1. We sit in a playoff spot in a meaningful part of the season for the first time ever as a franchise. Who needs to be our MVP for the last 6 games if we're going to make it to playoffs?
Honestly, it's hard to pin most of our hopes on a player or group of players. As long as we contribute as a team and play as a team, I think anything is possible!
2. It's likely that either us or New York will finish 6th overall in the league but miss the playoffs while Riga, Helsinki, and Malmo/Prague will make it while finishing in the 7th, 8th, and 9th slots. Should we go back to a wildcard system to avoid situations like these?
I'm all for WIldcards cause it throw a major mix up when it comes to playoffs, there's nothing like underdogs finishing on top!
3. Looking back at our off-season adds of Kriketers, Frostbeard, Ritchie, and Fish, who do you think was the most important piece for our turnaround this year?
100% all of them, we wouldn't be here if it weren't for their veteran experience and guidance for us greener guys.
4. If we slide into the playoffs as the North American 4th seed, we would likely play Vancouver in the first round. Does our 5-3 record against them in the regular season give you confidence in the series or do you think regular season results should be ignored and the playoffs should be a whole new season?
Absolutely, it's definitely motivation for us to know that they're human and can be beaten but it's not going to be a walk in the park.
5. This season's theme week theme is "Future Hall of Famers". Who do you think is most likely to make the Hall from our active roster?
My ride or die, Aaltonen! Guy is an amazing player, teammate and leader. I'm really hoping he's the first Dragon to do so!
6. What do you put on a hot dog? And is it a sandwich?
I like my hot dogs Chicago style with all the works: mustard (preferably brown), chopped onions, sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices. And no you mad man! A hot dog is a hot dog!
Mikko Aaltonen:
One of the names that pops out at your when you look down the DC roster, Aaltonen has been a fan favourite in for the Dragons since he moved there from Riga in S68, he's put up top tier numbers over the past few seasons and has improved upon them every year. Though lack of team success so far in his career could hurt his case for the Hall. He's commited to DC til the end of his career so his chances will depend on how the Dragons far over the next few seaons.
John Frostbeard:
The Dragons most recent acquisition is also one of the more decorated players on the roster, with a Founder's Cup win with Philadelphia paired with a duo of Continental Cups obtained in Seattle in S68 and S69 before his blockbuster move to DC. These accolades definitely put him on the map for the HoF even without taking into account his personal statistics which have him producing at a great level from his first appearance in the VHL. He's taken large steps in his physical game this year with 158 hits this season compared to just 61 last year. If the Dragons can continute on their current upward trajectory and Frostbeard can add one more Cup to his trophy cabinet I could see him as almost a surefire lock.
Luciano Valentino:
The Dragons star pick in the S68 draft has lived up to and arguably outperformed the high expectations.A well balanced player, Valentino spread his influence across many different areas on the floor setting up teammates for goals, making strong hits and blocking shots. If he can progress from jack-of-all-trades to a master of some then Valentino can make a huge mark on the league, though again it will be somewhat of an uphill battle to overturn the stigma of DCs recent losing seasons might have on his overall career when the time comes for his consideration for the HoF
I’ve been tracking RW, Guy Lesieur’s S70 progress all year as a fun way to stay connected with him and see how he is progressing from S69. It started as a way to see how much he could improve in his second year in the VHL having spent only one year in the VHLM.
But now, given how much he has improved in just one year and looking at where he is at in only his 3rd overall year in the sim, I am starting to believe that the Hall of Fame is certainly not out of the question. In fact, I’m going to go on record early and say that Guy Lesieur will one day be honored in this way.
Let’s look at the numbers now that nearly all the games have been played. I am going to go with the numbers as of 64 games played to keep the analysis comparable on a week to week basis.
Goals
In the past 14 games, M. Lesieur has scored another 6 goals. That’s nearly a goal every other game and if he had scored at that pace all season long, he would score nearly 36 goals. In only his 3rd season. That is a Hall of Fame trajectory if I have ever seen one.
This brings Guy’s season long total to 23 putting him on a pace to score nearly 26 goals in his 3rd season of development. As a point of reference, Guy scored 12 goals in all of S69 – evidence of his meteor-like rise. With 8 games to play, Lesieur has doubled his S69 total less one goal.
His talented teammates have also picked up the pace and so Guy has slipped from the #3 goal scorer on the team to #4
Assists
As it has been all season, it is a similar story on this side of the scoresheet. In the past 14 games, Guy notched 5 assists for an S70 season total to date of 22. This is a pace of nearly 25 assists on the season. His current 22 assists means he has already more than doubled his total for S69 (10), but again his teammates superior performance means that he slipped from #8 to #9 in assists for all Dragons players.
Lest one think that his current 45 points is simply due to being a big fish in a small expansion pond, let us remember that Aaltonen, Frostbeard, Valentino, Fish and other greats play on this team. Also, GM @Enorama pointed out in his recent article, “Young First Gens Destined for the Hall” that Guy Lesieur is leading all S69 wingers in points this season and is only 7 career points behind Soren Jensen who won the Stolzschweiger prize in his rookie year.
Shots
One of the reasons that Lesieur his having success is that he is willing to be put the puck on the net. As the Great One, Gretzky, famously opined, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Lesieur tries to not let that happen. He has 254 shots on the season and is on pace for nearly 286. That is nearly double his S69 total of 145 and ranks him fourth on his team, the D.C. Dragons.
Shot Percentage
But it’s not just flinging the puck and hoping something goes in. After 6 games (my first progress update) Guy was on fire with an 11.54% shot percentage. No one thought that could last and that dipped over the next 3 updates. However, as Lesieur continues to work on his game, his shot percentage has risen in both of the last 2 updates. From 7.48% to 8.72% and then from there to 9.1% in this latest update. This is good for 6th on among Dragons players.
Here is a man who puts the puck on net and whose accuracy is beginning to grow.
Yes indeed, I believe this is a 3rd year performance worthy of early discussion of a Hall of Fame career.
I'll be reviewing some of the younger players in the VHL and some of the up-and-coming prospects in the VHLM. No, I'm not going to go by the VHL's dumbass definition of first gen, where if you're inactive for three seasons, you become a first gen when you come back, I mean real first gens.
I'll use S68 as my cutoff for "young" because I don't have all day and that's the year the Dragons joined the league so of course I paid no attention to anything at all before then. I was going to consider cutting it off at S71 as well, just because the creates (especially the first gens) are just too difficult to predict after just a week of S72 creation, but there's actually one specific guy I wanted to shout out.
S68:
Luciano Valentino @Kekzkrieg
His stats don't exactly scream generational talent, but he's been a huge part of a young Dragons team; signing a lifetime deal, earning himself a letter in just his second season, and moving up to being currently tied for 2nd in his draft class by TPE. As D.C. improves this season and next, watch for his personal stats to do the same, and if he heats up in the latter half of his career, he could have a solid shot at the Hall.
Raymond Bernard @Mr_Hatter
A Moscow team that, although they're old, could actually compete for a long time would be what would drive Bernard to the Hall. He's improved hand over foot in his three seasons of VHL play, and it isn't hard to imagine him resembling a Kallis Kriketers, where he's a steady starter for a team that seems to be able to compete for forever. His lack of games played in his first two seasons may knock down his career win totals a bit, but if Moscow's dominance is any indication (the EU looks to be even weaker next season), he'll be able to make up those wins, no problem.
S69:
Guy Lesieur @KC15
Yeah I'm out here pimping a Dragon again. I was actually pretty reticent about including him at first, but after looking a little harder at this draft class, I found that he seems to be leading all wingers in points this season. Soren Jensen has taken a huge step back this year after his Stolzschweiger-winning rookie campaign, meaning Lesieur is only 7 points behind him on their respective careers. Add to that that Lesieur has already doubled his point totals from last year, and this guy could trend upwards hard enough to find himself a place in the Hall.
Guy Sasakamoose @Cxsquared
Just like Lesieur, Sasakamoose has also doubled his point totals from his rookie season with games yet to play. This argument is slightly harder to make than some others, because Sasakamoose is earning at a premium welfare pace now, but this is an overall not-so-strong draft class, so if he continues his current trend, he's destined for greatness.
Erik Summers @Erik Summers
With the S70 Stolzschweiger more or less stashed away in his trophy cabinet already and the #1 spot on Helsinki's blueline his for the foreseeable future, Summers would seem a lock for making a run at the Hall of Fame. What hurts his chances, however, is having spent his post-draft season in the VHLM, meaning that at most, his VHL career will only have 7 seasons when it's all said and done.
S70:
Jaxx Hextall @ROOKIE745
Similar to Summers, Hextall's chances will be hurt by playing a maximum of 7 seasons in the VHL, but when it comes to goalies, they're often eased into the starting roles these days anyways, so if Hextall is able to step right in to the starting slot in Toronto (there's no reason to think he won't), then his GP deficit will be nearly completely erased.
S71:
Joe Proto @Proto
We've all seen how he's skyrocketed up the draft rankings, grabbed himself an AGM slot, and overall just been very active, so it isn't hard to see how he could carve himself a spot in the Hall before his career winds down (which is still like 8.5 seasons away). Being a crazy active first gen doesn't necessarily mean you're destined for greatness, however, as Kastelic will go down in the Hall of Very Good, and Puidgemont and Risteneen went inactive fairly quickly after their drafts. Proto's best chance might come if he finds a happy spot in activity, rather then flashing out early on before his career can even really get started.
S72:
Connor Tanner @Keygan
Yeah, it's way the hell too early to talk about the S72 class at all, barring the big boy recreates, but Tanner is a prospect to look out for. Capped with a vengeance in his first week and is going to do his best to make a run at 1st overall. Yeah that's definitely a stretch right now with all the recreates in the draft, but everyone said the same thing about me before I became the first first gen to go 1st overall in something like 30 seasons.
851 words. Can't be assed to come up with 149 more so I guess this is just good for my theme week claim for Kastelic (3/1).
With the Season 70 trade deadline rapidly approaching, it looked all but certain that we were headed for another quiet trade deadline. However, with half an hour until the 12 PM EST deadline, the wire suddenly grew red-hot with reports of a trade between the New York Americans and the Vancouver Meute. As the magnitude of the deal became clearer, the league was stunned by the ramifications of the trade.
"Vancouver got robbed," said user ColeMrtz, while another user, solas, called the deal an, "all-time legendary trade." Regardless of your opinion of the transaction, the emotion that gripped the teams following the blockbuster deal was undeniable.
"This was a hard trade to make," said a visibly emotional Joel Ylonen, General Manager of the New York Americans. Gripping the podium, he added, "S72 NYA 4th was a staple on our team but sometimes you have to make hockey deals. I wish him the best of luck in Vancouver."
But it wasn't all sadness from Ylonen, as he wistfully glanced towards the future. "S72 VAN 4th is great and he will fit in with us."
For Vancouver Meute General Manager Keaton Louth, it was also not a fun day at the podium.
"Losing S72 VAN 4th is really tough because he has been such a warrior for us," Louth stated. "But we felt that he needed a change of scenery. S72 NYA 4th was an asset that we have had our eyes on for awhile. We are hoping that with the new S72 NYA 4th that it can be the final asset that pushes us over the hump to bring another cup to Vancouver."
Will this deal be the move that pushes Vancouver over the edge as they pursue another Continental Cup? Can the sacrifice made by Ylonen help bring a pivotal piece of the puzzle to the Big Apple? I have a feeling this is a trade that we'll be talking about for seasons to come.
Get-to-Know the Players
S72 VAN 4th
A fourth round pick of the Vancouver Meute in the Season 72 VHL Entry Draft, S72 VAN 4th is taking a short drive down the Information Superhighway to a different area of the North American Conference Portal: New York. All eyes will be on S72 VAN 4th in the big city, so how will this valuable asset shine when the time comes?
S72 NYA 4th
Not rumored to be a fan of poutine, it turns out that, despite moving to Vancouver, it's totally OK because draft picks in an STHS league can't actually consume food. But that's just fine, as this seasoned veteran of code will bring street smarts and the toughness of Brooklyn's hardest street warriors to Vancouver's section of the portal.
Review:
Doesn't look bad. I think it is hard to make a graphic with the player in that position. I think your text would look even better if it were larger with an outline or something. I like the background. Good job, keep at it.
1. Kastelic, Borwinn, Kriketers, and McWolf all retire after this season. Who has the best chance at a berth on the Hall of Fame?
I'm hoping for McWolf. I really liked his game and is one of the model Defensemen I look up to.
2. We're on a tear lately. Who's to thank for our recent success?
I think it's an awesome team effort on all parts. Guy, Frost, Mikko, Charles and Kastelic have all been killing it.
3. We need to pass one of Calgary, Seattle, Vancouver, or New York to make the playoffs. Who do we have the best chance to catch?
I'm hoping it's Seattle cause it would be awesome to surpass the previous back to back champs to make a playoff spot but any spot will do!
4. We finished our season series against Vancouver with 5 wins and 3 losses. How does it feel to give it to those elitist assholes?
Loved it, loved every moment of it. I'm hoping that it'll build some momentum in the next coming games.
5. Do we have any specific rivalry?
I'm thinking Prague since they're just as green as we are so I see it as a rivalry of the new kids on the block. It's a rivalry I don't plan on losing.
6. Who's a player on another team that you admire?
Along with McWolf, I admire Garcia's style of play and how he values transition defense on the fly and contributing on the attack without putting himself out of position.
1. Who's going to lead our team in points this season? It looked like Aaltonen had it on lock but now Graves and Frostbeard are surging too.
Rooting for all of them to crush points but if I had to choose I'd say Aaltonen cause he's my ride or die. But nothing like some healthy, friendly competition between the boys.
2. What position should we be addressing at the next draft?
Left Wingers would be solid or a goalie prospect would be great additions.
3. Should we make a trade deadline addition to try and reach playoffs or are you happy with the squad we have right now?
I think we have a solid squad right now, I still think that we could make it with the pieces we have. Just some unfortunate luck in games.
4. What's the bigger surprise, Helsinki falling to 8th after their hot start or Seattle jumping up to 5th after their terrible start?
I'm more surprised about Helsinki, I figured they would be higher.
5. There's a 3 way tie for the league scoring lead between Helmsley, Jaguar, and Borwinn, who takes it home?
Hoping Borwinn takes the gold in this race but I know how high stakes the competition is.
6. Yesterday it was announced that Saskatoon GM @Elmebeck passed away. Share a memory if you have one.
I personally have never spoken with him but seeing how well loved he was in the community, it's a real tragedy and I wish the best for him, his family and loved ones during this incredibly unfortunate time.
So welcome to another article! Here we'll be taking a look at how every VHL team is doing--now, yes, but more importantly, into the future. We'll see who's sticking around, who's leaving, how each team is set up for the draft, all that good stuff. If you like overly wordy analysis that takes up half your computer screen to say what could be said in two lines, you've come to the right place. So, let's get into it, I guess...
NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Calgary Wranglers
On Pace For: 44-20-8
Current Standing: 3rd
GM: @Bushito
The Present: Calgary looks good this season, and that's thanks to a solid veteran core with one of the best defensive games in the league. With five players over 600 TPA and a blueline where the average exceeds 700, they're a hard team to crack. Among the veterans, center Tyler Barabash Jr, defenseman Brady Stropko Jr, and goalie JB Rift provide the team's strongest statistical showings, though talent in Calgary is very much spread across the board--despite the Wranglers' record and standing, you'd have to go to 19th on the points list to find Barabash, and the same or similar may be said about many other categories, indicating that there is no sole savior of the team and that it is working well as a whole.
The Future: How the Wranglers look now is nothing compared to what they might look like in a few seasons. Prospects Sigard Gunnar, Hiroshi Okada, Kris Rice, RJ Jubis, and Jacques Lafontaine are all a season or two old and max earners (or close to max earners) on the brink of busting their careers wide open, and that's not even taking into consideration the two top picks in this past draft, Mikko Lahtinen and Edwin THE Encarnacion. If you think they've got a good team now, just wait--especially when they've got two first-rounders in S72.
Best Case: "Best case" is wonderful to think about for a team in a situation like this. Calgary's got five players over 600 TPA right now, and they've managed to put together a solid roster that can win games already. I'm counting seven significant earners on this list alone who are ready to move to the next level, and that's not even looking at the rest of the roster, many of whom are respectable earners in their own right. So, best case scenario? Bush builds a dynasty out of this, going on a long run of success and winning a few cups.
Worst Case: It's difficult to imagine what could possibly go wrong with a team that already seems to have completed a rebuild and are enjoying the post-tank success with much more and potentially much greater to come. A good look at the portal, though, combined with the questionability of some recent events, could even put Calgary under in a few seasons, though that assumes that all that can possibly go wrong does. For one, only four players are signed through S72, and none are signed through S73. For the Wranglers to keep any of their players past that point, they'll need a few good re-signings--though, admittedly, chances are low that everyone decides to bail. The team was briefly put in jeopardy for a brief period of time last season, though, when a large part of the roster retired due to internal conflict. Though the team looks to have sorted things out since, it will be necessary for management to continue to monitor its locker room in order to actively avoid the worst.
Players mentioned:
D.C. Dragons
On Pace For: 29-33-10
Current Standing: 9th
GM: @Enorama
The Present: At the moment, D.C. is a bit below average, but that's a good deal better than they were a couple seasons ago when expansion hit. They actually have more players above 600 TPA than Calgary, at seven compared to Calgary's five, though the pieces aren't quite fitting together in the same way. Next to nobody is seeing individual success--Mikko Aaltonen, the team's point leader, is 23rd on the league leaderboard, while in categories like hits and shots blocked Dragons are barely breaking into the top 40. Even Kallis Kriketers is having his worst season since S64. D.C. does have a roster that looks good on paper, though, and that much is contributing to a just-about-average level of team success.
The Future: D.C. is one of the league's youngest teams, with almost two-thirds of the active roster being either S68 or S69. Whatever's going on there with player retention is working--Luciano Valentino and Mikko Aaltonen are already signed for the rest of their careers, while John Frostbeard just picked up a two-season extension. In the S69 draft, too, they were able to pick up Benny Graves, who stated before the draft that no matter where he was drafted, he planned to stick with them long-term. Other notables picked up in recent drafts, too, include Guy Lesieur and Ricky Johnson, while prospect Derek Eriksson continues to maintain a respectable earn rate in the minors and Eno's GM player, George Washington, is another career-long Dragon at forward. While they've got a first-round pick in both of the next two drafts, it's imperative that they select a goalie if they can't get one in free agency--Kallis is out after this season and backup Pekka Pouta doesn't have future face-of-the-franchise potential.
Best Case: The best case for D.C. is that career signings and player retention are what will lead to them winning. While the Dragons have a couple picks to work with, it really won't be much, so maintenance and growth of the current roster will need to be management's number-one priority. If it works out, though, and they're able to free up some cap space by letting a few inactives go and securing a good goalie before long, D.C. will be a team to be reckoned with in a season or two.
Worst Case: Career signings are a double-edged sword. On one hand, you're quite possibly locking up the future core of your team and ensuring its success for seasons to come. On the other, though, now you've got a massive contract on your hands that can limit cap space and make movement difficult. There's also the question of goaltending--will the Dragons be able to find a legitimate, long-term starter in time to catch their roster in full swing? The future doesn't look bad, but D.C. will have to jump through a few hoops to get there.
Players mentioned:
New York Americans
On Pace For: 35-29-8
Current Standing: 6th
GM: @Esso2264
The Present: New York looks pretty good on paper--nine players above 600 TPA and a good crop of young talent--though they're currently enjoying a fairly average place in the standings because for some reason they keep losing to Davos. Fellow baguettes Joel Ylonen and Joseph McWolf make up the team's veteran leadership, and while New York is yet another team barely cracking the top 40 in points (only two players in that range, with none in the top 30!), goaltender A Red Guy is enjoying a reasonably decent season, coming in at .918 SV% and 2.36 GAA. Overall, not half bad with a decent shot at playoff success.
The Future: The Americans are a young team who look like they've got a bright future--S67 steal and TPE whore Boris the Forest is locked up for the rest of his career, and with recent selections like Lance Flowers, David OQuinn, Soren Jensen, and Owen Nolan leading the prospect pool, New York will break the curse of the S60s and will once again become one of the teams to beat. There's one obvious concern, though--a huge portion of the roster is in their contract year this season. Notable names that could be out the door next season include A Red Guy, Thorvald Gunnarson, Lance Flowers, and Ryo Yamazuki II, and that's not even considering forced retirement of McWolf or the tragic departure of Elmebeck, which will cut out half of the Americans' blueline. If players can be re-signed, this might not be a big deal, but it's a definite concern nonetheless.
Best Case: In short, New York re-signs the players that matter and make a good choice with their first-rounder in this offseason's draft, maybe cashing in on defense. If this can be done, there shouldn't be any major concerns going forward--having so many contracts end in one season does raise concerns, but it also allows a team to decide who to keep and who to move in a much more flexible manner. Next season's cap should be easy to navigate, and if the right players are convinced to re-sign, the Americans will continue to be a threat.
Worst Case: You can probably guess the worst case by now--basically, everyone leaves and New York gets thrown back into the void only a couple seasons after crawling out of it. They're in danger of losing both of their goalies, all but one defenseman, and two active forwards, and if all this happens, New York will find it difficult to stay afloat. Their last first-round choice was a bust as well even though I told Esso to pick him, as Iangenere Risteneen hasn't been seen for a while. So, if the next draft sees a similar miss, it's difficult to imagine the Americans remaining competitive, and even more difficult to imagine them finding legitimate success.
Players mentioned:
Seattle Bears
On Pace For: 38-29-5
Current Standing: 8th
GM: @Banackock
The Present: There's no time like the present to be in Seattle. Winners of the last two cups, the Bears are feeling good behind (as I'm holding back snarky Hounds-related comments) a strong showing from their S67 draft class. Acyd Burn, Ambrose Stark, Henrik Zoiderberg, Scott Greene, Sundqvist, LeGrande, Hogan, Funk--they're all S67, and only four members of the current roster aren't. There's a good chance that they'll continue to find success this season as well--with nine players above 600 TPA, they're a much better team than their eighth-place standing suggests.
The Future: When most of your roster is S67, and six of them are signed through S73, you'll be in the running for a while. Though Seattle doesn't have any prospects in the minors at the moment and won't have any homegrown replacements for its current players for a while, they also don't have much to worry about at the moment. The main concern for Seattle, at the moment, is cap--salary goes up as more TPE is earned, and if the season ended today and restarted tomorrow, they'd be $1.5 million over the cap, even if Jack Lynch is left to free agency--and that's assuming nobody else goes into a higher bracket (a few are close right now and will likely break it by then). They'll be in deeper trouble cap-wise if they use either or both of their two first-rounders in the coming draft on players who will be playing up. So, while the future is still bright, there will need to be at least one cap dump trade to get there.
Best Case: The best thing that can happen to the Bears here is trading away an older, more expensive player (best choice would be Slade, though he's got a no-trade clause) and then using picks to fill in the gap left in the lineup by that player. Then, by the best-case model, that player fits in nicely and the Seattle machine keeps running. Keeping every asset will be impossible, so the best case is simply a smooth transition past the inevitable loss of current strength that keeps the team moving forward and on top.
Worst Case: Sure, Seattle will end up temporarily a little bit worse after this coming offseason. As has been said a million times here already, someone valuable has to go. Worst case? Robbie chooses to exercise the no-trade clause and takes up $4 million in next season's cap space. If that happens, Seattle enters cap hell and needs to offload someone right on top of their career, in their fifth season. At that point, they've taken a step into "sell players for future assets," which is a major step running contrary to the current plan. It won't be the end of the world, but it could knock the team out of elite level long enough for the S67 class to start depreciating--and at that point, it's time for this team to start finding replacements.
Players mentioned:
Toronto Legion
On Pace For: 26-36-10
Current Standing: 11th
GM: @Peace
The Present: There isn't much to be said about Toronto's roster at the moment. They're plagued with inactives, have only one first-round draft choice, and have a thin prospect pool with a few inconsistent welfare earners. The lone bright spot on the current roster is Chad Magnum, this past season's 5th overall selection and a max earner who was shipped off to Toronto as part of a large players-for-picks deal that saw Toronto's first-rounder in the coming draft go to Davos (let's not talk about what I did with it after that). Other semi-actives on the Toronto roster include Nethila Dissanayake, a former Saskatoon player who may remain loyal to current Toronto management, and Aron Nielsen, a S66 first-rounder making a recent return from inactivity.
The Future: It generally isn't a great sign when the most impressive player out of the "present" group is also the most impressive player in the "future" group, but here we are. Magnum is the only player currently owned by Toronto who has future star potential. One player retires next season, and all but three are set to enter free agency, with only a few able to be re-signed as actives. Though the Legion's late first-rounder will almost certainly be burnt for Erik Killinger, Peace's player sitting near the top of the S71 class, Killinger and Magnum are the only two definite pieces they've got in place at the moment and more than time will be necessary to make them competitive.
Best Case: The few active prospects they have ramp up their earning game enough to at the very least provide solid depth, and the rest is done through creative trading, free agent signings, and smart drafting, if it takes long enough to do that they'll have the picks to do it. They'll likely go through a couple more rough seasons, but will be reasonably well-set for the future in good time.
Worst Case: Management is unable to make anything happen within a few seasons. Magnum becomes impatient with the consistent lack of success and leaves in free agency, or he sticks around and the process takes long enough that he and Killinger don't have many prime years left when Toronto begins to compete.
Players mentioned:
Vancouver Wolves
On Pace For: 47-18-7
Current Standing: 2nd
GM: @Beaviss
The Present: There's a lot to like about the Wolves. They've got a small roster of only twelve players, but ten of them are over 600 TPA and two--HHH and Freeman--are over 1,000. Those two sit in the league's top 10 in points, spearheading the Wolves' current success. Goaltender Greg Eagles is enjoying a fantastic season in net, and there isn't a weak spot on the team that would lead one to believe that it might be going otherwise.
The Future: Though Vancouver is a bit older than some of the other teams on this list, that's certainly no major concern at the moment. They'll have Freeman, Downey, Eagles, and very likely HHH through S73, they have not one but two max earners in net (backup Jimmy Spyro says hi), and to go with a long list of draft picks, they've already got prospect Griff Manzer maintaining a respectable earn rate in the minors. The Wolves have pretty much reached any GM's dream spot--to have a good team and the future assets to keep it going. Cap shouldn't be an issue next season, either, as 5-million-dollar defender Tzuyu retires and they'll be able to trade a lower-TPA player like Jerry Wang or let Kevin Low go to free agency if that isn't enough of a discount.
Best Case: Beav continues to lead the team to success and smoothly transitions it into the next era. They're perfectly set up for this, and if this is done right they'll be a consistent threat to any other team in the league for, well, as much of the future as can be reasonably imagined with their current assets. Manzer comes up and continues earning well enough to become a legitimate part of the gameplan, either Spyro or Eagles is flipped for big-time draft capital or a star at some other position, and the team cashes in at the draft with some solid picks.
Worst Case: It's very tough to imagine a worst case here, but one thing or another might go wrong. Tzuyu is out the door, and Kevin Low might be, and if both leave, the roster is left without a fourth defenseman--and the third will be Manzer, who will still be relatively low on the TPE chart. Micheal Gary Scott satisfies his lifelong dream of going off to Seattle in free agency, and Vancouver whiffs on its first-rounders in both of the coming drafts. These are still events that the Wolves will be able to recover from, but it won't make the transition between solid teams a simple handoff.
Players mentioned:
EUROPEAN CONFERENCE
HC Davos Dynamo
On Pace For: 18-42-12
Current Standing: 12th
GM: GM Himself, @GustavMattias
ego grows audibly
The Present: OK, fine, let's talk about how Davos is doing right now. We suck! But that's OK, we've got our actives. As far as this season goes, Davos player leadership consists of a few older and largely inactive individuals--Materazo (our only player above 600 TPA, but at least that's one more than Toronto) is putting up great numbers on both ends of the ice, while John Madden and Anthony Matthews represent the other two pre-S66 players contributing to our game at forward. On the back end, goaltender Samuel Ross recently returned from inactivity and has been earning well since. Overall, sure, we're last in the standings, but it's a rebuild, so that is to be expected.
The Future: Oh boy, the future. That's what we're all about. Let's talk about that--four first-round picks in the next two seasons, and five seconds. To go along with that, we've got a couple Davos-for-life players on defense in Fernando Jokinen and Andrej Petrovic, and there's also Milos Slavik at forward with the potential to be a decent second-line player on a good team. Winger Alex Bridges leads the pack among prospects, with a decent earn rate and solid team activity.
Best Case: The best case is, obviously, that I nail it in the draft and build the best team in the league. There's nowhere for this team to go but up, and there's potential to go way up if things are managed well. We've got the prospect pool and the younger players to build a future support structure already, but the star power needs to be obtained from somewhere else, and the draft is where we'll do it.
Worst Case: I run the team into the ground by being an idiot, making stupid decisions, and not drafting well. If I do, too, it's entirely my fault--I was handed a perfectly set-up team and now it's on me to work with that. And if I'm stupid enough, it won't happen quite the way anyone here in Davos is hoping. I'm still unproven as a GM on the VHL level, and if it turns out that I suck at it, that will be the team's greatest enemy.
Players mentioned:
Helsinki Titans
On Pace For: 37-30-5
Current Standing: 7th
GM: @Jubo07
The Present: The Titans sit in seventh place at the moment, and they're hanging on to the last bits of their former glory days. Julian Borwinn, Joey Boucher, Sidney Crosby, and Alexander Pepper are all in their last seasons, and it looks like Helsinki is doing what they can to make the best of it. They've made some moves to secure some players from S66 and later--Ben Hafkey, Erik Draven, Erik Summers, and Guillaume Fontenette come to mind--and have built a decent roster with dreams to compete and bring what's left of the @Quik era to an end with a bang.
The Future: I came into this one thinking that this segment would be all about how the Titans need to rebuild, scrap everything, become the next Davos and all that stuff. It turns out that that isn't really the case, though--Helsinki has easily the best pool of VHLM prospects that the league has to offer, and many of their players from S66 or after will be sticking around for a bit. Though a step back is expected, it won't be nearly as drastic as one might believe. Virgil Ligriv will likely take over in net, while the others mentioned above will make up the future core. Among the prospects, Jared Spaz and Ike Bennett come to mind as two that do 6-point tasks with a decent earn rate, and there are many more welfare earners who should be up in a season or two. It seems that a retool, not a rebuild, is in order, and for that Helsinki management is grateful.
Best Case: Though it's unrealistic to expect Helsinki not to take a step back, a best case scenario leads one to believe that they'll be able to emerge from the transition in only a season or two without ever tanking or being at the bottom of the league. They'll have at least two solid earners next season, and likely a bit more than that, with a first-round pick in the draft, another first-rounder in S72 when Jubo's recreate comes up, and the cap space to accommodate some free agent signings or perhaps a big-ticket player or two in a trade. If all goes well, the Titans will once again stand atop the league with an entirely different roster in not too much time.
Worst Case: The worst case scenario in this instance is simply that the retool might not be done in a matter of one or two seasons. It might take a bit longer to develop the prospects--assuming, of course, that they all continue to develop and none go inactive--and by that point players like Hafkey, Fontenette, and Ligriv will be significantly affected by depreciation and well on their way to retirement. Assuming Helsinki does attempt a successful retool--and I maintain that they should, regardless of what the worst case scenario says--their prospects need to maintain their earn rates. If management isn't able to flex their player retention muscles, the Titans will be left with yet another aging roster, this time with nowhere else to go but a complete rebuild.
Players mentioned:
Malmo Nighthawks
On Pace For: 31-38-3
Current Standing: 10th
GM: @Advantage
The Present: Malmo is the league's most unlucky team, and (I hope) I'm not just saying that because I play there. With eight players above 600 TPA, right up there with the more above-average teams in the league, they've still managed to be...not that great, currently sitting in 10th place. Much of the roster is in the S66-S68 range, with players like Jerry Garcia (ahem), Phil Marleau, and Michael Johnson representing the first generation of the team's history. Further supplemented is the blueline, with the likes of Condor Adrienne, while the forwards lines are graced by the presence of Aleksander Rodriguez and Dan Wilinsky. There's a solid roster there, but one that simply is not working.
The Future: If you thought D.C. was notorious for career signings, then take a look at Malmo's finance page and think about how wrong you were. Every player in the S66 class or after on the 600-TPA-or-more list is locked up for most or all of the rest of their career, leaving Malmo (on paper) very set up for the future. Though Dan Wilinsky is retiring this season and Ryan Sullivan Jr the next, the Nighthawks will see first-round prospect Lewis Dawson promoted next season and will then have the cap space for a move or two to be made, and perhaps a signing as well.
Best Case: Everything finally clicks for Malmo after two seasons of underwhelming sim results, and they're able to enjoy success because of it. Marleau finally finds his place on the team, Garcia stops taking so many penalties, and the Nighthawks are back on top of the league with seasons to go on the big-boy contracts. Management hits on the first-rounder in S72, and all is well.
Worst Case: SimonT continues to vomit all over Sweden and Malmo's current roster simply doesn't do the trick. The career signings given to half the team begin to hurt the team rather than help it, as moves should be made to bring Malmo back to where it should be and it becomes difficult to ship people off elsewhere, particularly now-inactive Rob Mattalex, who will cost any team taking him on $4 million per season, even after depreciation hits. Malmo is unable to scrape together enough prospects for a successful retool and goes the way of the Helsinki worst-case.
Players mentioned:
Moscow Menace
On Pace For: 48-17-7
Current Standing: 1st
GM: @Victor
The Present: "Top of the League" is really all that needs to be said about Moscow at the moment. They've got eight players over 600 TPA, and while that isn't top of the league, they're making it work. A veteran core including Jet Jaguar, Randoms, and the venerable Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen lead the way at the moment, and there's a ton to like on the leaderboard--six out of the top ten point scorers are from Moscow: Jaguar, Randoms, Smitty, Gritty, Mat Tocco, and the highly underrated Dan Baillie, a player who isn't a household name but has contributed almost a point per game in his Moscow career while also showing his two-way ability by consistently reaching impressive hit totals. Moscow is dominant this season, and it's hard to imagine anyone getting by them in the playoffs.
The Future: The future looks good in Moscow, more so than one might expect from a look at the finances page. Though Smitty and Gritty are officially set to enter free agency after this season, neither one has historically been prone to leaving a team, and it's easy to see both re-signing. As far as younger players go, the Menace don't have much in the way of prospects, but they do have a good amount of draft picks in the coming drafts, as well as TPE whore Raymond Bernard in net, active long-term signing Nate Telker at forward, and GM player Vladimir Pavlov on defense to keep the ball rolling (or, "keep the puck moving," I guess?) into the next generation of Moscow players.
Best Case: Smitty and Gritty re-sign and stick with Moscow for the rest of their careers, as does Jaguar. The Menace make some good draft choices and maybe a signing somewhere along the way, and remain a good team for the foreseeable future. One can afford to run the team conservatively at the moment, too, as more than enough cap space will be freed up by the retiring Randoms to retain the current roster should they decide to stay where they are.
Worst Case: Smitty and Gritty decide to take their orange fur elsewhere and the Menace aren't as menacing in S71 after, well, not making signings like Smitty and Gritty. They remain mediocre--think of a big buff dude grimacing at you rather than scowling in terms of menacing quality--but aren't top of the league. They'll have space to work with, both cap-wise and draft-wise, but Victor, being the idiot that he is in this worst-case model, somehow manages to screw up both, missing signings and picking busts, until Moscow has an aging and top-heavy roster ready to tip over. As you can see, this worst-case scenario takes a whole lot of screwing up to achieve, but it's the most realistic out of everything as there isn't really much that can go wrong.
Players mentioned:
Prague Phantoms
On Pace For: 37-25-10
Current Standing: 5th
GM: @diamond_ace
The Present: Prague is getting off to a better start than the other S67 expansion, D.C., and they're doing it with a super balanced roster. With only two players above 600 TPA, but tons in the 500-600 range, the Phantoms are making a name for themselves through depth, teamwork, and a little bit of sim luck. Current Prague veterans leading the way include Roll Fizzlebeef and Brick Wahl, though the roster runs a bit deeper with many noted players from S66-S69 seeing themselves in supporting roles. Though it could be argued that they're playing a bit above their caliber at the moment, the Phantoms are a decent team that happens to be very, very balanced.
The Future: Prague's got three players--Alex Pearson, Jacob Perry, and Wolf Stansson Jr--signed through S73, with Seabass Perrin and Cinnamon Block representing a couple young bright spots on defense with solid earn rates and bright futures. Solomon Crawford isn't the fastest earner, though likely figures to be the starting goalie once Wahl is out. The Phantoms don't have many draft picks, with one first-rounder next season representing the only significant pick held by the team, but if the current roster is able to be retained successfully, they could be in more serious contention in a season or two.
Best Case: The best case here isn't really as dynasty-ish and high up as some of the others, but it's still an optimistic one. Prague's future lies in retention--if they lose some players to free agency, which is possible, they may end up making some signings of their own, but the smartest way to develop the Phantoms is simply to just wait for the current roster to develop and reach a higher level of competition. After a hit in the coming draft's first round, the Phantoms sit back and wait--the defense breaks into the next level, Pearson steps it up at forward, and Prague earns a spot near the top of the league in an undisputed manner.
Worst Case: Prague picks a bust next season and growth of the current roster proves to be of questionable effect. Block, Perrin, and Stansson should stick around, but most others on the team are welfare earners with second-line potential. The team also has no real star power at forward, a part of the ice a good deal more important in this league than the blueline. In this case, we'd see less of management running the team into the ground and more of the team running itself into the ground--most of this plan is dependent upon the team's ability to improve itself, and if it fails in that regard, there won't be much to see in a few seasons.
Players mentioned:
Riga Reign
On Pace For: 42-23-7
Current Standing: 4th
GM: @hedgehog337
The Present: Riga's got seven players above my arbitrary 600-TPA standard, and as has been the norm as long as I've been in this league (since the prime days of Preencarnacion and Cast), plenty of star power. They seem to have transitioned well between rosters, keeping Ryan Kastelic, the TPE whore who makes most other whores look like nuns by comparison, throughout that entire period. The current stars of the team include Kastelic, Lincoln Tate, Apollo Hackett, and former Davos franchise goalie Finn Davison, acquired this past offseason in a deal which gave Kallis the chance to be shipped out to D.C.. The Reign are strong as always, and though they aren't on top of the league, no major concerns are present as far as this season goes.
The Future: Oh, look, Riga has a good team and a good set of picks again. I'm hardly surprised--this has, of course, been the case for most of the time I've been in this league. With three first-rounders in the next two drafts, Riga is there to make a big splash with their selections, and they'll be strengthening an already good team with a decent prospect pool--they've got a few decent earners in the VHLM, but forward JaredN and goaltender Nicolas Fomba, who projects as a solid backup, are the top two in that regard. With the current roster, the entire blueline is signed through next season, though only two forwards will be around for sure--with the rest either retired or hitting free agency, an overhaul up front might be necessary.
Best Case: Hedge re-signs who he needs to at forward and Riga solves their goaltending problem, either through the draft or a trade. He's able to use some free cap space left in the absence of Kastelic to seduce bring in a solid player up front, and Patrik Tallinder and Guy Sasakamoose continue on their young talent track and develop into legitimate stars. Solid draft choices are made, Riga continues to be a good team, and nobody is surprised in the slightest.
Worst Case: For a team where everything has gone right in recent times, what could possibly go wrong? The worst that can happen to the Reign at the moment is a loss of just about their entire forward personnel--Kastelic will be forced out, and should the others choose to exercise their right to test the market, it could thin the team out quite a bit more. Davison retires before Riga is able to find a legitimate replacement, and the team effectively becomes limited to its strong defensive core only. Though this situation is unlikely, some smart management will be necessary to avoid it.
Players mentioned:
Word count: 5,711. Apparently it's a 20-minute read too, hope you enjoy it. Thank God for multi-claims, because I might need them in the next few weeks.
Honestly off the bat the only thing I could make as a suggestion is to make it brighter and let the colors flow. Thiis has a nice background and it's obvious the reds and yellows would look hella nice here, but they are kind of drowned out by the darkness. Overall though, no major concerns.
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