln Tate, Hulk Hogan
Favorite: Jeff Downey
 
Jake Wylde Trophy
The Wylde Trophy is for the league's top defensive defenseman. Warsaw defenseman Alex Bridges led the league in blocked shots with 194, and also put up 259 hits in what was an incredible year for him. The only knock for Bridges is that he played for Warsaw, which put him in a situation where he could pad those stats, which could deter potential voters. Condor Adrienne of the Nighthawks also had a great year, with 273 hits and 171 blocked shots. He also played for a better team than Bridges, and since their stats are relatively close, the fact that Bridges played for a very weak team could really hurt his chances. Erik Killinger also could get some consideration, with 250 hits and 166 blocked shots in S73. You also have the incredible seasons of Jeff Downey and Lincoln Tate. Downey had 149 hits and 138 blocked shots, while Tate had 250 hits and 130 blocked shots. This award is another tough one to give out, but it all depends on how the voters view Bridges' success; is it a result of his skill, or were his numbers heavily inflated from playing on a poor team?
 
Nominees: Alex Bridges, Lincoln Tate, Condor Adrienne
Favorite: Lincoln Tate
 
Sterling Labatte Trophy
The league's top overall defenseman takes home the Labatte, one of the most prestigious awards the league has to offer. Jeff Downey and Lincoln Tate are obvious favorites due to their offensive productions, but there are plenty of other players who deserve some consideration. Hulk Hogan and Berocka Sundqvist both had 93 points this year while also putting up good defensive numbers. Condor Adrienne had 90 points as well as defensive stats that put him in the Wylde Trophy debate, and the same can be said for Alex Bridges. Despite all these great performances by defenseman, they are overshadowed by Downey and Tate. Downey may take home the Valiq, but Tate can also take home the Wylde. The difference between Tate and Downey’s offensive totals are very slim, but the difference in their defensive numbers are much greater, which is why Lincoln Tate may have the edge.
 
Nominees: Alex Bridges, Lincoln Tate, Jeff Downey
Favorite: Lincoln Tate
 
Greg Clegane Trophy
The Clegane goes to the goaltender with the lowest goals against average, which belongs to Jacques Lafontaine for the second consecutive year. His GAA of 2.46 just barely edged out Rayz Funk and A Red Guy.
 
Aidan Shaw Trophy
The Shaw Trophy is for the league's top goaltender. Jacques Lafontaine and Greg Eagles both had great seasons, but not good enough to earn serious consideration most likely. Lafontaine won the Clegane, but his .917 save percentage is too low to get votes, and while Eagles had a .920 save percentage and 2.54 GAA, it’s just a little behind the two frontrunners for the Shaw, which are Rayz Funk and A Red Guy. Funk has surprisingly never won the Shaw, but has put up some great seasons, and this year was one of his best. With a 2.48 GAA and a .921 GAA, as well as six shutouts, Funk was one of the top two goalies this year. The other goalie in question is the Americans netminder A Red Guy, who got a lot of votes for most outstanding player. He had a 2.51 GAA and a .928 save percentage in what was a career year for him. He also had eight shutouts, the most in the league in S73 and the most he’s had in a single season. A Red Guy likely has the edge over Funk but it certainly isn’t an easy decision.
 
Nominees: Greg Eagles, Rayz Funk, A Red Guy
Favorite: A Red Guy
 
Daisuke Kanou Trophy
The Kanou goes to the playoff MVP, and this year it couldn’t be an easier choice. Hats off to Scott Greene’s 22 points in 19 games, as well as Berocka Sundqvists 20 points, but Rayz Funk is without a doubt the Kanou winner this season. That brings his Kanou total to four, which is the record for most all time, beating out the one and only Daisuke Kanou, who won three in his career. Funk also broke the record for most playoff wins in a career this postseason, as he guided the Bears to a 3-1 comeback over the Wranglers in the conference finals before taking down the Titans in six. Funk’s .936 save percentage is nearly the best mark of his playoff career, while his goals against average of 2.04 is the second lowest through all of his postseason runs. The argument can be made that no player or goalie in VHL history raises their game more than Rayz Funk does in the playoffs. Perhaps in the future, this award will be named the Rayz Funk Trophy, although that is a bit unlikely. Funk should easily win his fourth Kanou of his career on awards night.
 
Nominees: Rayz Funk, Berocka Sundqvist, Scott Greene
Favorite: Rayz Funk
 
Scotty Campbell Trophy
Nicknamed after the league's greatest player, the Scotty Campbell Trophy goes out to the league's MVP. It is always difficult to pick favorites for this award. A Red Guy is the first player that jumps off the page, as his league best eight shutouts and .928 save percentage helped guide the Americans to 43 wins and fifth place in the league, despite not having a top 15 scorer this season. RJ Jubis for Calgary also can get some recognition with 99 points, which helped Calgary secure the second seed in the North American Conference. Perhaps Scott Greene gets some consideration as the top scorer on Seattle with 105 points this year with 75 assists. Lincoln Tate could also get some recognition for Riga, as their top scorer and one of the best defenseman in the league. Picking players as nominees for this award is really difficult, but I think the lack of a real stand out candidate really boosts A Red Guys chances. 
 
Nominees: Scott Greene, A Red Guy, Lincoln Tate
Favorite: A Red Guy
 
Thank you to those who read VSN’s S73 VHL Award Preview! Good luck to all players that are in the running for an award!
 
 

Review 
I actually really like the bold colouring on the logo. The high contrast makes the skater really pop. Very good choice of render here, because with the darker back ground your eyes pop right into the middle on the players face, and then you get the text off on the right which is a very natural place to put it. Very well done!

9/10 Don't know what palm trees have to do with dragons. 

You did it YOU DID IT. Finally we see the shoulder logos swapped and it looks good. The colours blend well with the background being slightly red and the text matching the outline of Karlsson. This is my favourite of the 3 you made. 9.25/10

Season 73 Playoff Preview - Round 1 Review & Conference Finals

Welcome to the first playoff edition of the VSN Weekly Review. We’ll cover a host of the recaps of the events happening in the Continental Cup Playoffs and any other important events that the VSN covered this week.
 
 
Speaking of other VSN content, make sure to check out the other great work from the VSN team! Here are a few handy links that can be used to access our other works such as weekly podcasts,  scouting reports, historical articles and more!
Under 250: VHLM Review | Ringless: S51 Calgary Wranglers | Deep Rewind: Century Men | The Next Generation: S74 | VSN Australia
 
The playoffs are underway and with that we bring to you the Round 1 Review as well as Conference Finals preview! We've had some excellent match ups so far, and we are in for a treat with the top 4 teams in the regular season battling it out for the Continental Cup. Without further ado, let's get in to it.
 
Round 1 Review
 
North American Conference
 
Seattle Bears (49-18-5) vs D.C. Dragons (37-33-2)
We jump into this review with this great match-up from the North American Conference, and it lived up to all of the hype. The Seattle Bears came into this as heavy favourites being the top seed and the Dragons making it in through the Wildcard round. Seattle took the first two games of the series on home ice, and things looked to be heading to an easy series win for the Bears. Game 3 was a tight contest that could’ve gone either way but the Dragons came out on top and made the series just that much more interesting. Seattle followed up that loss with a blowout victory that put D.C. on the brink of elimination and a series win for the Bears almost seemed like a foregone conclusion. The Dragons showed just what they were made of, and with their backs against the wall they pulled out an amazing win and forced a Game 6 back on home ice. Unfortunately for D.C. they came up just short, losing a heartbreaker in overtime and sending them packing. The Dragons can be proud of what they achieved this season though, and will be looking to come back even stronger next season.
 
Game of the series: Game 6, Seattle Bears (3) @ D.C. Dragons (2) (OT)
The deciding game was the obvious choice for game of the series, and what more could you have asked for than a double overtime thriller? The game started with an almost immediate power play for the Bears, but they weren’t able to take advantage of the early man advantage. It wasn’t until nearly exactly midway through the period that Seattle would open the scoring through a Berocka Sundqvist point shot off a nice feed from Uhtred. The 2nd period was pure action, with not many whistles and both teams taking turns on the offensive side with some great fast paced action. The period flew by in a flash and before we knew it the teams were headed for the dressing rooms. D.C. came out flying in the 3rd period and they capitalized on a defensive breakdown from Seattle and it was Benny Graves who got the equalizer. Off the ensuing faceoff, Seattle skated right into the D.C. zone and Ambrose Stark immediately restored the Bears lead. The Dragons seemed to be deflated after going behind so quickly and it was Luciano Valentino who lit the fire back underneath them and got into a fight with Randy Marsh. There was no clear winner but it was just what the Dragons needed. They found their 2nd wind and kept coming back at Seattle until eventually they found another tying goal, and of course it was the man who kickstarted everything, Luciano Valentino, who tied the game with just under 6 minutes to play in regulation. Both teams headed into overtime thinking they had the upper-hand momentum wise, but the first overtime period ended with the teams still deadlocked. Multiple players were above the 40 minutes played mark and they were looking gassed, but it was the man with the freshest legs and least minutes played, Aleelee Kiak, who wound up being the hero for the Seattle Bears. With just under 7 minutes to play, he fired a puck at the net that somehow found its way in and the Bears had booked their ticket to the Conference Finals. 
Series MVP: Berocka Sundqvist (3 G, 6 A, 16 Hits)
 
Calgary Wranglers (44-22-6) vs New York Americans (43-23-6)
The rematch of last season’s Conference Finals went almost exactly the same way this 2nd time around, if you can believe it. The teams traded wins last year and they did it again this time. New York managed to split the games in Calgary, and they headed home with the series at 1-1. We had the same result in New York, with the teams splitting games and it was clear we had the tightest matchup of the playoffs, with no game being won by more than two goals. Calgary would come back to their home ice and pick up a very important win to take the 3-2 series lead. With their elimination staring them right in the face, New York grinded out a 2-1 win in Game 6 to force an exciting 7th game. Unfortunately for New York, they could not hold on any longer and Calgary ended up with a blowout victory in Game 7 to secure a 2nd Conference Finals appearance in a row.
 
Game of the series: Game 4, Calgary Wranglers (3) @ New York Americans (4) (OT)
Another game in which we saw a double overtime, and it was the New York Americans who had the last laugh in this game of the series. The Wranglers were dominant in the 1st period, outshooting New York 14-4, but it was New York who struck first through Richard Penisson on the powerplay with just under 4 minutes to play. Just 23 seconds after that, Calgary finally found a way to the back of the net and it was Mikko Lahtinen who tied the game up at 1-1. New York would then take the lead again, and it was Bjorn Scoringsonn who picked up his 1st goal of the playoffs. Just 5 minutes later the Americans had doubled their lead with Julius Freeman who scored off a nice passing play. Calgary would not be phased by going down another goal, and their perseverance paid off when ACL TEAR managed to poke one home and crucially cut that lead back to just a single goal. The Wranglers used that goal to swing the momentum in their favour and they were all over New York in the 3rd period and they were able to find the tying goal through RJ Jubis just about halfway through the period. They continued with the offensive push, trying to get the win but A Red Guy brushed aside all of their shots. We headed to overtime with the score at 3-3 and the New York Americans were the team that came out swinging. They peppered the Calgary goal with 17 shots in the 1st overtime but they could not solve Jacques Lafontaine. The 2nd overtime had just barely begun when Jerry Wang stepped over the blueline and put one over the shoulder of Lafontaine to secure an important win for New York, and stop them from going down three games to one.
Series MVP: Jacques Lafontaine (.931 SV%, 2.05 GAA) 
 
European Conference
 
Helsinki Titans (49-18-5) vs Malmo Nighthawks (35-30-7)
The top seeded Helsinki Titans came into this match-up off the back of an extremely successful regular season which saw them share the Victory Cup with the Seattle Bears. Malmo, on the other hand, were fresh off a thrilling Wildcard Round victory over HC Davos. The teams split the first four games of the series, essentially boiling things down to a best of three. Malmo then shocked the entire league and pulled off a huge win in Game 5 to put Helsinki on the brink of elimination. With things looking bleak in the Titans camp, they proceeded to play their best game of the series and dominate with a 6-1 victory to send things back to Helsinki for Game 7. Unfortunately for Malmo, the Titans were just too strong and they were eliminated in 7 games.
 
Game of the series: Game 3, Helsinki Titans (4) @ Malmo Nighthawks (3) (OT)
We continue on the theme of wonderful overtime games, and this time it was Helsinki who came out the victors. Helsinki was the dominant team in the 1st period, starting off the game with some extremely fast paced play. It wasn’t until 14:28 into the period, while they were short handed, that Erik Draven scored the game’s first goal. Just a couple minutes later Helsinki was celebrating another goal, this time from Valtteri Vaakanainen. Their smothering play finally had paid off and they took that lead into the 1st intermission. In the 2nd, the Titans would get into a little bit of penalty trouble, taking 3 minor penalties and it was Tyler Walker who was the one to score for Malmo with a nice shot from the point. The Nighthawks would keep the pressure up for the remainder of the period but saw themselves still trailing as they headed into the 3rd. Now this is where this game really picked up and took the spot as the game of the series for me. Chris Hylands scored the game tying goal just over 6 minutes in, and they used the momentum gained from that goal to get their first lead of the game with a goal from Mickey Dickson. This was a phenomenal showing by the rookie core of the Malmo Nighthawks. However, the veteran experience of the Titans really shined here and they didn’t let the quick goals from Malmo break their spirits. With the goalie pulled, and under 30 seconds left to play in the game, Hiroshi Okada came through for the Titans with a clutch tying goal that would send this game to overtime. The Titans really didn’t look back after that goal, and they started the overtime period with all of the offensive play. Just 1:43 in, the hero from the 3rd period, Hiroshi Okada once again was the saviour and scored the game winner to give Helsinki a 2-1 series lead.
Series MVP: Jim Bob (7 G, 4 A, 20 Hits)
 
Riga Reign (46-23-3) vs Moscow Menace (40-23-9)
Another rematch from last year, just a round earlier this time, with almost the exact same result. Riga put in a dominant performance in this series and Moscow struggled to cope with their talent. Most of the games were high-scoring, but in favour of whoever was winning. Game 1 was an offensive showdown that went Riga’s way by a score of 7-4. Moscow’s only victory of the round came in Game 2, a game which they dominated from start to finish and wound up as 5-1 winners. That was all of the success that the Menace would be able to find though, as Riga tightened things up and squeezed the life out of Moscow. Games 3 and 4 were taken by the Riga Reign, and they out-scored Moscow by a score of 11-1 over both games. Moscow found their feet in Game 5 as they faced elimination, but they came up just short, losing by a score of 4-3 and sending Riga to the Conference Finals.
 
Game of the series: Game 5, Moscow Menace (3) @ Riga Reign (4) (OT)
Just like in the other series, this one was decided in overtime, coincidentally by the same score as well. Riga jumped out to an early lead, scoring just 26 seconds into the game. It was Phil Marleau who found himself all alone after some nice play right off the opening faceoff. Things slowed down after that quick opening goal, and it was Moscow who actually dominated the game for the majority of the period. With a power play opportunity, Oscar Lagesson scored the equalizer that Moscow felt they deserved. They kept that pressure up and just 2 short minutes later, Henrik Zoiderberg scored a nice breakaway goal to give Moscow a lead that they took into the 2nd period. The 2nd was evenly matched, with both teams getting plenty of chances, but it was the Riga Reign who took advantage. Just after the halfway mark of the period, Kyl Oferson tied the game after linking up with Guy Sasakamoose, and just 30 seconds after that they had the lead again with Marleau’s 2nd goal of the game. A quick lead change and suddenly Moscow found themselves chasing the game. The Menace kept throwing everything they could at the Riga net, and eventually Nate Telker managed to sneak one past the Riga netminder while he was screened in front of the net. Another overtime was beckoning, and that’s exactly what we got. After Moscow had nearly found the game winner from Lucas Brandt, Riga took the ensuing rebound down the ice on a 2 on 1, and Marleau slid the puck over to a wide open Pengu to seal the series win.
Series MVP: Phil Marleau (5 G, 5 A, 23 Hits)


 
Conference Finals Preview
 
North American Conference
@Zetterberg made both of these banners on super short notice, so thank you very much!

Seattle Bears (49-18-5) vs Calgary Wranglers (44-22-6)
 
The Calgary Wranglers have once again made it to the Conference Finals, and this year they match up with the top seeded Seattle Bears. The two top teams in the North American Conference will battle it out for the right to play for the Continental Cup. The season series was won by Seattle, they won 4 of the 6 games that they played against each other. Having said that, two of those victories came in the shootout, so they easily could have gone the other way. We can expect a very close fought series here and I expect that we will be seeing another seven games in this one. Seattle has been a great example of a team effort, and they are getting point production from all over the place. The top defensive pairing of Berocka Sundqvist and Hulk Hogan have been instrumental to the Bears’ success and that is clear because they are leading the way with 9 and 8 points respectively. Not to mention some absolutely heroic goaltending from the veteran netminder, Rayz Funk. He was lights out in that first series against D.C. and he will be looking to carry on where he left off. Calgary’s success has come in a similar fashion to the Bears, being a solid team effort and now you are starting to see just why these teams are in the Conference Finals. They have three separate players all with 9 points in Willie Dredge, RJ Jubis, and Kris Rice, and they are getting solid point production from the rest of the squad. Jacques Lafontaine was solid in the first round but he has a tough matchup ahead of him that will surely be one for the history books. 

 
European Conference

Helsinki Titans (49-18-5) vs Riga Reign (46-23-3)
 
The top two teams in each conference are facing off, and in the European Conference it’s the Helsinki Titans facing off against the Riga Reign. Back to back Conference Finals appearances for Riga will have them fired up and hoping for another Continental Cup. The 6 games that these teams played against each other in the regular season were split evenly at 3 games a piece so it’s very hard to choose a favourite in this matchup. The playoff experience of Riga will undoubtedly be a factor, the team they have now is virtually the exact same as last year. They will be looking to their star defenceman Lincoln Tate, who currently leads the way with 12 points, all of them being assists. In net, Greg Eagles has been solid, but not quite the MVP performance of last year. He has a very good .920 save percentage, and his 2.55 goals against average is very good as well, but I know Eagles will be looking to up his game in the next series. As for Helsinki, they are led by forward Jim Bob, whose 7 goals in the series against Malmo leads all players in the playoffs. On the blue line, they have been getting some excellent performances from Erik Summers, who has been a key factor in Helsinki’s success. I reckon if their core group of forwards keeps producing at this rate, we could actually see them topple Riga. Another series that almost looks destined for 7 games, but we will see just how that plays out once action gets underway. Since both teams are so talented on the offensive side of things, it will likely be a battle of the goaltenders, and in that case I would give the upper hand to Riga. One thing is for sure though, and that is we are in for a great series between two of the heavyweights of the European Conference.
 
Predictions
 
Helsinki vs Riga
 
Hylands: These teams are extremely evenly matched, and I expect this series to mirror that. Helsinki comes into this one with all of the momentum after that great comeback over Malmo, and their offensive guns are firing on all cylinders. Some solid goaltending from Samuel Ross to go along with that and you have a recipe for success. Riga will be looking to defend their honour as last year’s champs and they are looking so good. This team is built for playoff hockey and with a solid defensive core, along with last year’s playoff MVP in Greg Eagles, I think they have what it takes to win the series.
 
@PatrikLaine: I think this will be a hell of a series on both sides. Helsinki’s high flying offense has been dangerous all season and they have a solid goaltending duo in net. Riga has been no slouch either, they have an older but solid goaltender in the crease in Greg Eagles who can absolutely steal a series. This series can go either way, but I think Greg Eagles is just too good right now. I see it going the distance as a six or seven game series but I think Riga takes it with a chance to repeat.
 
Hylands’ Pick: Riga in 7
Laine’s Pick: Riga in 7


 
Seattle vs Calgary
 
Hylands: Two of the great heavyweights of the league in recent years, and further when you really dig into the history books. This matchup has everything you could possibly want in a playoff series. We have two of the best goaltenders in the league, along with some of the most talented forward groups as well. Seattle will be trying to prove that last season’s first round exit was a fluke, and that they really are one of the greatest dynasties of this era. Calgary, however, are aiming for a second straight appearance in the finals. This time, they will obviously aiming for that Continental Cup that eluded them last season, and I think they have a great chance of doing just that. They have gotten hot at just the right moment, and everything seems to be going their way. I predict we will be seeing a rematch of last season’s finals this year.
 
Laine: I think this is a very balanced matchup. Seattle has been playing great in hopes of raising their 4th Continental Cup in 7 seasons with the soon to retire Rayz Funk leading the charge in the crease. Calgary is a similar story, looking for redemption after losing to Riga in last year’s Continental Cup Finals. They have played great down the stretch and into the postseason. I think Calgary will fight hard, but Seattle’s offensive and defensive starpower will just be too much for the Wranglers to handle. Setting us up with a Riga-Seattle showdown for the Continental Cup Finals. One team looking to go back to back, the other looking to solidify themselves as one of the great VHL dynasties of their era.
 
Laine’s Pick: Seattle in 6
Hylands’ Pick: Calgary in 7

 
 

Like I did earlier this month I will continue to pester you about the logos on the shoulder until I see one swapped. I would like to see more red to go with the jersey but most colours do match well like the stick and background with slight blue colouring. I believe I gave your last sign an 8 and this one gets a 7. I just think having the colours match more could go a long way.

This was never paid, but I'm in ESPN #1, so here's the payout I guess.

1. @Kekzkrieg (19-3-0) - 8 TPE
2. @Dil (13-9-0) - 5 TPE
3. @McWolf (17-5-0) - 3 TPE
4. @fever95 (15-7-0) - 2 TPE
rest @Telkster (11-11-0), @Nykonax (11-11-0), @Bushito (9-13-0), @Matt_O (7-15-0) - 1 TPE
 
 
Some members I have no idea who you are, you were all in the 1 TPE bracket.
 
Team: Philadelphia Gunnar, Member: Johnny Doe (10-12-0) @Big Mac maybe?
Team: Team Glover, Member: Travis Glover (9-13-0)
Team: Smith Fall William, Member: Poole William (6-16-0)
Team: Team Big Boiii, Member: Brendan Plunkett (5-17-0)
 

Welcome to the fourth edition of VSN’s S73 Weekly recap (Games 355-475).  We’ll cover a host of things in this recap each week including highlights of important VSN happenings, three stars of the week, power rankings, rookie profiles, and anything else of importance.
 
Speaking of other VSN content, make sure to check out the other great work from the greater VSN family! Here are a few handy links to check out, from our weekly podcasts to in-depth history articles, scouting reports, and more!
 
Talents Behind the Trophies | Under 250 | Ringless: S49 Quebec City Meute | VSN Australia | S73 Future Watch: EU
 
Recap
Week 4 was a story with 2 sides. Goalies were absolutely shutting the door to all shooters at the beginning of the week, recording a total of 14 shutouts across the entire week. The last 3 days of the week, it was all about the shooters. Mostly within the last 3 days, 16 hat tricks were recorded across the league including one game where a player scored 5 goals. As the playoffs grow closer, the amount of fighting and physicality has gone up. Hits are at a high for this season and we saw 16 fights across the week. It will be interesting to see how the play of teams will change heading into the playoffs.
 
3-Stars
 
First Star
Odin Omdahl (SEA) - 6 G, 21 A, 39 Shots Blocked
Second Star
Benny Graves (DCD) - 11 G, 14 A, 63 Hits
Third Star
Greg Eagles (RIG) - 2.53 GAA, .910 SV%, 4 Shutouts
 
Power Rankings
Featured on this week’s graphic are Berocka Sundqvist on the Seattle Bears, Mikko Lahtinen from the Calgary Wranglers, and Guy Lesieur playing for the D.C. Dragons.

Shoutout to @Pengu for the banner 
 
This week, the Seattle Bears regain the top spot on the Power Rankings, and rightfully so. The Bears have been terrific all season long, and if not for the insane winning streak that the Helsinki Titans went on, they may have topped the rankings for 3 weeks in a row. This week they were led by this week’s 1st Star, Odin Omdahl, who played a string of great games and anchored Seattle on that blue line. The #2 spot goes to the Calgary Wranglers who have had a resurgence as of late, and have climbed up our rankings all the way from the bottom spot last week after riding a 10 game win streak. They had some stellar goaltending this week from Jacques Lafontaine, who won 12 of his 14 starts which is an incredible stat. 
 
The final spot in our top 3 goes to the D.C. Dragons, who after struggling to start the season, have put all doubts aside and are now firmly cemented in the North American Conference playoff race. Star centre Benny Graves has been the key to the Dragons’ success, and he led the way this week with some terrific performances that earned him our 2nd Star of the week. Coming up next, at #4, we have the Moscow Menace. Moscow has been ever-present in the power rankings this season, only missing out in Week 1, and they have done that on the back of some excellent goaltending by Raymond Bernard. He currently leads the league in save percentage and his solid play has been critical to Moscow’s success.
 
Filling in our back half of the rankings, coming in at 5th spot are the Helsinki Titans who fell off after an amazing week last week. They rode an incredible win streak straight to the top of the rankings and after some average play from the team, they have slipped down the ranks. Erik Summers continues to have a fine season and is currently leading the team in points. Our #6 spot goes to the Vancouver Wolves who have been ever-present in our Power Rankings this season. Their top players are doing all the work for them, most notably, Brock Louth and Jeff Downey who both had great weeks and continue to help push Vancouver towards a playoff spot.
 
Making their first appearance this season in our power rankings, the Toronto Legion will claim spot #7. They’ve been unfortunate to miss the rankings all season, having just missed out in previous weeks, but they finally put together a solid week and it is enough to get a spot in our Top 8. This week was all about the team game for Toronto, with nobody on the roster exploding with fantastic individual performances, but fans of the Legion will be happy to see the team starting to gel. Our 8th and final spot is held by the Prague Phantoms. The Phantoms have been right in that playoff hunt all season long, and are currently just 1 point shy of a postseason berth. With their starting goaltender Virgil Ligriv announcing his retirement earlier this week, they have handed the reins over to Woody McPine who stood tall in his 13 starts and managed to win 8 games.
 
 
Notable Games
 
Game 361 - Prague Phantoms vs Calgary Wranglers
 
This week’s surprise tilt saw the Phantoms take on the Wranglers. The scoring got started early, as just 1:01 into the game, rookie defenseman Kosmo Kramerev would fire a bomb past Woody McPine to put the Wranglers up by 1 early. This would be the only goal of the period, but Calgary dominated the rest of the way. They outshot Prague 15-4 in the opening frame and didn’t slow down in the second. They would get a pair of goals from Willie Dredge at the 46-second mark and the 4-minute mark of the second period to make it 3-0. Midway through the frame, Prague would battle back and score 2 power-play goals within a span of 2:54 to cut the deficit to 3-2. Prague would keep battling all the way to the buzzer that ended the second period but didn’t find a way to tie the game up. All seemed lost for Prague when Kris Rice would bury a wicked wrist shot to make it 4-2, but they didn’t give in. Just 43 seconds later, Gary Tarantino would drill a slapper that had eyes for the net, making it 4-3. Prague would outplay Calgary throughout the third period and it would pay off and just 2:09 after cutting the lead to one, Dagmar Havlova would score on a breakaway to tie it up 4-4. Throughout the rest of the third period, no goals would be scored and it would take extra time to settle this game. Overtime would be back and forth, but with just 36 seconds left in the extra frame, Alex Pearson would put home the game-winning goal, stunning the Calgary crowd as Prague rallied to win against the Calgary Wranglers.
 
Game 373 - Los Angeles Stars vs Warsaw Predators
 
An interesting matchup surfaced this week in Europe, as Los Angeles and Warsaw would clash in a game for the ages. It wouldn’t take long for LA to get on the scoreboard as just 2:40 into the game, Tyler Barabash Jr would drill a one-timer home on the power play to make it 1-0 LA. Later in the frame, Sigard Gunnar would score his 40th goal of the season to double the LA lead to 2-0. Warsaw would respond quickly, with Zeno Miniti putting Warsaw on the board just 6 seconds later. The first period would end with the score staying 2-1 for LA. LA would jump out to a strong second-period start, scoring 2 goals in the first 6 minutes to go up 4-1. Warsaw needed a miracle, and they got one. In the next 3:20 after Sigard Gunnar’s goal that made it 4-1. Warsaw would come back and tie the game, receiving 1 goal from Damien Wolfe and receiving 2 goals from Zeno Miniti, including his hat trick goal that made it 4-4. LA would fight back and with around 5 minutes left in the second, Markus Nygren would put LA back on top 5-4. In the third, Warsaw would continue to battle back and just 1:35 in, Hunter Hearst Helmsley would tie it again, making the score 5-5. The third would be a very competitive period from both teams, but we would need extra time for this game. Overtime wouldn’t solve anything, so we headed for a shootout. In the shootout, Sigard Gunnar would be the only one who would find the back of the net as LA’s emergency backup goalie would stop all 3 shooters in the shootout to help LA win a wild game by a score of 6-5.
 
Game 410 - Warsaw Predators vs Calgary Wranglers
 
One of the best individual performances of the season would come during a game between Warsaw and Calgary. Calgary would jump out to a 2-0 lead in the first 15 minutes of the first, receiving goals from Mikko Lahtinen and Willie Dredge. Despite this early barrage, Warsaw would get to within 1 before the end of the period, getting a goal from Damien Wolfe. The second was very uneventful and only one goal would be scored as Dalton Wilcox would tie the game up 2-2 with 5 minutes to go in the period. In the 3rd period, Mikko Lahtinen would explode, scoring 4 goals in around 7 minutes to put Calgary up by a score of 6-2. Calgary would ride this 3rd-period performance to a 6-2 win over Warsaw. Lahtinen with the performance of the season so far, scoring 5 goals and tacking on an assist for 6 points on the night. This is sure to be a confidence booster for him.
 
Events of the Week
 
Fights
 
Game 368 - Milos Slavik vs Nate Wright In a tilt between two expansion rivals, Milos Slavik and Nate Wright would drop the mitts. Wright fought admirably, but Slavik was the more skilled combatant here and Slavik ended up winning the fight. It was a fun fight to watch though, lots of punches and blocks.  
Game 371 - Remy Moreau vs Mikko Aaltonen Trying to set a tone for his team after giving up an early goal, Mikko Aaltonen would challenge Remy Moreau to drop them. The two of them went at it. Aaltonen got the jump on him and gave Moreau a few nice shots to the jaw, but Moreau came back and got Aaltonen right in the nose. The fight ended in a draw, but Aaltonen had to go off for some repairs.   
Game 382 - Griff Manzer vs Bob Helminen After tying the game and losing the tie only moments later, Griff Manzer challenged Bob Helminen right off the next faceoff. Helminen accepted and the two got right down to business. Both combatants were able to land some good blows, but Manzer ended up getting the final hit on Helminen, knocking him to the mat.  
Game 387 - Jet Jaguar vs Squirrely Dan During a highly contested match between the Chicago Phoenix and HC Davos where Chicago just extended their lead to 2-1. Jet Jaguar thought it would be a good idea to set the tone for the rest of the game and fight Squirrely Dan. The two of them went at it pretty good. Both of them were leaking a bit of blood after this fight. However, before one of them could land a deciding blow, the linesmen broke it up.  
Game 399 - Andrej Petrovic vs Tony Bolonee With Vancouver down late in the game, Andrej Petrovic and Tony Bolonee decided to drop the mitts. The two wouldn’t bother blocking and beat at each other’s faces. Both of them hung in there through the whole fight. The linesmen ended up separating the two, with the fight ending up in a draw. Bolonee would end up being ejected for instigating the fight.  
Game 400 - Dalton Wilcox vs Dagmar Havlova Trying to set the tone early for their teams, Wilcox and Havlova would fight just 6 minutes into this game. Havlova would get some solid punches in on Wilcox but in the end, Wilcox was just too much for Havlova to handle and he would end up winning this bout.  
Game 406 - JaredN vs Ola Vikingstad Late in a 5-1 win for Seattle Bears, JaredN would fight Ola Vikingstad. Both players got off a lot of punches that didn’t really materialize into any sort of advantage. As a result, the linesmen would eventually break it up and the fight would end with the result being a draw.  
Game 411 - SS Hornet vs Frans Eller In the most unlikely matchup, SS Hornet and Frans Eller would drop the mitts. Hornet would get some solid right-hand punches in and get Eller on the brink. As Hornet got the finishing blow on Eller, Eller got him right in the nose. Hornet wins but pays the price. He would have to go off for some repairs but would be right back out there 5 minutes later.  
Game 412 - Randy Marsh vs Brock Louth Two tough customers in Marsh and Louth would drop the mitts here. They would start hammering each other right away, wearing both combatants down as the fight went on. The two would begin to struggle and the linesmen would break them up.  
Game 434 - Brock Louth vs Remy Moreau Two players who already have fought players this week decided to drop them here. Louth got some solid right-hand punches in, but Remy would give him a nice shot right in the jaw. This fight was going somewhere, but the linesmen broke it up too early. I really would’ve liked to see the two keep scrapping.  
Game 438 - Damien Wolfe vs DeFenz Mann After a huge hit by Wolfe on one of Mann’s teammates, Mann decided to stand up for his teammate and fight Wolfe. Man came out firing, but the rookie was eventually put to bed by Wolfe, who managed to get him square in the jaw with a right hand. Mann eventually returned to the game after getting 20 stitches in his jaw.  
Game 439 - Jim Bob vs Scott Greene In a highly contested game between the two best teams in the VHL, Seattle got one early and in response, Bob challenged Greene to try and get Helsinki going. The two traded punches, again and again, getting weaker with every blow. Just when it looked like the next punch would be the winner, the linesmen separated the two. We missed out on a great ending to this fight.  
Game 440 - Remy Moreau vs Gert B Frobe This is Remy’s 3rd fight this week, this time taking on a tough customer in Frobe. Frobe would surprise Remy early, getting in some solid right hands and an uppercut to the jaw. In response, Remy would give Frobe one of his signature right-handers to the Jaw. The linesmen would separate the two and both would go off for repairs.  
Game 450 - Gary Tarantino vs Kyl Oferson Tarantino and Oferson would drop the mitts during a highly contested game between Riga and Prague. Tarantino would come out firing with his punches, but Oferson held firm. Once Tarantino was tired out, Oferson landed a few solid blows. At this point, both combatants were exhausted so the linesmen broke them up. Tarantino was ejected for instigating the fight.  
Game 453 - Codrick Past vs Chris Hylands With Malmo losing 2-1 in the second, Hylands took it upon himself to put some spark on the bench and fought Codrick Past. Codrick came out with the punches, but Hylands held firm and even pushed back with punches of his own. The linesmen broke them up eventually.  
Game 466 - Gary Tarantino vs Luciano Valentino In a highly contested game between D.C. and Prague, tensions began to run high and Tarantino would end up challenging Valentino near the end of the first period. The pair didn’t bother blocking and instead just began punching each other right away. To the surprise of many, they both were still standing after they had tired out and the linesmen had to break up the bout. Valentino had to go off for repairs and Tarantino was ejected for instigating the fight.  
Game 471 - Owen Nolan vs Kris Rice Our final fight of the week takes us to a clash between Calgary and New York. After a late Calgary goal would put the game out of reach, Nolan would decide to take his anger out by fighting Rice. The two went back and forth for about 20 seconds. Trading punches and going blow for blow throughout. The linesmen, unfortunately, broke them up as the fight was ending.  It would have been a great finish and I was disappointed that they broke it up so soon.  
Hat-Tricks
 
Game 373 - Zeno Miniti Zeno Miniti would record a hat trick during a crazy game between the Los Angeles Stars and the Warsaw Predators. Despite the hat trick, Warsaw would end up losing 6-5 in a shootout.  
Game 392 - Gary Tarantino In a pivotal matchup against the New York Americans, Gary Tarantino would score 3 goals, including 2 in the third to help the Phantoms steal a 5-4 win from New York.  
Game 393 - Willie Dredge Willie Dredge would record a goal in every period of the game on his way to scoring a hat trick against Moscow. Unfortunately for Dredge, Moscow would end up winning the game 4-3.  
Game 401 - Valtteri Vaakanainen In a marquee matchup between the surging Titans and falling Americans, Valtteri Vaakanainen would score 1 goal in the first period and 2 in the second to record a hat trick in a 5-2 win for the Titans over the Americans.  
Game 410 - Mikko Lahtinen In perhaps the performance of the season by a skater, Mikko Lahtinen would score 5 goals in a 6-2 win for Calgary over Warsaw. 4 of those goals from Lahtinen would come in the third period to break a 2-2 tie. This game has to be a confidence booster for him.  
Game 413 - Benny Graves Benny Graves would record a hat trick during a game between the Dragons and the Legion. He would score 2 in the second and the game-tying goal in the third in a 4-3 OT win for the Dragons.  
Game 419 - Brock Louth Brock Louth would record a hat trick against the Chicago Phoenix, potting 1 goal in the first and 2 in the second for the hat trick.  
Game 424 - Berocka Sundqvist Berocka Sundqvist would record a hat trick, scoring 1 in the first and 2 in the third to help lift Seattle over Warsaw by a score of 5-3.  
Game 425 - The Terrible Trivium The Terrible Trivium would record a hat trick in a key game for London against the rival HC Davos Dynamo. He would score 2 goals in the third and the OT winner to propel London to a 5-4 OT Win.  
Game 429 - Sigard Gunnar Sigard Gunnar would record his first hat trick of the week, scoring 3 goals including 1 in each period to lead the Stars to a 4-1 win.  
Game 437 - Owen Nolan Owen Nolan would record a hat trick, netting one in each of the three periods played during a 5-2 win for the Americans.  
Game 442 - RJ Jubis RJ Jubis would record his first hat trick this week, scoring 3 in regulation and a 4th goal in overtime to lift the Wranglers over the United by a score of 5-4.  
Game 445 - Uhtred Uhtred would record his first hat trick of the week, netting 3 goals on 6 shots during a wild 6-4 win for the Seattle Bears.  
Game 446 - Teemu Lehtinen Jr Teemu Lehtinen Jr would record his first hat trick of the week, scoring 3 goals and tacking on an assist in a 6-3 win over London.  
Game 447 - Gregg Stallion Gregg Stallion would record his first hat trick of the week. He would net 3 goals, including the game-winner in a 5-4 win over Davos.  
Game 453 - Chris Hylands Chris Hylands would record his first hat trick of the week, scoring 3 goals on 9 shots. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be enough as Riga would defeat Malmo by a score of 4-3.  
Game 470 - Gary Tarantino Gary Tarantino would record his second hat trick of the week, netting 3 in a win for the Phantoms as they defeated Riga in the game by a score of 5-2.  
Shutouts
 
Game 359 - Riga Reign vs Moscow Menace Greg Eagles would record the league’s first shutout of week 4, making 26 saves in a 4-0 win against Moscow. 11 of those 24 shots came in the 3rd so he did a tremendous job protecting the Riga lead.  
Game 367 - Toronto Legion vs Seattle Bears Rayz Funk would shut down the high powered Legion offence, making 29 saves in a 3-0 Seattle victory. All 3 Seattle goals came in the first period and Funk did a good job keeping the door shut the rest of the way.  
Game 370 - London United vs Riga Reign Greg Eagles would chalk up his second shutout of the week in a dominating 5-0 Seattle win over the London United. Riga dominated from the drop of the puck and Eagles only had to make 18 saves. Nevertheless, it is still a shutout and 10 of those stops came in the 3rd period.   
Game 390 - Riga Reign vs Los Angeles Stars Greg Eagles would get another shutout, this time against the Los Angeles Stars. Riga dominated this game start to finish to win 7-0. Eagles made 18 saves to clinch the shutout.   
Game 395 - London United vs Calgary Wranglers Jacques Lafontaine would record his first shutout of the week against London. Lafontaine would stop all 12 London shots to take the game by a score of 3-0.  
Game 397 - Chicago Phoenix vs Seattle Bears Rayz Funk would record his second shutout of the week, backstopping Seattle to a 3-0 win over the Chicago Phoenix and recording 14 saves in the process.  
Game 415 - New York Americans vs Los Angeles Stars  β-LAS G, the emergency backup goalie for the Los Angeles Stars would record a shutout. He went in at the beginning of the game and stopped all 35 New York shots in a 1-0 Win.  
Game 419 - Chicago Phoenix vs Vancouver Wolves Jimmy Spyro would record his first shutout of the week, making 37 saves in a 6-0 win over the Chicago Phoenix.   
Game 420 - Calgary Wranglers vs D.C. Dragons Jacques Lafontaine would record his second shutout of the week, stopping 25 shots in a 3-0 win over the D.C. Dragons.  
Game 423 - Los Angeles Stars vs Riga Reign Greg Eagles would continue his stretch of great performances this week, recording his 4th shutout of the week in a 5-0 win over the Los Angeles Stars in which he stopped 29 shots.  
Game 426 - Moscow Menace vs Toronto Legion Raymond Bernard would stand tall for the Menace, stopping 31 shots in regulation, 4 in OT and both shooters in the shootout to help Moscow beat Toronto 1-0.  
Game 448  - New York Americans vs Los Angeles Stars  β-LAS G would record his second shutout of the week against the Americans, making 35 stops in a 1-0 OT win.  
Game 464 - New York Americans vs Helsinki Titans A Red Guy played great for New York in this game, stopping all 23 Helsinki shots to steal a 1-0 win for the Americans.  
Game 467 - Moscow Menace vs Los Angeles Stars β-LAS G would continue a string of terrific games as the emergency goalie for the Stars, making 24 saves in a 3-0 win over Moscow for his 3rd shutout of the week.  
Game 469 - London United vs HC Davos Dynamo β-LDN G would record the final shutout of the week, making 31 saves in a 1-0 win for London over the HC Davos Dynamo.  
Rookie Spotlight
Jacob Tonn

Shoutout to @Zetterberg for the rookie spotlight banner!
 
This week we shine the spotlight on our first rookie goalie this season, and we have chosen to go with none other than Jacob Tonn of the Seattle Bears. Tonn originally joined the league as a waiver signing, opting to play in San Diego with the Marlins where he had somewhat of a tough time. Having said that, in Season 71 when he joined, the Marlins were in the middle of a rebuild and were one of the worst teams in the league, so his early stats are not great indicators of his all-around performance. He was drafted 18th overall in the dispersal draft by the Mississauga Hounds where he helped them to a playoff spot with a solid 2.84 GAA and .893 save percentage. Unfortunately for Tonn and the Hounds, they ran into a red hot Philadelphia Reapers squad and were eliminated in 5 games. 
 
Following the playoffs, the Seattle Bears drafted Jacob Tonn at 4th overall in the VHL draft. The Bears were looking for their goalie of the future and they definitely got that in Tonn. What the netminder lacks in height, he’s only 5’5”, he makes up for in raw talent. He has had a pretty successful rookie campaign for Seattle, with an 8-3-1 record after 13 games. His raw stats are good for a rookie, with a 3.28 GAA and .878 save percentage and we can expect to see those improve soon as he continues to work on his game. What impresses me most about Tonn is his ability to win games for his team despite what his stats say. He won 45 games in his full season in the minors and already has 8 wins under his belt for the Bears. I am excited to see how he improves in the coming seasons.
 
With the retirement of Rayz Funk coming up on the horizon, Tonn will need to absorb all he can from the franchise goaltender in their two seasons together. It will be interesting to see if Tonn will follow in the footsteps of Funk and play out his entire career with the Bears, and with no other goalie currently in the system, it seems that Seattle is banking on just that. So far, Jacob has come up clutch when his team has needed it. For example, this week he made 3 starts and won every one of them which helped cement Seattle’s spot at the top of the standings. Seattle will be hoping they will see more and more of that as Tonn gains experience at the highest level. 
 
Having impressed so far in his rookie season, it is likely that Seattle will look to Tonn more often as Funk ages and creeps up on retirement. It will be crucial for Jacob to string together some solid performances next season as the proverbial torch is passed. I expect that Tonn will live up to all expectations as his stats are solid for a rookie, and we will be looking at a goaltender that will be one of the best in the league someday. It’s very rare to see a goalie under 6 foot these days, and Tonn is a full 7 inches under that mark, but his pure talent can’t be ignored. Seattle has chosen to ignore that and have put their full faith in the Canadian netminder.
 
- VSN Writer Patrik Laine
 
 

@BigZouzou
 

Hi!
The graphic looks pretty good ! Backoground looks ok. Font looks pretty good. The logo swap looks really great. So overall it looks really good ! Rating: 8/10.

This is a pretty special moment for me, Mikko was my first sim player ever and boy did I learn alot with him.

His VHLM career is mostly forgotten, but to me those were the first steps in Aaltonen's rollercoaster-ish career. Shoutout to these people:
@BladeMaiden @TheFlash @FrostBeard @DMaximus the seasons I had with you all in VHLM were really epic and funny, glad to have been a part of it all.
 
Moving on to his VHL career, which consisted of 2 teams, starting off with being selected 4th overall by the Riga Reign, now at the time I was super excited to be selected by a team that is from the country I live in(Latvia), this combined with the fact that this was my first sim league ever resulted in me maxing tpe every week which eventually led to a pretty massive burnout, I started visiting VHL less and less, to a point where I almost retired, but me being selected top5 made me feel bad for the GM that had put his trust in me, thus I continued to only welfare and do low effort stuff(some theme weeks here n there aswell).
Cheers to everyone that I met along the way, especially @hedgehog337

Then the next big thing happened, VHL expanded to D.C and Prague, and Riga had the option to protect either me or one other player, and that player really wanted to stay in Riga, I did too but I just felt bad forcing my GM into a 50/50 where one of the members might feel bad afterwards, so i volunteered to be left unprotected.
Had no expectation whatsover of D.C, had no idea who their GM was, no idea how the team will proceed, how Mikko's career might be "wasted", but to me it didn't really matter, I just wanted to sort of "redeem" Mikko, and now with him retiring, I feel like I did that, he turned into a solid first franchise piece for D.C and I couldn't be happier with that(we're still winning that cup, yo)
Shoutout to @bigAL @STZ @chillzone @KC15 @DangerGolding @BarzalGoat @frescoelmo @Kekzkrieg @Midnite @flatl99 @DollarAndADream @fonziGG and every past & future D.C dragon...... and of course the captain of the ship, the madman behind the masterplan, the absolute legend, @Enorama


Onto the next adventure!

Overall this is a pretty nice sig, has a retro feel to it with the background, colours and font which are all nicely used. A wise man once said to not put hips in a sig. I think making the render bigger would make it better, good logo swap but you didnt do one on the shoulders. Both of those together would make it even better. 8.5/10

1. Who would be the best VHL Member to be stuck in a bubble with?
There's a lot of players I'd look forward to hang out with in a bubble, I'm pretty easy going.
2. Who would be the worst VHL Member to be stuck in a bubble with?
Not really many here, but I'd say pretty much any team we'd be playing against in the playoffs.
3. DC is gonna have a Mario Kart Tournament.. Who wins and with what character?
Most def myself as Luigi, everyone knows he's a God... like me ?
4. VHL Lets you bring one family member in the bubble, who you bringing?
Gotta bring my main and only squeeze... and are cats allowed? ?
5.  If the VHL was in a bubble, where would the host city be? International a possibility..
I'd say the UK would be awesome but not many ice rinks there. But also warm weather would be great like LA, bring in some revenue there for a new market.
6. What would be the hardest part of playing out the season + playoffs in a bubble for a full VHL season?
It would be a life of restriction and routine that can drive most men mad but I think it's all worth it if you have your eye on the prize.

My 1st ever  work at making a graphic.  and like the thank a good friend and Current Halifax moosehead Landon Miron as its him am using for this
 

Doing this because a certain someone didn't put out a PC from my team lol
 
1. I'm gonna take a guess and say Wolski?
 
2. Good play and a bit of luck with other teams falling out
 
3. His scoring.
 
4. Can't say cause I'm not with the team but probably a goal they scored or somethin.
 
5. Just keep getting better, keep seeing that save percentage go up.
 
6. Sadly no, the sharks did not make it. I love the Yotes though, would be fun to see them make a bit of a push but that probably won't happen since their against Colorado, which is a very good team. At least they won't be swept.

Groovy Dood is *so* hot right now.

The S72 project has had a meteoric rise to the VHL. The kid left his hippy commune to pursue his dream of being a professional hockey player at the end of S72. He joined the Halifax 21st for a short orientation to the league (6GP) before entering the VHLM Dispersal Draft.

Scouts didn’t quite know what to make of Groovy Dood. As a rookie agent, the legend of bigAL hadn’t quite coalesced at that point. Groovy Dood slid all the way to the round. bigAL, Miami AGM at that point, wasn’t able to convince his bosses to take Groovy, and the Dood was snapped up by Minnesota one pick before Miami was due to select him.
This proved to be a draft-day coup by Minnesota Storm manager Rayz. The ultra-deep S73 Storm added a powerful playmaker who could move up, down, left, and right in the lineup. Groovy Dood saw time at LW – his natural position – but made a mid-season change to centre. This position shift got Groovy more ice-time, and complemented his play style well. Line juggling meant Dood spent time bouncing back and forth between the wing and the middle, but the inconsistency didn’t bother him.

Groovy Dood, always with the friendly smile and desire to help others, passed the puck lots in S72. His final tally of 57 points doesn’t tell the whole story – 48 of those points were assists. Groovy Dood played the role of a second-line playmaker well. He used his big body and strong defensive instincts to make sure the ice was tilted toward the opposing net. He hit, he shot, and he fought: 88 HIT; 136 SHT; 43 PIM. While his team didn’t get the playoffs results they wanted, Groovy Dood showed the league that he was willing and able to be a complementary role player on a star-studded team.

Fortunately for Dood, he graduated from one top-heavy team to another. The D.C. Dragons, winners of the S73 Draft Lottery, saw the potential of Groovy. GM Enorama was blasted in the media for the pick, with certain commentators stressing that Dood would only ever amount to a depth player, not worthy of spending a first-overall pick on. Where Negative Nancys focused on the low ceiling of Groovy, D.C. instead made their decision based on his high floor. With studs like Benny Graves, Xavier LeFlament, Luciano Valentino, and Stone “Cold” Wolski, Groovy Dood is under little pressure to perform statistically immediately. His job is to control play, make space for his teammates, and draw defenders away from the hot scorers: all things that don’t show up on the boxcar stats. That’s not to say that Groovy Dood has no offensive production – his breakout five-point game against L.A. earlier this season showed that the Dood is starting to learn what to do with the puck.

Groovy Dood is going to succeed in the VHL. He may not be up for any individual awards, and he may not have the fanciest hockeydb page, but he makes his team and teammates better by being in the lineup. Keep an eye out for Groovy Dood’s name on the Continental Cup very soon.

Strengths:
-    Defensive awareness
-    Silky smooth hands
-    Big broad shoulders
Areas for Improvement:
-    Skating
-    Shooting
-    Winning in the playoffs
 

DC had a hell of a week

Welcome to the second edition of VSN’s S73 Weekly recap (Games 127-235).  We’ll cover a host of things in this recap each week including highlights of important VSN happenings, three stars of the week, power rankings, rookie profiles, and anything else of importance.
 
Speaking of other VSN content, make sure to check out the other great work from the greater VSN family! Here are a few handy links to check out, from our weekly podcasts to in-depth history articles, scouting reports, and more!
 S73 Season Preview | VHL Awards | VHLM Awards
 
Recap
In the second week of S73, games began to pick up the pace. Almost every game was faster and more physical than the first week. Goalies were very good this week, recording 8 shutouts across the second week, up one from 7 shutouts last week. Hat Tricks took a slight fall, dropping from 19  last week to 17 this week. Not a steep fall, but the goaltenders are beginning to settle in this season. We saw our first brawl of the year earlier this week. Numerous fights occurred and the physical play rose in intensity as the teams began to settle in and push for those top spots.
 
3-Stars
 
First Star
Rayz Funk (SEA) - 1.92 GAA, 0.940 SV%, 2 Shutouts
Second Star
Benny Graves (DCD) - 10 G, 18 A, 37 Hits
Third Star
Luciano Valentino (DCD) - 4 G, 19 A, 36 Shots Blocked
 
Power Rankings
Featured on this week’s graphic are Scott Greene of the Seattle Bears, Joakim Bruden from HC Davos and Alex Letang playing for the Moscow Menace.

Shoutout to @Pengu for the sig!
 
Another week in the books and we have a huge shake-up at the top of our power rankings. Last week’s top team the New York Americans have completely fallen out of the rankings after struggling, and we have some brand new teams that have earned a spot in our Top 8 after some stellar play. Coming in at #1, and rightfully so, we have the Seattle Bears. The Bears went on an absolute tear this week, with a 10-2-2 record after some magnificent performances from star netminder Rayz Funk. They are currently hot on the heels of their conference rivals, the New York Americans, and are now just 2 points shy of the top seed. Our #2 ranking goes to none other than HC Davos who continue their great start to the season and are currently holding the top spot in the European Conference. A great 10-4-0 record this week has ensured that they lock down their place in the VHL standings, and gain 3 spots in our Power Rankings.
 
 Next up, a newcomer to the rankings this week, we have the Moscow Menace. This young team put together a solid week of performances and relied heavily on their star rookies, Alex Letang and Lucas Brandt, and they now find themselves holding a playoff spot after a not so great start to the season. At #4, we have another newcomer to the rankings and that is the D.C. Dragons. The Dragons had a horrible start to the season, with only 5 wins in their first 16 games, but they have stormed back this week and added themselves to the playoff mix. This week’s 1st Star, Benny Graves, was the standout performer, racking up an impressive 28 points in 14 games. They are currently on the outside of the playoff picture right now, but are keeping touch with the teams around them and will be looking to carry on from there.
 
 The Helsinki Titans are the first fallers of this week, dropping from #2 down to #5. That’s not to say they had a bad week, 8 wins from 14 is no easy task, but the performance of the teams above them were just that good. They are only 2 points behind the conference leaders, Davos, and if they continue winning games at the rate they are, we’re gonna have an extremely interesting race for 1st. Another faller this week is the Riga Reign, who are perhaps the victim of playing one less game than everybody else, but nonetheless couldn’t quite keep up the same level of play like last week. The European Conference is extremely tight this season, with just 10 points separating 1st and 6th. The defending champs find themselves right in the middle of it and will no doubt be looking at a run for 1st, rather than a battle to make the playoffs.
 
 Our 2nd biggest faller of the week, going from #3 all the way down to #7 is the Calgary Wranglers. They just about evenly split their 14 games, going 7-6-1, but after a 10-5-1 start, last year’s finalists will probably be disappointed. They have fallen 4 points back of Seattle, but are keeping pace and will be hoping to find their groove again and push for that top spot. The 8th and final spot is held by the first expansion team to feature in this season’s Power Rankings, the Los Angeles Stars! It’s basically a two-man showdown in Hollywood this season. Sigard Gunnar and Tyler Barabash Jr are absolutely tearing it up, and are #1 and #2 in the league for scoring, respectively. Will they be able to pull the Stars to a shock playoff appearance? They are only 3 points out as of now, and who knows, crazier things have happened. That wraps up this week’s Power Rankings. An amazing week all around, and a few surprises as is often the case. Join us next week to see who will take our top spot.
 
Notable Games
 
Game 131 - Riga Reign vs New York Americans
In this marquee matchup between the defending champions and the hottest club in the VHL, the results did not disappoint. It didn’t take long for the Americans to get started as just 16 seconds in, Owen Nolan would open the scoring on the power-play. New York would add to their lead midway through the first as Jerry Wang would score on a breakaway to make it 2-0. It would remain 2-0 through the first period, leading us to period number two. Both teams came out firing in this period, as Riga outshot New York 22-14 in the second period. We would see our first goal of the second halfway through as Hugh Jass would get one of the power-play to make it 3-0. Micheal Gary Scott would make it 4-0 with just 1:18 to go in the middle frame. The third period was the story of one man, A Red Guy. He stopped 24 shots in the third and 63 shots across the entire game to record a shutout. Bjorn Scoringsonn would tack on one more halfway through the third to conclude the game, which ends in a 5-0 win for New York.
 
Game 160 - Calgary Wranglers vs Malmo Nighthawks 
This was the game this week that had everything in it. Malmo has just come off of a good performance last week and hoped to continue this streak against Calgary, who began surging at the end of last week. Calgary came out getting the puck on net, as they outshot Malmo 20-8 in the opening frame. However, Malmo would strike first on a goal from Ray Sheilds to make it 1-0. Calgary wasn’t happy about this goal and just 17 seconds later, Mickey Dickson would drop the gloves with Kris Rice. Rice would end up winning this fight with some right-hand punches and Dickson would be ejected from the game. The fight win brought some energy to that Calgary bench and just 8 minutes after the fight, Calgary would tie it up off of an even-strength goal from ACL TEAR. We would end the first period with a 1-1 tie. Malmo was very undisciplined in the second frame, taking 3 penalties to Calgary’s 0. Calgary would make them pay and on the power-play, Mikko Lahtinen would feed a one-timer to RJ Jubis to put Calgary on top 2-1. It would stay like this heading into the 3rd period. Malmo was really pushing in that third and about midway through, we saw that emotion start to boil over with some undisciplined penalties. One thing leads to another and at the 14:22 mark of the 3rd, we saw our first line brawl of the season. ACL TEAR and Chris Hylands duked it out first, but there was no true winner as the fight ended in a draw. Second to drop the gloves were Willie Dredge and Zyrok12, but they also ended in a draw. The final fight and probably the most interesting one was Latrell Mitchell and Ray Sheilds. This fight also ended in a draw but the energy on both benches was flowing after that. After all the penalties were sorted out, Malmo would have two minutes for a 4 on 3 power-play and after that 2 minutes of a 5 on 4 power play. They didn’t waste their chance as late in the 5 on 4, Tyler Walker gave Lewis Dawson a pass on a tee and he makes no mistake to tie the game up 2-2 with just 2:22 to go in the 3rd. The rest of the third would be quiet and we would head to overtime. Overtime was an absolute thriller, as both teams would go up and down the ice. Both teams hit posts and crossbars multiple times, but the score would remain 2-2 as the game needed a shootout to decide the winner. Malmo would shoot first, sending Lewis Dawson. Dawson would make a great backhand to forehand move, but he would be stopped by Jacques LaFontaine. Mikko Lahtinen would be the first shooter for the Wranglers and he made no mistake. He walked in and slapped and absolutely bullet top cheese to put Calgary up 1-0 in the shootout. Condor Adrienne would be up next to shoot for the Nighthawks. He made a fantastic move to get the puck through the five-hole of LaFontaine, but the puck would amazingly stop on the goal line to keep Calgary’s lead. RJ Jubis could end the game on Calgary’s second shot. Jubis walked in, pulled the puck between his legs and then pulled off the one-handed tuck to seal a 3-2 shootout victory for the Calgary Wranglers.
 
Game 206 - Chicago Phoenix vs Calgary Wranglers 
Another one of the week’s interesting matchups involved the Calgary Wranglers. This time, facing the expansion Chicago Phoenix. The first couple minutes of the first were back and forth down the ice and Chicago’s persistence would pay off as they would draw a holding call on General Zod at the 5:03 mark. On the ensuing power-play, Milos Slavik would rip a perfect wrister above Calgary’s backup. No chance on that play, 1-0 Chicago early. However, it didn’t take long for Calgary to respond and just 6 minutes later, RJ Jubis would bury his 16th of the season to tie the game up. Calgary would keep coming and just 2:57 later, Jubis would net his second of the period to make it 2-1. As the first period was winding down, Willie Dredge would find the back of the net to expand the lead to 3-1 Calgary. It would stay 3-1 heading into the intermission. Calgary came out in the second with great defensive sticks which gave them more puck possession and they would make it count as around 12 minutes in, Jubis would complete the hat trick to put Calgary up by 3. Chicago wouldn’t stop though and just 41 seconds later, Squirrely dan would rip one into the back of the net to cut the Calgary lead to 4-2. Chicago was getting undisciplined near the end of the second and it would cost them. Milos Slavik would take a hooking penalty and on that power-play, Willie Dredge would pot his second of the game on a booming slapshot from the point to expand the lead to 5-2. The second period would come to a quiet end with a 5-2 Calgary lead. Calgary would come out flying early in the 3rd and just 3:18 into the final frame, Willie Dredge would pot his hat trick goal, making it 2 Calgary hat tricks in this game and a 6-2 lead. Calgary absolutely dominated the rest of the 3rd, outshooting Chicago 19-5 in the final frame. The game would end with a 6-2 Calgary win.
 
Events of the Week
 
Fights
 
Game 130 - Mikko Aaltonen vs Jet Jaguar Aaltonen and Jaguar would drop the gloves midway through the second period in a game between D.C. and Davos. Jaguar would get some good right hands in but Aaltonen would stand his ground and even push back. The linesmen eventually would break these two up and the fight would end in a draw.   
Game 148 - Thomas Landry II vs Randy Marsh Trying to set a tone for the last two minutes after a late Prague goal gave them the lead, Randy Marsh would challenge Thomas Landry II. Landry would come out aiming for the face and Marsh would be leaking a little bit after the fight, but Marsh would hit Landry in the jaw, enough to stun him for a minute. As he went in to try and get another hit, Landry would block the punch and the linemen would eventually come in to pull the two combatants apart, with the fight ending in a draw.
 
Game 155 - Luciano Valentino vs SS Hornet The second fight in a game between D.C. and Davos this week, Luciano Valentino would drop the gloves with SS Hornet. Hornet would do a good job with some blocks and punches, but Valentino would get some solid right hands in. I think the linesmen broke this fight up too soon and I thought there was going to be a winner here, but it ends in a draw.  
Game 160 - BRAWL!  Emotions began to boil over in a highly contested game between Calgary and Malmo. There were 3 fights at the 14:22 mark of the 3rd period. We saw ACL TEAR and Chris Hylands fight to a draw, Willie Dredge and Zyrok12 fight to a draw and lastly Latrell Mitchell and Ray Sheilds fight to a draw. I wanted to see someone win a fight, but the linesmen did a good job breaking the fights up before it got out of hand.  
Game 169 - Hiroshi Okada vs Andrew Su  Okada and Su would drop the gloves in the first period in a game between Helsinki and Vancouver. Okada would land some right hands and Su just didn’t have enough power. Okada would end up winning the fight. Helsinki would ride that energy to win the game after that.   
Game 221 - Scott Greene vs Jay Jones Greene and Jones would drop the mitts just 17 seconds into the third period. Both players would dish out punches and blocks but no one had the upper hand and eventually, the linesmen would separate the two combatants.  
Game 223 - Brock Louth vs Richard Penisson Our last fight of week two takes us to Vancouver to see Brock Louth fight Richard Penisson. Louth did a great job evading the punches from Penisson and when Louth saw an opening, he hit Penisson right in the jaw and down to the mat he went. Louth won this fight, and they had to take Penisson off for some repairs but he was okay.
 
 
Hat-Tricks
 
Game 133 - Kefka Palazzo Our first hat trick of the week would come from Kefka Palazzo, who potted 3 goals against the Los Angeles Stars. All 3 of his goals were even-strength tallies. Unfortunately, LA would win the game 4-3. It doesn’t take away the hat trick from Palazzo, who certainly had a night to remember.  
Game 136 - Willie Dredge Willie Dredge would record a hat trick against the Malmo Nighthawks. His first two goals came within the first 2:05 of the game and his 3rd goal would come with 41 seconds remaining in the second period. An impressive performance for Dredge.  
Game 140 - Scott Greene Continuing on the theme of a great week for Seattle, Scott Greene would record a hat trick, scoring 3 goals in a 4-0 beatdown of the expansion LA Stars. This is sure to be a confidence booster for Greene.  
Game 142 - Dagmar Halvova In an absolutely dominating performance by the Prague Phantoms, Dagmar Halvova would record a hat trick. He potted 3 goals to go along with an assist in a 7-1 win for the Phantoms against their conference rival, the London United.  
Game 144 - Lucas Brandt In a statement win for the Moscow Menace, Lucas Brandt would record a hat trick. He scored the first goal in the second period which ended up being the game-winner and tacked on 2 at the end of the third to seal a 5-1 statement win over the red-hot HC Davos Dynamo.  
Game 149 - Mat Tocco Mat Tocco would score all 3 goals in a gutsy win for the Vancouver Wolves. They would end up beating the D.C. Dragons 3-0. Tocco would score in all 3 periods of the game and this performance is certainly a confidence booster for him.   
Game 150 - Sigard Gunnar Sigard Gunnar would continue a streak of dominate games for him, recording a hat trick during a 5-2 win over the Chicago Phoenix. He certainly has been a catalyst for the Stars so far this season.  
Game 151 - Henrik Zoiderberg Another hat trick for the Moscow Menace this week. This time, it would be Henrik Zoiderberg getting the hats. He scored 3 goals in an interesting 5-3 win over the London United. He has been playing very good this season.  
Game 167 - Lewis Dawson Yet another hat trick recorded against the London United. This time, coming from rookie Lewis Dawson and the Malmo Nighthawks. Dawson recorded the hat trick to go along with 1 assist in a 5-2 win for the Nighthawks.  
Game 193 - Jungkok Jungkok would record a hat trick for the Vancouver Wolves. He had 3 goals to go along with 3 hits in a 5-3 win over the Moscow Menace.  
Game 206 - RJ Jubis and Willie Dredge When is the last time you saw 2 hat tricks in one game, let alone 2 hat tricks for a pair of teammates? Both RJ Jubis and Willie Dredge would record 3 goals each in a dominate 6-2 win for the Calgary Wranglers over the Chicago Phoenix.  
Game 207 - Dagmar Halvova Dagmar Halvova would record his second hat trick of the week. This time, against the Seattle Bears. The hat trick would not be enough though, as the Phantoms would fall 4-3 to Seattle.  
Game 213 - Sigard Gunnar In a high scoring game that had 7 first period goals between the two teams, Sigard Gunnar would record his second hat trick of the week. He scored 2 in the first and 1 in the second in an impressive 6-3 win for the Los Angeles Stars.  
Game 216 - Lewis Dawson Lewis Dawson would also record his second hat trick of the week. He would pot all 3 goals for the Nighthawks, including the OT winner in a key 3-2 overtime victory for Malmo over the Prague Phantoms.  
Game 228 - Groovy Dood D.C. Dragons rookie Groovy Dood would record his first career hat trick. This would come during a team-building 7-1 win for the Dragons over the Chicago Phoenix. Certainly a confidence booster for Dood and the Dragons who have had a slow start to the season.  
Game 232 - Gary Tarantino Our last hat trick of the week comes from Gary Tarantino of the Prague Phantoms. He had 3 goals including the game-winner in a wild 6-4 victory for the Phantoms over the Moscow Menace.  
Shutouts
 
Game 129 - Helsinki Titans vs Chicago Phoenix This week’s first shutout is earned by Jean Pierre Camus. He stopped 23 shots against a very hot Helsinki Titans team to earn a win for the Phoenix and his first VHL shutout. Chicago ended up winning by a final score of 3-0. This has to be a building block for Chicago who has been off to a terrible start so far this season.  
Game 131 - Riga Reign vs New York Americans Arguably the best goaltending performance of the entire season, the tremendous play of A Red Guy continued as he recorded his 2nd shutout this season. The score won’t tell the entire story with this one. New York beat Riga by a score of 5-0, but the shots were 63-34 in favour of Riga. Red Guy made 63 saves to preserve the win and the shutout for the Americans.   
Game 140 - Seattle Bears vs Los Angeles Stars Another shutout for the Seattle Bears, coming from Rayz Funk. In a dominating performance from the Bears, Funk made 20 saves to help Seattle beat Los Angeles 4-0. Not exactly a performance for the ages, but it is a good little confidence booster for Seattle.  
Game 149 - D.C. Dragons vs Vancouver Wolves In a matchup between two of the top picks in last year’s draft, Jimmy Spyro stole the show. He would record his 2nd shutout of the season. He would stop all 23 shots from the D.C. Dragons to record a shutout and steal 2 points for the Wolves.  
Game 173 - Moscow Menace vs London United In a battle between close rivals in the European Conference, Thorvald Gunnarsson would record his first shutout of the season. He would make 26 saves including 15 in the 3rd period to preserve a 3-0 shutout win for Moscow.  
Game 183 - HC Davos Dynamo vs Malmo Nighthawks In a close game between the two surprising teams of the European Conference, Joakim Bruden would record his first career shutout. He shut down the early surge from the Malmo Nighthawks, making 20 saves including 13 of those coming in the first period.  
Game 184 - Toronto Legion vs Vancouver Wolves In a clash between Canadian rivals, Jaxx Hextall would record his 3rd shutout of the season, tied for the league lead in that department. He stopped 37 out of 37 against the Wolves, including a 3rd-period surge from Vancouver in which he stopped 15 shots.  
Game 218 - Seattle Bears vs Calgary Wranglers The last shutout this week was earned by Rayz Funk. This would be his 3rd shutout of the season, against a weakened but still effective Calgary Wranglers team. Funk would stop 21 shots across the entire game to preserve a win for Seattle.  
Rookie Spotlight
Lucas Brandt

Thanks @Zetterberg for the sig!
 
Lucas Brandt has already made quite the splash in his short time in the VHL. He first joined the league as a free agent, signing for the Halifax 21st where he enjoyed an incredible rookie season with 87 points in 72 games, with 41 of them being goals. He quickly established himself as an elite prospect with amazing scoring ability. His sophomore season was even better if you can believe it. He was drafted 4th overall by the Saskatoon Wild after some turbulence leading up to the draft, before which he was an almost guaranteed 1st overall pick. Brandt used that as fuel for his fire as he went on and racked up an incredible 133 points, with 57 goals and 76 assists, while also helping lead his team to a Founder’s Cup. I can’t think of a better way to cap off your minor’s career than that.
 
Brandt was selected 9th overall by the Moscow Menace in Season 72. Looking back at the draft he was selected quite a few spots ahead of his projected position, when asked if he feels any pressure to perform because of that, he said, “Both yes and no. I don't think TPE means everything in the major league drafts, so I think where I was selected was fine. However, I do have a chip on my shoulder to always go out on the ice every night and prove that I deserve to be a top 10 pick.” It’s pretty obvious that Brandt will be a star for Moscow for years to come, and with that attitude, they have unearthed an absolute gem.
 
His rookie season started off a bit slower than he would have liked, but after finding his feet, he has stormed up the rookie scoring race and finds himself just 2 points back of his Moscow teammate, Alex Letang. “I started off a little slow, but I guess that's normal when you transition to the big leagues. I've finally found my groove with my great teammates in Moscow and I'm having a blast. I would love to try and keep up a point per game pace, but I'm not sure that's likely. Either way, I'm pretty happy with my results thus far.” There’s been some talk as of late as to who has the best prospect pool in the VHL, and you will see the Moscow Menace pop up in those discussions, and rightfully so. They have amassed a highly talented crop of young stars, and things are looking up for the Russian club. “It's incredibly exciting. I love seeing our prospect pool grow especially since a lot of them were drafted in the same draft as me. Spartan (Alex Letang) and I will hopefully be competing for rookie of the year. The locker room is even more revitalized with the new group of us.” 
 
The sky certainly seems to be the limit for this current generation of Moscow stars. However, Brandt is keeping his expectations reasonable. While playoffs may very well be in the picture this season, a cup run isn’t really on his mind, “I'd always like to think we're a dark horse when we are still developing our talent/prospects. The unfortunate reality is that there are teams just much more established than us and our window isn't quite here yet.” Brandt isn’t getting too far ahead of himself and is taking things one step at a time. As this Moscow team continues to develop they will most certainly be a favourite, but for now, Lucas is taking everything he can from each game and will continue to jump from strength to strength.
 
One of those strengths may be his giant duck fighting ability. Now, I know what you’re thinking, this sounds absolutely insane, but hear me out. We presented Brandt with two hypothetical choices, he had to choose between fighting 1 horse-sized duck, or 100 duck-sized horses. After quite some time weighing up the options, and even going as far as to write down a pro’s and con’s list for each, he elected to go for 1 horse-sized duck. “Definitely a horse-sized duck. Ducks aren't really aggressive so I think I could escape pretty easily as it tries to waddle towards me.” He actually went with the strategy of not fighting the horse-sized duck at all and just walking away, which to be fair, we never told him he couldn’t. We were outsmarted this week, but we won’t let that happen again. 
 
This concludes our rookie spotlight on the wonderful, Lucas Brandt! Just another great prospect from the Season 72 draft class. He has already established himself as one of the top players of the class and will undoubtedly have his eyes set on some silverware in the very near future. If you haven’t already gotten used to hearing his name, you better get on it. He is a star in the making and it’s only a matter of time before he earns the spotlight of the rest of the league.