TMI

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legion 4-2

New York Americans Riga Reign Helsinki Titans Calgary Wranglers

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1. What are your opinions on the start of the season? I was sad to not be playing for the first 5 games, but our team has been great regardless and have been playing well 2. What are your objectives for this season? Hopefully be one of the top forwards in the VHLM I think I've worked myself pretty well and even though still developing I think of myself as one of the better forwards in the league. 3. Who do you think will take the Founder's Cup? I think we will, our team is solid from top to bottom and we extremely well as a team. 4. The Storm are off to a very slow start, do you think they'll end up catching a rythm and climbing to the top? I don't think so, I think they'll stay about right in the middle as they are now 5. What is a trade that you would like to see in the Lynx? I'm not too sure if we need to make a trade, I suppose if we did I'd say maybe pick up another more veteran wing player as our depth might be a little suspect at the moment 6. Who do you think is going to be in the last place this year? Right now I don't see any team being last place other than Yukon.

The Ottawa Lynx are off to a hot start to their S64 VHLM season, however, things may not be as great internally as they appear to be externally. There have been reports surfacing from various sources saying that star forward, Kyson Blake, has had multiple heated exchanges with both head coach and Lynx management. It's not clear what these exchanges were in regards to because from all the information that we've been able to gather things between Blake and Ottawa were said to be on great terms and he was looking forward to playing with them this season. For some unexplained reason, however, Blake failed to record any minutes for in the team's first five games of the season and instead was listed as a "healthy scratch", not even suiting up for the team. We're not sure if this was the cause for Blake being upset or if him being scratched was a result of the confrontations he made. More information on this story will be come when we uncover it.

Riga 3-2

25 Helsinki Titans @ Riga 26 Seattle Bears @ Calgary Wranglers 27 New York Americans @ HC Davos Dynamo 28 Toronto Legion @ Quebec City Meute

Ismond Kingfisher

Robert Malenko @Joubo

EFL Affiliate

1. Are you happy to be on the team? Anything you'd like me to do to make things better for you? Yeah I think it's a solid group overall and I'm just happy I am able to stay down and play it with them. 2. How do you think we did in the draft? Great, I think we picked up some solid players in the first three rounds, and then me in the fourth set us up great. 3. Who do you think wins the cup? That's a tough one, every team is a new team basically. We got a shot, but it'll be tough. 4. Players you're looking forward to playing with? All of them, but really looking forward to seeing how I gel with the other players on my line specifically 5. Any preferences with team when you get up to the bigs? (of course Warren and Rift will have a bit of a different perspective on this one) I mean....Riga probably ? 6. How are you handling the site so far? Understanding everything, any of it confuse you, etc? It's pretty good, the integration is very good though.

Maxim Kovalchuk @oilmandan

wew I upvoted them all!

As the off-season has ended and the pre-season has officially begun, Kyson Blake finds himself in a much different situation than last year. Last year, Blake joined a team full of veteran players on the Saskatoon Wild, and was able to play on the second and third lines, while learning from the players ahead of him. This season though, Blake will not only be joining a new team, the Ottawa Lynx, but he will also be expected to take on a much larger role, playing on the first line, and being a leader for the team. This will be Kyson's time to shine and prove that he has taken the next step and show out for the VHL and show just how far he's come and what he will be bringing to the next level after this season. "I'm in a new place and in a new role here in Ottawa, but overall it's still largely the same for me. I'm still going to go out each and every day and practice and try to improve in the areas I'm weak and just become the best player I can. I'll prove everyone I'm a capable starter in this league and after this season I'll be remembered."

Veran Dragomir @Joubo

Julian Borwinn @oilmandan

Pod Cast @Joubo

1. The best-of-3 finals of the Sponsor's Shield Tournament will see the VIKING and True North Gear brands face each. Who do you think takes the first ever Cup home? I was pretty wrong about the Sponsor's Shield.....I'll guess VIKING 2. Are you satisfied with your position in the draft(s) that happened earlier this week? yeah, I definitely wasn't expecting to be a 1st round VHL pick 3. Who do you think are the frontrunners for the VHLM Founder's Cup this season? Ottawa, we gonna put out ! Haha yeah I don't really know 4. Do you like the atmosphere in your new VHLM team's locker room? yeah Ottawa be great 5. What have you been focusing on during your most recent training sessions? I think I did defense, still a major focus for me I think 6. Fun question for new members, horrible question for veterans: Are you superstitious? Do you have a pre-game routine? Yeah I wear all black before a game, usually a big hoodie and sweats....doesn't matter if it's 100f outside i'ma still be wearing that.

nvm I'm an idiot

me

Kyson Blake, a member of last season's Saskatoon Wild championship team, recalls the days leading up to the VHLM's Dispersal Draft and what those moments were like. Honestly it was a weird feeling because I had just played an entire season with Saskatoon and now I was going to be with a new team. The weird part was that no teams were contacting me, I think I only spoke to two total. Blake, seen as a fringe VHL pick, was an unknown headed into the draft because of his potential VHL status. It definitely was a bit frustrating, because I thought I'd be a player teams would definitely want, but at the same time I understand they don't want someone who will be gone after just next season or may not play for them at all. As the hours count down to the VHL draft, Blake is having those nervous feelings all over. It's another draft with another set of teams and I'm anxious to see where I end up and what that will look like.

Last night the VHL Minors held a dispersal draft, basically meaning that all VHLM players are no longer on their teams and all players would be up for grabs in a draft format. Kyson Blake entered not knowing where he would end up, but after it was all said and done, he was eventually picked with the first pick in the fourth round by the Ottawa Lynx, the very team he helped Saskatoon sweep in the finals of last season's VHLM playoffs. Now it seems though that Blake is in a bit of a precarious position as he waits to find out his VHL fate. Blake will be a member of the Lynx for at least 48 hours, but the team that selects him in VHL's entry draft may choose to block his return to the minors. Blake had this to say about the situation: It's definitely a weird spot to be in. Every VHLM team I'd spoken to before the draft I had let my intention known that I'd be playing down next season, but I know I'm right on the cusp and that a VHL team may feel I can help them out this season. I'm going to put in the work next season regardless of team or league I play for and I'll hold no ill-will or animosity towards a VHL team if they choose to block me from playing in the minors this next season. For now though I'm a Lynx. Blake certainly does make for an interesting case as he has put in a ton of work and even though he joined later than some of the other players in his class, he still ranks very highly among his peers. There might actually be some VHL teams who feel like he has the potential to play meaningful VHL minutes in the upcoming VHL season and in such a case force Blake to stay up. Looking back at his season it took a while for the youngster to get his feet under him as it would take 5 games for him to find his first point, an assist on a Burnt Toast goal, and 7 games before his first goal. Hard work is nothing new to Kyson though as he was always either on the ice, in the weight room, or working with any of the Saskatoon coaches that'd work with him. Over the course of the season Blake got better and better and at one point even had a 9 game streak where he recorded a point. Kyson worked his way up the Saskatoon lines and by the time the playoffs hit he would become a vital member in the rotation. As the Wild went down three games to one in the semis Blake continued to be a rock for the team as he managed to record a point in every game of the series. If you were to ask him about it though, he'd probably deny any of it and instead point towards his teammates. After the season was all said and done and he had celebrated with his team he had these parting words in regards to Saskatoon: It was probably one of the best experiences of my life. I loved all my teammates, playing with them, and growing with them. We'll be bonded throughout our days because of this journey and Saskatoon will always be a special place for me because of it.

2

As the VHLM starts to shift its focus towards next season and its upcoming draft, Saskatoon Wild player Kyson Blake awaits eagerly to find out where he'll be playing next season. I recently sat down with Blake to discuss a myriad of things and topic of next season came up. I really don't know where I'm going to be playing, if I'll be a member of the Wild once again, or if I'll be putting on different colors. None of that matters though as I'm just focused on improving my play and that will show next season for whatever city I'll be representing. He told me that so far he hasn't been contacted by any other VHLM general managers, but he's confident he's going to be one of the top forwards in S64. This last season Blake was overshadowed a bit by stars Rylan Peace and Chace Trepanier, but he credits them with help in his development and also told me he was thankful for being in such a situation because it allowed him to grow while not really feeling the pressure being a main guy on the team as that may have hindered his development.